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Amir Taaki, an anarchist revolutionary, hacktivist, and programmer known in the cryptocurrency industry as one of the original Bitcoin core developers, has spoken out about the Samourai Wallet indictment.
In a recent blog post, Taaki called on the cryptocurrency community to “step up” their game in the face of increased state-authorization regulations and government oversight. Taaki sees the arrest of the Samourai Wallet developer as a “wake-up call for cryptocurrencies” to pursue better methods for anonymity and privacy.
“Being prepared to resist the surveillance giant machines means creating a completely dark ecosystem that operators can mobilize under protected cover,” Taaki said.
When the Bitcoin blockchain began gaining traction in 2011, Taaki was one of the first few dedicated developers. He was also responsible for creating the Bitcoin Improvement Proposal (BIP) objectives and guidelines, as well as creating the first BIP that started the proposal cycle. This initial proposal was later modified and improved upon by Luke Dashjr, another prominent Bitcoin Core developer at the time.
Taaki claimed that governments around the world are stepping up efforts to regulate anonymous transactions, ostensibly to root out illegal and “criminal” activity. But he believes these measures stifle innovation and curtail individual freedom.
“Actions against samurai developers (who are ideological advocates) reveal that the state is reaching out to anyone who challenges the status quo,” Taaki said.
Agorism is a philosophical and political position associated with the darknet movement first developed by Canadian-American liberal philosopher Samuel Edward Konkin III (aka SEK3). The term is derived from the Greek word “agora”, which refers to an open market where people gather to trade and share opinions.
A philosophy journal called Agorist, founded in 2022, attempts to support and explain this ideological position. The journal is supported by a group of cryptocurrency figures such as Kevin Owocki (founder of Gitcoin), Cody Wilson (activist, co-founder of Dark Wallet), and controversial modern philosopher Nick Land.
It’s unclear whether Taaki is a proponent of crypto-centric philosophy journals, but his most recent initiative, Darkfi, appears to align with the goals of the square movement. Darkfi is an anonymous platform for collaborative fundraising and distribution that directly aims to challenge existing regulatory frameworks to champion freedom through blockchain technology.
In 2013, Taaki formed a close relationship with Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin through an organization called unSystem, based in Calafou. Along with Cody Wilson, Taaki co-founded Dark Wallet, one of the first privacy and anonymity-focused cryptocurrency wallets at the time.
According to Taaki, the arrest of the Samourai Wallet founders occurred because the founders were “essentially doxxing the team.” This means that their identity has been revealed via a centralized remote procedure call (RPC).
Unlike the Darkfi project, this status has opened up some loose ends for Samourai Wallet developers. Taaki said Darkfi is scheduled for a mainnet launch this year and is currently preparing for a final testnet launch.
“We are ready. We are well prepared. No one can stop us. We have put down roots for many years,” Taaki said.
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