The Digital Currency Initiative To Speak At MIT Lab

On November 17, some of Bitcoin’s core developers will speak at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) for an MLTalks session. The MIT Digital Currency Initiative (DCI), directed by former White House advisor Brian Forde, will host three prominent developers in the cryptocurrency industry. Guests will include Gavin Andresen, Cory Fields and Wladimir Wan der Laan, which will also have a webcast streamed from the MIT media lab.

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The lab’s announcement states:

Join us for a conversation with three of these core developers—Gavin Andresen, Cory Fields, and Wladimir Wan der Laan—to discuss ongoing debates about Bitcoin’s development and future success.

Gavin Andresen has been the lead maintainer of the Bitcoin protocol since the disappearance of Satoshi Nakamoto. He is both the Chief Scientist for the Bitcoin Foundation and a software developer for DCI. Corey Fields is another developer for Bitcoin Core and has specialized in deployment workflows. His work has focused on long-term code base and procedure. Last February at Boston’s DevCore he spoke about “How to Build Developer APIs on the Blockchain.” Wladimir Wan der Laan is a developer at DCI and also helps maintain the core client by reviewing code, software testing, and troubleshooting. The Digital Currency Initiative believes Bitcoin is doing well but wants to use this forum to spread more adoption that they feel is lacking. The group explains: “In spite of Bitcoin’s rapid growth, the path to widespread adoption remains challenging, and many tough decisions will need to be made in order to ensure the technology’s long-term success.”

In April of last year, the three developers formed the union with the DCI, as the foundation could not fund the project anymore due to lack of money. Brian Forde hopes to increase the digital currency’s usage with the group’s initiative. Forde explained when the organization started: “tremendous opportunities to increase access to critical financial services for all, create more transparent democracies, and develop services that dramatically reduce barriers for global commerce.” MIT’s Media Lab will host core education and discussions throughout its events.

The Media Lab is funded through corporate sponsorship and special interests. The Lab has focused on many events besides Bitcoin in the past, offering various technical themes. The DCI will work closely with the Media Lab reviewing MIT CSAIL’s Nickolai Zeldovich (systems and security) and Ron Rivest (cryptography); as well as the Sloan School of Management’s Simon Johnson (former chief economist of the International Monetary Fund). Students will be encouraged to join the initiative as well as legacy institutions and new startups. The hope is through educational discussion and debate more value can be added to Bitcoin’s development.

The event will start Tuesday, November 17, 2015, 2:30 pm – 4:00 pm at the MIT Media Lab, 3rd floor, hosted by Joi Ito. Bitcoin.com will keep our readers informed of the events taking place at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology hosted by the DCI organization.

Will you be attending any events this year? Let us know in the comments below!

Images courtesy of MIT Wiki Commons, Shutterstock, and Redmemes