REUTERS/Lucas Jackson The Winklevoss twins, who are launching an American Bitcoin exchange called Gemini.

The Bitcoin ecosystem has never been more diverse. There are multi-million-dollar companies trying to take the digital currency “mainstream,” hackers dreaming up a new blockchain-powered social order, and everything in between.

We’ve spent the last several weeks speaking to CEOs, journalists, investors, and others in Bitcoin scene in search of some of the most exciting startups and projects out there.

We’ve drawn on the expert advice we’ve been given. We’ve also looked at funding, to see what crypto companies are turning financiers’ heads. And lastly, we’ve hunted ourselves for the most ambitious projects out there, taking the basic principles underpinning the decentralised digital currency in the most outlandish — and exciting — directions.

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