Anything related to Elon Musk is quite paradoxical. Here he declares, “I have to say, I don’t spend a lot of time thinking about cryptocurrency. Hardly any at all.” And in the next moment, he’s already saying, “Perhaps you can use Bitcoin to some extent, but it will be challenging to use it in large quantities on Mars.”
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Before that, of course, he managed to stir up a buzz on his social media and engage in a discussion with Cathie Wood about how it’s impossible. We also have a hard time keeping up with the flight of his thoughts, so let’s break it all down step by step.
To Use or Not To Use?
Initially, SpaceX and Tesla founder, Elon Musk, resisted the idea of using bitcoins as currency on Mars. This unfolds against the backdrop of Musk’s ongoing vision of building a colony on Mars by 2050, asserting that humans must evolve into a multi-planetary species to survive. Many, judging by X, seem grateful to Elon for instilling such hope in people.
Well, let’s dive back into Musk’s contradictions. In the X-space named “Approved ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF (ARKB),” with ARK Invest’s CEO, Kathy Wood, at the helm, Musk initially rejected the use of bitcoins as currency on Mars due to the significant time it takes for transaction settlements.
It would be sensible to use some cryptocurrency on Mars; you can’t use Bitcoin because the confirmation takes too darn long.
However, after a bit of mental gymnastics, Musk concluded that it’s indeed possible, considering that Earth is just eight light minutes away from the Sun, and Mars is about 12 light minutes away – although it’ll still face some hurdles.
“Perhaps you can use Bitcoin to some extent, but on Mars, it might be tricky to use it in large quantities,” he declared, throwing in the potential need for a localized Martian network. Because when you’re trying to buy Martian souvenirs, the last thing you want is interplanetary transaction lag!
Mars might be approximately 12 light minutes away from us. So, it’s not a walk in the park; there needs to be something localized on Mars.
To everyone’s surprise, Musk even found common ground with Bitcoin’s main developer, Matt Corallo, acknowledging that the low transaction speed of Bitcoin could be solved with the help of a localized Lightning Network.
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However, the CEO of Blockstream, Adam Back, was more optimistic about this idea, whether or not the Lightning Network is localized in Bitcoin’s current form. Bitcoin currently takes up to an hour to secure transactions, as its blockchain consolidates them into 10-minute blocks, requiring confirmation of six blocks before the transaction is complete. Adam responded, saying, “twelve – twenty-two light minutes – not a problem for ten-minute blocks.”
It seems the battle for the leading cryptocurrency on Mars is kicking off. Bitcoin already rules on Earth, but who knows what solutions other blockchain developers will come up with to claim the prestigious title of “First Cryptocurrency on Mars.”
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