Satoshi era timeline
The landmarks of the years when Satoshi was still the steward of Bitcoin: important decisions, releases, forks, people who later shaped the project, and economic firsts. Every moment links to a source. Filter by category or person, jump by year, or open a card for the full note. The same list works without JavaScript.
2008
- People joiningWritings
First known email: Hashcash citation to Adam Back
Satoshi writes to Adam Back to check the Hashcash citation and shares a pre-release draft then titled Electronic Cash Without a Trusted Third Party.
Archive: Private email (Adam Back) · Citation of your Hashcash paper
- People joiningWritings
Email to Wei Dai about b-money
After Back points to b-money, Satoshi writes to Wei Dai for the publication year and sends the same draft paper.
Archive: Private email (Wei Dai) · Citation of your b-money page
- WritingsReleases
Whitepaper announced on the Cryptography mailing list
"I've been working on a new electronic cash system that's fully peer-to-peer, with no trusted third party." The paper is posted at bitcoin.org/bitcoin.pdf. Perry Metzger moderated the list where it landed.
Archive: Cryptography mailing list (metzdowd) · Bitcoin P2P e-cash paper
Also: Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System
Perry E. Metzger on Bitcoin Takeover Cues the player at 25:20 · play on click, quiet fade.
- WritingsPeople joining
Early Cryptography list replies begin
Through November 2008 Satoshi answers design questions from James A. Donald, Ray Dillinger, Hal Finney and others on the list.
James A. DonaldRay DillingerHal Finney
Archive: Cryptography mailing list (metzdowd) · Bitcoin P2P e-cash paper
- People joining
Ray Dillinger engages on the Cryptography list
Ray Dillinger replies on the whitepaper thread. He later helped review early code and wrote publicly about that period.
Archive: Cryptography mailing list (metzdowd) · Bitcoin P2P e-cash paper
- People joining
Hal Finney joins the whitepaper discussion
Hal Finney, already known for PGP and RPOW, posts on the Cryptography thread and becomes one of the first people to run the software.
Archive: Cryptography mailing list (metzdowd) · Bitcoin P2P e-cash paper
- People joiningDecisions
James A. Donald presses scaling questions
James A. Donald raises early scaling and design critiques on the Cryptography list that Satoshi answers in public.
Archive: Cryptography mailing list (metzdowd) · Bitcoin P2P e-cash paper
2009
- ReleasesEconomics & milestones
Genesis block
The genesis block is mined, with the Times headline about a second bank bailout embedded in the coinbase. This is a chain event, not a mailing-list post.
Sources: Bitcoin Wiki: Genesis block · Block 0 on a block explorer (example)
A chain or market event, not a Satoshi mailing-list post.
- Releases
Bitcoin v0.1 released
Satoshi announces the first public release on the Cryptography list and shortly afterwards on bitcoin-list, then emails Finney, Dai and Back that the code is out.
Archive: Cryptography mailing list (metzdowd) · Bitcoin v0.1 released
- Releases
Bitcoin v0.1.2 available
Satoshi ships a quick follow-up build on bitcoin-list as early testers hit install and crash issues.
Archive: bitcoin-list (SourceForge) · [bitcoin-list] Bitcoin v0.1.2 now available
- Economics & milestonesPeople joining
First transaction, to Hal Finney
Block 170 sends 10 BTC to Hal Finney. The January 2009 Finney emails cover the crash fixes and debug builds around this week.
Archive: Private email (Hal Finney) · RE:Crash in bitcoin 0.1.0
- People joining
Dustin Trammell receives v0.1 release mail
Satoshi emails Dustin Trammell about the v0.1 release. Their published correspondence continues through early 2009.
Archive: Private email (Dustin Trammell) · Re: Bitcoin v0.1 released
- Releases
Bitcoin v0.1.3
Another early patch release lands the same week as the first transaction to Hal Finney.
Archive: bitcoin-list (SourceForge) · [bitcoin-list] Bitcoin v0.1.3
- Releases
Bitcoin v0.1.5 released
Satoshi continues the rapid early patch cycle on bitcoin-list while the network is still tiny.
Archive: bitcoin-list (SourceForge) · [bitcoin-list] Bitcoin v0.1.5 released
- Writings
P2P Foundation announcement
Satoshi posts "Bitcoin open source implementation of P2P currency" on the P2P Foundation and follows up on the p2p-research list.
Archive: P2P Foundation forum · Bitcoin open source implementation of P2P currency
- WritingsPeople joining
Chaumian cash discussed in public
On the p2p-research list Satoshi discusses prior electronic cash designs, including David Chaum's work, as context for Bitcoin's design.
