We finally stopped being lazy and brought a guest onto the Roundtable. Max Hillebrand joins Steve, Jeff, and I to talk about the absolute madness happening in the freedom tech space right now.

Max has been using AI agents to solve challenging computer science problems for White Noise and the Marmot protocol. We talk about the possibility that we are moving toward a future where the average user base for a custom piece of software is exactly one person. I share how I sent my AI agents after a spam caller company to track down the CEO's personal cell phone, and Steve explains how he's automating his bar's point-of-sale system with some interesting techniques.

But we don't just stick to software. We also discuss the need for open-source modular and repairable hardware. And of course, we cover the latest in the Bitcoin space. We review the latest exploits, how exchanges are handling flagged coins, and Steve pitches an incredibly clever way to measure Bitcoin's true purchasing power without ever looking at the fiat price.

It was a wild conversation with the guys about where this whole decentralized, peer-to-peer future is actually heading.

Chapters

(00:00:00) - Episode intro

(00:09:42) - AI cycle and Freedom tech update

(00:38:29) - Sovereign Engineering cohorts

(00:41:27) - AI, decentralization, and the global brain

(00:48:33) - Responsibility, hierarchy, and decentralized companies

(00:57:59) - Open source cars, power tools, and hardware

(01:25:41) - Current Bitcoin drama

(01:47:19) - Measuring Bitcoin purchasing power with UTXO size

(01:56:29) - Marmot protocol and MLS group encryption explained

Guest Links

Steve Simple Nostr (Link: https://tinyurl.com/3s6a8yn8)

Steve Simple on X (Link: https://x.com/stevesimple)

Jeff Swann Nostr (Link: https://tinyurl.com/3sjc3bcp)

Jeff Swann on X (Link: https://x.com/agoristview)

Max Hillebrand Nostr (Link: https://tinyurl.com/y4bsmpkk)

Max Hillebrand's website (Link: https://towardsliberty.com/)

Affiliate Links

• Become sovereign, hold your keys, be censorship resistant with the Bitbox hardware wallet. Get 5% off everything in the store with code GUY (Link: https://bitbox.swiss/)
• Get 10% off the best Bitcoin board game in the world, HODLUP! Or any of the other great games from The Free Market Kids! Use code GUY10 at checkout for 10% off your cart! (Link: https://www.freemarketkids.com/collections/games-1)

Host Links

⁠⁠Guy on Nostr ⁠(Link: http://tinyurl.com/2xc96ney)

⁠Guy on X ⁠(Link: https://twitter.com/theguyswann)

Guy on Instagram (Link: https://www.instagram.com/theguyswann)

Guy on TikTok (Link: https://www.tiktok.com/@theguyswann)

Guy's Takes on YouTube (Link: https://www.youtube.com/@GuysTake)

Guy Swann on YouTube (Link: https://www.youtube.com/@theguyswann)

⁠Bitcoin Audible on X⁠ (Link: https://twitter.com/BitcoinAudible)

The Guy Swann Network Broadcast Room on Keet (Link: https://tinyurl.com/3na6v839)

In this Take, I break down why the biggest AI labs, while deeply unprofitable sitting on massive future compute obligations, are racing toward trillion-dollar valuations. I explore how open-source competition, especially from China, is crushing their moat, and why that pushes them toward lobbying for fear-driven regulation, immunity, and government partnerships. Ultimately, I argue that the AI panic is about preserving a failing business model and building a centralized surveillance infrastructure, and why we shouldn’t be the ones paying their bill.

Chapters

(00:00:00) - Introduction

(00:00:27) - OpenAI’s insane obligations

(00:01:51) - Anthropic’s profit illusion

(00:02:40) - Trillion-dollar IPO dreams

(00:03:12) - The open-source threat

(00:04:38) - Engineering the panic

(00:06:10) - Regulatory moat and control

(00:09:11) - What this is all about

Affiliate Links

• Become sovereign, hold your keys, be censorship resistant with the Bitbox hardware wallet. Get 5% off everything in the store with code GUY (Link: https://bitbox.swiss/guy/)
• Get 10% off the best Bitcoin board game in the world, HODLUP! Or any of the other great games from The Free Market Kids! Use code GUY10 at checkout for 10% off your cart! (Link: https://www.freemarketkids.com/collections/games-1)

