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Elon Musk: "The Only Thing That Can Solve It" | | | | In a bombshell interview, Elon Musk declared that AI and robotics are "the only thing" that can solve America's $38 trillion debt crisis. He predicts it will happen within three years. One Wall Street veteran has identified a single fund at the center of this AI buildout - and you can get in for less than $20.
See what Musk didn't tell you >> |
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| | A few years ago, I was writing for a fintech company, reading through whitepapers and trying to make sense of the next big thing. At the time, I wrote an article on quantum computers. | To be honest, I wasn't very familiar with the term. It felt like something out of a Steven Spielberg Star Wars movie, cool in theory, but a problem for someone else to solve in a distant future. | Well, it's three years later, and that distant future is starting to look a lot like your front porch. | If you're a crypto investor, you've probably heard the noise. People are talking about Q-Day. This is the day a quantum computer becomes powerful enough to crack the encryption that keeps your Bitcoin and Ethereum safe. | Is it a real threat, or just another Y2K moment designed to sell newsletters? Let's break it down. | Is Your Crypto Safe? | When I first wrote about this in fintech, quantum was a someday problem. Today, the conversation has changed. | Let's start with a brief definition on what quantum computing is: | | ❝ | | | A computer that could break the encryption that safeguards your private information on the internet. |
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| Recently, I read through several articles on what is the latest on quantum computers and its immediate threat to crypto investors. | The results varied as to the timeline and whether quantum computing is a serious threat or not. | With quantum computers, the biggest risk isn't that a computer will guess your seed phrase tomorrow. The risk is that the math behind your private keys, specifically something called ECDSA, is vulnerable to quantum algorithms. | Ahmad Shadid, founder of the Switzerland-based O Foundation, said signatures are the core vulnerability: | | ❝ | | | The cryptographic component that would be most vulnerable is the ECDSA digital signature algorithm, specifically, the security of public/private key pairs used to sign transactions, and especially with address reuse (this significantly increases vulnerability). |
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| The Expected Timeline | Most experts, and even the heavy hitters like Google and NIST, suggest we are in a "store now, decrypt later" phase. This means bad actors are likely recording encrypted blockchain data today, waiting for the technology to mature so they can unlock it in 5 to 10 years. | However, some more aggressive forecasts suggest we could see "quantum cracks" in a Reddit post about seeing some types of encryption as early as 2027 or 2028. We aren't at a doomsday level yet, but we're definitely in the prepare your life jacket phase. | Insights from the Front Lines | I reached out to some voices I follow closely to see how they're playing this. Here is what three major crypto investors are saying right now: | Nic Carter (@nic__carter): He's been vocal about the corporate takeover risk. He argues that if developers don't move faster on quantum-resistant upgrades, institutional giants like BlackRock might eventually step in to force the change to protect their billions. Willy Woo (@woonomic) - Woo has pointed out that a significant chunk of Bitcoin, about 4 million BTC, is sitting in exposed legacy addresses. If those aren't moved to newer formats, they become the first target for any future quantum machine. Adam Back (@adam3us) - The Blockstream CEO is more of a pragmatist. He believes the threat is being exaggerated for marketing purposes and that Bitcoin has plenty of time (20+ years) to soft-fork into quantum-resistant signatures.
| How to Safeguard Your Bags | You don't need a PhD in physics to protect your investment. Here are a few simple steps to take right now: | Stop Address Reuse - This is the big one. If you use the same address twice, you expose your public key. Use a wallet that generates a new address for every transaction. Move Off Legacy Addresses - If your Bitcoin address starts with a "1," you're in a legacy format. Consider migrating to a SegWit (starts with 3) or Taproot (starts with bc1p) address. These are more resilient. Watch the Quantum-Safe Projects - Keep an eye on chains built from the ground up for this, like QRL (Quantum Resistant Ledger) or Starknet, which use different types of math (like STARKs) that quantum computers find much harder to crunch.
| Final Thoughts | Back at that fintech job, I thought quantum was a myth. Today, I see it as a milestone. | The crypto community is already building the Glamsterdam hard forks and NIST-standardized upgrades to keep us safe. The sky isn't falling, but the wind is definitely picking up. | Don't panic—just prepare. |
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| | This article is for informational purposes only. It should not be considered Financial or Legal Advice. Not all information will be accurate. Consult a financial professional before making any significant financial decisions. |
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