Archive: P2P Foundation p2p-research list · [p2p-research] Bitcoin open source implementation of P2P currency
- People joining
Mike Hearn starts a long email correspondence
Mike Hearn writes with detailed questions. The published Hearn threads run from 2009 to April 2011 and include some of Satoshi's last known messages.
Archive: Private email (Mike Hearn) · Questions about BitCoin
- People joining
Martti Malmi offers to help
Satoshi's first reply to Martti (Sirius): the website, the FAQ, and a working correspondence that runs into 2011. Martti becomes a core early collaborator on bitcoin.org and the forum.
Archive: Private email (Martti Malmi) · Re: Bitcoin
Martti Malmi on Bitcoin Takeover Cues the player at 62:54 · play on click, quiet fade.
- Economics & milestonesPeople joining
Early exchange rates and NewLibertyStandard
NewLibertyStandard and others begin publishing exchange rates and trading bitcoin for other money. Satoshi's mail and forum posts from this period discuss price, exchanges and getting coins to new users.
Archive: Private email (Martti Malmi) · Re: Setup, Autorun, v0.1.6
Sources: New Liberty Standard historical rate page (archive references)
- People joiningDecisions
Forum and site work with Martti
Satoshi and Martti exchange a dense run of emails about the forum software, Linux builds and bitcoin.org while the new public forum is taking shape.
Archive: Private email (Martti Malmi) · Re: Forum
Martti Malmi on Bitcoin Takeover Cues the player at 62:54 · play on click, quiet fade.
- ReleasesWritings
The new Bitcoin forum opens
Satoshi welcomes people to the forum that later becomes BitcoinTalk. Earlier bitcoin.org forum posts were migrated here.
- Releases
Bitcoin 0.2 released
Satoshi and Martti coordinate the 0.2 release announcement across the forum and mailing list.
Archive: BitcoinTalk · Bitcoin 0.2 released!
2010
- Economics & milestonesWritings
Difficulty and generation threads
As more miners arrive, Satoshi answers generation and difficulty questions on the forum, including threads involving theymos.
- People joining
theymos appears in forum threads Satoshi answered
Satoshi replies in threads where theymos is active. theymos later becomes the long-running moderator of BitcoinTalk.
- Decisions
bitcoin: URI scheme discussion
Satoshi discusses a URI scheme for bitcoin payments, an early step toward clickable payment links in wallets and on the web.
- People joining
Laszlo Hanyecz active in early mining and support threads
Satoshi posts in threads involving Laszlo Hanyecz, who was an early GPU miner and a visible forum presence.
Archive: BitcoinTalk · Re: Ummmm... where did my bitcoins go?
- Economics & milestonesPeople joining
Pizza Day
Laszlo Hanyecz pays 10,000 BTC for two pizzas, the best-known early real-world purchase. Satoshi did not write a dedicated post about it; it is included here as an economics landmark of the period.
Sources: BitcoinTalk: Pizza for bitcoins (Laszlo) · Wikipedia: History of bitcoin (pizza transaction)
A chain or market event, not a Satoshi mailing-list post.
- Decisions
IRC bootstrapping discussion
Satoshi discusses IRC-based peer discovery for new nodes, an early network bootstrapping mechanism later replaced by other seed methods.
- People joining
Gavin Andresen becomes visible in development threads
Satoshi posts immediately after Gavin in development threads. Through late 2010 Gavin takes on more release and project responsibility.
Archive: BitcoinTalk · Re: Transactions and Scripts: DUP HASH160 ... EQUALVERIFY CHECKSIG
- Economics & milestonesPeople joining
Bitcoin Faucet changes
Gavin's Bitcoin Faucet and related threads show how free test coins were used to onboard people. Satoshi posts in the surrounding discussion.
- Releases
Bitcoin 0.3 released
Version 0.3 ships. Satoshi and Martti coordinate release notes and downloads by email and on the forum.
- People joiningWritings
Nick Szabo and Bit Gold cited in public
In a Wikipedia-deletion thread Satoshi's writing points at prior art in the cypherpunk lineage, including Bit Gold. There is no published Satoshi email to Szabo in this archive.
Archive: BitcoinTalk · Re: They want to delete the Wikipedia article
- People joining
Jeff Garzik appears in early development threads
Satoshi posts in threads where Jeff Garzik is active. Garzik becomes a visible early Bitcoin Core contributor.
Archive: BitcoinTalk · Re: Implementation bug prior to 0.3.6
Jeff Garzik on Bitcoin Takeover Cues the player at 12:58 · play on click, quiet fade.
- DecisionsWritings
Escrow and contract design posts
Satoshi describes how Bitcoin transactions can encode escrow and multiparty contracts without a trusted third party holding the keys.