Host Links

⁠Guy on Nostr ⁠(Link: http://tinyurl.com/2xc96ney)

⁠Guy on X ⁠(Link: https://twitter.com/theguyswann)

Guy on Instagram (Link: https://www.instagram.com/theguyswann)

Guy on TikTok (Link: https://www.tiktok.com/@theguyswann)

Guy's Takes on YouTube (Link: https://www.youtube.com/@GuysTake)

Guy Swann on YouTube (Link: https://www.youtube.com/@theguyswann)

⁠Bitcoin Audible on X⁠ (Link: https://twitter.com/BitcoinAudible)

The Guy Swann Network Broadcast Room on Keet (Link: https://tinyurl.com/3na6v839)

References from the episode

• The Hater's Guide To AI Debt (Part 1): https://tinyurl.com/3tvvsbee
• The Hater's Guide To AI Debt (Part 2): https://tinyurl.com/5n95nwpy

***"The dollar is going to continue to lose purchasing power. Bitcoin is going to continue to gain purchasing power. It's going to keep on happening over the rest of the century. We will at some point have enough people that have most of their wealth in bitcoin that they don't have anything else to spend and they will start to spend their bitcoin. And when they start to encounter more people like them on the other side of the transaction, they will no longer convert to some other currency on the merchant side for that transaction."

~ Cory Klippsten***

Swan CEO Cory Klippsten and I explore how Bitcoin can win over the long run without requiring a dramatic dollar collapse or Weimar-style hyperinflation. We discuss why true medium-of-exchange use is likely a far-off phase that only comes after Bitcoin dominates as a store of value, how stablecoins have absorbed today’s payments demand, and what that means for builders.

We also tackle the Coldcard exploit and current self-custody tradeoffs, Swan’s spectrum from pure self-custody to multi-institution solutions, and the psychological grind of a boring bear market. Meanwhile, Bitcoin is quietly becoming the fastest horse in a three-way race with the U.S. dollar and gold. You just have to know what to look for.

Chapters

(00:00:00) - Introduction

(00:05:30) - Journalism and content creation

(00:22:07) - Deflation myths and Japan sound money misconceptions

(00:26:03) - M2 money demand and USD global dominance

(00:30:40) - Stablecoins dominating the Bitcoin payment industry

(00:38:47) - Atomic networks and merchant adoption

(00:49:09) - Ignoring Bitcoin price regression models

(00:51:56) - Fallout from the Coldcard exploit

(01:02:25) - Why companies must segregate data

(01:04:53) - Exploring collaborative Bitcoin custody solutions

(01:13:49) - Managing expectations during bear markets

(01:16:32) - How the 'decentralized' crypto industry simply rebuilt Wall Street

Guest Links

Cory Klippsten on X (Link: https://twitter.com/CorySwan/)

Swan Bitcoin's Website (Link: https://www.swanbitcoin.com/)

Outside Money with Cory Klippsten's YouTube playlist (Link: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMTpYxqzjiK0)

Affiliate Links

• Become sovereign, hold your keys, be censorship resistant with the Bitbox hardware wallet. Get 5% off everything in the store with code GUY (Link: https://bitbox.swiss/)
• Get 10% off the best Bitcoin board game in the world, HODLUP! Or any of the other great games from The Free Market Kids! Use code GUY10 at checkout for 10% off your cart! (Link: https://www.freemarketkids.com/collections/games-1)

Host Links

⁠⁠Guy on Nostr ⁠(Link: http://tinyurl.com/2xc96ney)

⁠Guy on X ⁠(Link: https://twitter.com/theguyswann)

Guy on Instagram (Link: https://www.instagram.com/theguyswann)

Guy on TikTok (Link: https://www.tiktok.com/@theguyswann)

Guy's Takes on YouTube (Link: https://www.youtube.com/@GuysTake)

Guy Swann on YouTube (Link: https://www.youtube.com/@theguyswann)

⁠Bitcoin Audible on X⁠ (Link: https://twitter.com/BitcoinAudible)

The Guy Swann Network Broadcast Room on Keet (Link: https://tinyurl.com/3na6v839)