The New York Times article pointing out Adam Back as the founder of Bitcoin honestly has far too little evidence. But this has made me notice a more essential issue.

If Satoshi Nakamoto is truly still alive, there is a reason he must act right now. The biggest risk Bitcoin faces is that roughly 1.7 million BTC worth about $120 billion are sleeping in an old P2PK address—its public key is fully exposed.

The evolution of quantum computers is moving faster than anyone could imagine. According to Google’s latest paper, with only 26,000 qubits, there is a possibility that the secret keys could be reverse-engineered within days. Although a full transition to quantum-resistant cryptography is planned by 2029, the address of Bitcoin’s creator remains left as it is.

This is the important part. If Satoshi were alive, he would either move his coins to a new safe address or send them to a destruction address to make them completely disappear. If he had a sense of responsibility, he would deal with the quantum threat before it becomes real. At the very least, he could prove his identity using old files or emails.

But he does nothing. He has kept silent for more than 13 years.

In 2010, Satoshi himself took part in discussions about quantum risk. Even at that point, he understood the problem. And yet, 15 years later, with Bitcoin about to face a real crisis, there has been no response.

This is my conclusion: Satoshi Nakamoto has probably already passed away. If he were alive, as the founder of Bitcoin, he would have a responsibility to address this quantum threat. Not doing so suggests that he is no longer in this world.

From this perspective as well, the theory that Back really is the Bitcoin founder doesn’t hold up. If the founder were alive, and with a crisis this close, it’s unthinkable that he would do nothing.