Bitcoin just pulled off its very first known quantum resistant tx on mainnet today using MARA’s private Slipstream setup and a fresh trick called Quantum Safe Bitcoin crafted by StarkWare’s Avihu Levy 🖤.
Sealing the Mempool Quantum Gap 💀
This move patches a real exposure for funds mid transfer without forcing any network consensus shifts 🕸️ even the creators admit it’s more of a clever patch than the ultimate solution. Bitcoin stashed in hashed P2PKH addresses stays pretty safe from quantum hits but the trouble begins exactly when spending starts. Revealing the public key leaves it open in the mempool for about 10 minutes which is all a powerful quantum rig might need to strike 🌑. Levy built Quantum Safe Bitcoin to slam that window shut by tweaking Binohash from Robin Linus wrapping txs in a hash based proof of work puzzle that laughs at quantum threats instead of relying on signatures.
Why the Scene Is Sprinting Toward Quantum Defenses 🔮
Levy first shared the idea in an April paper rating its strength near 118 bits against Shor’s algorithm and roughly half under Grover’s with only a few hundred dollars extra in GPU costs 🌙. It slides right inside Bitcoin’s script rules so no soft fork is required though it needs non standard txs that only private mempools accept. MARA’s Isabel Foxen Duke framed the mining as a temporary shield while the network hunts for a real consensus upgrade 🦇. She noted they don’t see private mempools as a forever fix for quantum safety but will keep Slipstream alive for emergencies. Levy thanked StarkWare’s Tom Giladi for wrapping execution building on work from Linus and Ethan Heilman yet called it a research experiment not the direct path forward. The heat comes from a recent Google paper showing a strong quantum computer could crack keys for Ethereum’s 1000 richest wallets in under 9 days. Project Eleven spotted the same mempool exposure and Bitcoin devs are prepping BIP 361 to gradually freeze vulnerable legacy addresses starting with fresh deposits. Blockstream already runs post quantum signatures on Liquid since April letting users opt in early ✨.
Just another echo from the void by iconofsin.eth 💖