Archive: BitcoinTalk · Escrow
- Forks & incidentsDecisions
The 184-billion-coin value overflow
A value-overflow bug creates about 184 billion bitcoin in one block. Satoshi posts alerts, investigates, and ships a patched client. The chain is forked to reject the bad block.
Archive: bitcoin-list (SourceForge) · [bitcoin-list] ALERT - we are investigating a problem
Also: Re: overflow bug SERIOUSVersion 0.3.10 - block 74638 overflow PATCH!
- Forks & incidentsReleases
Overflow patch: version 0.3.10
Satoshi publishes the overflow patch and asks the network to upgrade so the invalid overflow block is rejected.
Archive: BitcoinTalk · Version 0.3.10 - block 74638 overflow PATCH!
- DecisionsForks & incidents
Checkpoints discussed after the overflow
In the aftermath of the overflow, Satoshi discusses checkpointing the chain as a hardening measure against similar incidents.
- Forks & incidents
Overflow clean-up continues
The day after the overflow, Satoshi keeps posting remediation guidance while the patched chain advances.
- People joiningWritings
Hey Zooko!
Satoshi replies to Zooko on BitcoinTalk, opening with "Hey Zooko!" and thanking him for writing about Bitcoin after the Cryptography list announcement.
Archive: BitcoinTalk · Re: integrating digital payments into p2p protocols
Zooko Wilcox on Bitcoin Takeover Cues the player at 79:55 · play on click, quiet fade.
- DecisionsReleases
Alert system development
Satoshi develops a signed network alert system so critical messages can reach nodes without waiting for a full software upgrade.
- Decisions
Alert system design refined
Further posts refine how signed alerts should behave, including when they should freeze wallets or warn operators.
- Decisions
Case for removing IP transactions
Satoshi discusses removing pay-to-IP transactions, an early design that sent coins to an IP address rather than a bitcoin address.
Archive: BitcoinTalk · Re: The case for removing IP transactions
- DecisionsForks & incidents
Block size limit debate begins in public
Forum threads discuss increasing the block size limit. Satoshi's posts in this period defend a conservative limit while the network is still small. The 1 MB MAX_BLOCK_SIZE in the client becomes a lasting consensus parameter.
Archive: BitcoinTalk · Re: [PATCH] increase block size limit
- Decisions
More block size limit posts
Satoshi continues the public block size limit thread, arguing for caution while Bitcoin is still securing itself.
Archive: BitcoinTalk · Re: [PATCH] increase block size limit
- DecisionsWritings
WikiLeaks warning
Satoshi argues it would be better if WikiLeaks had not used Bitcoin yet, because the project is still small and the attention could "kick a hornet's nest."
- Writings
Press attention after WikiLeaks
In the wake of WikiLeaks coverage, Satoshi replies on a PC World article thread as mainstream attention rises.
- ReleasesDecisions
DoS limits added in 0.3.19
The same final forum post that removes safe mode also adds denial-of-service limits, a hardening step as the network grows.
Archive: BitcoinTalk · Added some DoS limits, removed safe mode (0.3.19)
- WritingsReleases
Last BitcoinTalk post
"Added some DoS limits, removed safe mode (0.3.19)." Edited the next day. Public forum posting by Satoshi ends here.
Archive: BitcoinTalk · Added some DoS limits, removed safe mode (0.3.19)
- DecisionsPeople joining
Handover pressure toward Gavin Andresen
Through December 2010 and early 2011 Satoshi tells Martti that Gavin should hold more of the keys (site, list, alerts) and then steps back from public posting.
Archive: Private email (Martti Malmi) · Re: What was the bitcoin.org outage?
2011
- People joiningReleases
Late coordination with Martti on releases
One of the later Martti emails concerns a 0.3.20 release shipment, while Satoshi is already mostly gone from public forums.
Archive: Private email (Martti Malmi) · Re: 0.3.20 release : shipped
Martti Malmi on Bitcoin Takeover Cues the player at 62:54 · play on click, quiet fade.
- WritingsPeople joining
Last known messages to Mike Hearn
April 2011 emails to Mike Hearn include a farewell note that Bitcoin is in good hands with Gavin and everyone. After that, accepted public writing stops.
Archive: Private email (Mike Hearn) · Holding coins in an unspendable state for a rolling time window
2014
- Writings
Disputed 2014 P2P Foundation line
A 2014 P2P Foundation post, "I am not Dorian Nakamoto," is kept in this archive only as a disputed item and is not treated as an accepted Satoshi writing.
Sources: This archive: disputed item note on the Satoshi hub · P2P Foundation thread (historical)
A chain or market event, not a Satoshi mailing-list post.
Labelled disputed or late: included for context, not as an accepted Satoshi writing from the active years.
Every month in the archive
Jump into the writings for a given month. Each count is the number of Satoshi writings in that month.
