Blockspace: Bitcoin is Already Quantum Resistant?! Plus, Inside Iran’s $3B BTC Economy, and U.S. States Are Banning AI Data Centers

·1 hr 23 min·5 clips

A researcher proposes a way to make Bitcoin quantum-resistant without changing the protocol, but migrating your coins will cost $200 each.

The episode opens with hosts Colin and Charlie introducing the week's topics, starting with a quantum resistance proposal from Starkware researcher Avi Hu that allows Bitcoin to become quantum-safe without a soft fork, though it requires expensive transaction compute costs. They then welcome Khan Farahani from Luxor, who presents the Hash Rate Look Back for March 2026, revealing it was the most turbulent quarter for Bitcoin mining difficulty since the China mining ban in 2021, with two consecutive top-10 difficulty drops driven by curtailment and Middle East disruptions rather than structural loss. Khan explains that hash rate recovered quickly after adjustments, indicating transient shocks, and discusses the impact of oil prices and conflict on Gulf state miners, noting Luxor's heat map estimates Oman and UAE each contribute about 3% of global hash rate. Next, Neha Narula from MIT Media Lab joins to discuss her framework for evaluating quantum computing risk, emphasizing that even a low probability like 10% by 2030 is unacceptable for Bitcoin's security and that the community needs to phase upgrades. She outlines political frictions, including what to do with unmoved coins and trade-offs in signature schemes, and notes cryptographers are already shifting to post-quantum work. The hosts then analyze a map from Will Maniatis showing U.S. states with data center moratoriums, highlighting bans in Maine, Michigan, Virginia, and Georgia, and discuss the populist backlash against AI data centers due to power bill impacts and environmental concerns. In news segments, they report that Gemini Exchange is seeking buyers for its shuttered UK and EU operations to acquire regulatory licenses, and Nakamoto is proposing a reverse stock split to avoid NASDAQ delisting, with CEO David Bailey holding 17.3% of shares. The episode closes with a deep dive into Iran's potential use of Bitcoin for oil tolls in the Strait of Hormuz, linking it to Iran's $3 billion underground Bitcoin economy, mining estimates of 0.84% of global hash rate, and sanctions evasion.

As heard by us

Bitcoin security, mining pressure, exchange trouble, and data center politics converge in a busy but grounded hour.

Block Space Live treats Bitcoin quantum resistance as a real security question, with migration cost at the center and no soft fork in sight. It then widens its scope to Luxor's Khan Farahani on Bitcoin mining in March and the most volatile quarter since the China mining ban in…

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You get Bitcoin quantum risk, miner strain, and Iran's Bitcoin angle without losing the thread.

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