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Chris Larsen, Ripple co-founder and creator of XRP believes that Bitcoin needs to steer away from proof-of-work (PoW) for it to remain number one.
Larsen shared his beliefs in a Medium post published on Thursday in which he zoomed in on what he believes to be unsustainable energy consumption as a result of Bitcoin mining.
“I would argue that such a change is critically important for Bitcoin to remain the world’s dominant cryptocurrency,” he said about a move away from PoW
PoW is essentially how Bitcoin is mined. Powerful computers run proof-of-work software and battle to solve complicated mathematical puzzles to earn Bitcoin. To compete with the other computers on the network, these computers need processing power—and that means using more energy. It even rivals entire countries in its electric capacity and search for cheaper (and cleaner) energy.
According to Larsen, PoW is out of place in current society in which there seems to be global consensus on the urgency of climate change.
“We should see PoW for what it is—a brilliantly designed technology that is becoming outdated in today’s world,” said Larsen.
“With more individual investors and corporations taking significant bitcoin positions—PoW is heading for levels society will find tough to tolerate as the world works to avert a climate disaster,” he added.
Debate on Bitcoin’s carbon footprint is intensifying, with the mainstream media happily playing this card.
It has often been said that global Bitcoin mining leaves a carbon footprint comparable to the energy use in a country like Bulgaria. This according to data from Digiconomist.
Defenders of PoW claim that Bitcoin mining incentivizes the global transition to renewable energy and is considered a catalyst.
“Unfortunately, many of Bitcoin’s most prominent advocates turn a blind eye or even ‘greenwash’ the problem with questionable claims,” Larsen said.
Considering the debate over its energy usage, Larsen believes that for Bitcoin to remain dominant, it needs to adapt. He thinks that XRP, which makes use of a federated blockchain on which only a few people allowed to process transactions, is more sustainable and energy efficient.
Unsurprisingly, Larsen is a proponent of proof-of-stake (PoS). PoS is a consensus mechanism that selects validators according to how much money they have staked (or staked, to use proof-of-stake terminology). The more crypto you stake, the more coins you receive. A popular PoS coin is Ethereum.
Larsen ends his post with the following invitation. We are curious who will step up and respond to Larsen’s claims.
“Let’s encourage and work with the people who build and contribute to Bitcoin’s code — the key miners, exchanges, and core developers — to consider a move away from PoW.”