The mystery around Satoshi Nakamoto is getting enigmatic day by day, and the claims of being the Bitcoin creator are getting more and more common. The latest claim was made by Peter Suderman, a popular news editor. However, Suderman hasn’t made the claim for himself but stated that the famous sci-fi author Stephenson could be Satoshi Nakamoto.
At a time where a man like Craig Wright has taken the race to own the title of ‘crypto king’ to a whole new level, such a claim of a sci-fi author being Nakamoto is the last thing the industry wants. Wright has already made life difficult, by using his critics and taking the courts as his bet to claim the title. The industry is just exhausted by the drama created around the inventor of Bitcoin.
Though Suderman has made just speculation, rather than an out and out claim like Wright, he is pretty firm on the view that Stephenson inspired the creation of Bitcoin. In his article, he says,
I am not saying that Neal Stephenson is Satoshi Nakamoto. What I am saying is: Would it really be surprising if he were?
That this outlandish possibility even exists suggests the ingenuity of his mind and the depth of his influence. It’s plausible that Neal Stephenson invented, or helped invent, Bitcoin, because that is simply the sort of thing that Neal Stephenson might do.
Suderman also states that the author of Snow Crash, Cryptonomicon, and Seveneves, had written about the concept of decentralized currencies and monetary system much before Nakamoto invented Bitcoin. Even if this is true, this, in no way, proves that Stephenson is Nakamoto, as there were several others who wrote similar stuff when he could have inspired the creator of Bitcoin.
Suderman than tries to make a point by stating that Stephenson worked with major tech innovators like the inventors of the internet and iPad. Stephenson also happened to work with Jeff Bezos backed Blue Origin. Suderman says that the author incorporated many micro and nanotech systems in his novels, which were much similar to the structural design of Bitcoin. He further says,
For nearly three decades, Stephenson’s novels have displayed an obsessive, technically astute fascination with cryptography, digital currency.
Any person who has been in the industry for a reasonable time will agree that Bitcoin was inspired by many kinds of research by scientists, Stephenson’s works could be among them. However, this doesn’t prove that he invented Bitcoin, as with similar logic, there will be dozens who could make similar claims. Stephenson himself never claimed of being Satoshi Nakamoto.
What all of this means is that a person wants to prove who Nakamoto is, needs concrete proofs, like the first keys, initial researches, and much more technical evidence. Simply going to the court, or writing an article on an online portal will not suffice the argument.