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{{Short description|British-Iranian hacktivist (born 1988)}}
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| name = Amir Taaki
| name = Amir Taaki
| image = Amir.taaki.Bratislava.December.2012.jpg
| image = Amir.taaki.Bratislava.December.2012.jpg
| alt = Amir Taaki in Bratislava, 2012
| birth_place = [[London]], [[United Kingdom]]
| birth_place = [[London]], [[United Kingdom]]
| caption = Taaki in Bratislava, 2012
| caption = Taaki in [[Bratislava]], 2012
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=yes|1988|2|6}}
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=yes|1988|2|6}}
| nationality = [[United Kingdom|British]]
| nationality = [[United Kingdom|British]]
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| serviceyears = 2015
| serviceyears = 2015
}}}}
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'''Amir Taaki''' ({{lang-fa|امیر تاکی}}; born 6 February 1988) is a British-Iranian anarchist revolutionary, [[hacktivist]], and [[programmer]] who is known for his leading role in the [[bitcoin]] project, and for pioneering many [[Open-source software|open source]] projects.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/pictures/elld45eemkm/amir-taaki-25/|title=Amir Taaki, 25 - In Photos: 2014 30 under 30: Technology|author=J.J. Colao|work=Forbes}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url = https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2012/apr/20/hacktivists-battle-internet|title = Hacktivists in the frontline battle for the internet|work=The Guardian|date = 20 April 2012|accessdate =20 April 2012|location=London}}</ref> Forbes listed Taaki in their top 30 entrepreneurs of 2014.<ref>{{cite web |title=Forbes 30 Under 30 |url=https://www.forbes.com/special-report/2014/30-under-30/technology.html |website=Forbes |accessdate=4 October 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/analysis-and-features/meet-the-worlds-next-billionaires--from-mashables-pete-cashmore-to-bitcoin-renegade-amir-taaki-9042710.html|title=Meet the world’s next billionaires - from Mashable's Pete Cashmore to Bitcoin renegade Amir Taaki|work=The Independent}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2535154/British-30-worlds-billionaires-The-UKs-entrepreneurs-Forbes-list-people-likely-join-ranks-mega-rich.html|title=The UK entrepreneurs on Forbes list of people likely to join ranks of mega-rich - Daily Mail Online|work=Mail Online}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/452826/Britain-s-under-30s-tipped-to-be-the-nation-s-next-billionaires|title=Britain's under-30s tipped to be the nation's next billionaires|author=Sadie Nicholas|work=Express.co.uk}}</ref> Driven by the political philosophy of the [[Rojava]] revolution, Taaki traveled to Syria, served in the YPG military, and worked in Rojava's civil society on various economic projects for a year and a half.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.standard.co.uk/lifestyle/london-life/tech-enigma-amir-taaki-on-forbes-and-fighting-isis-a3509096.html|title=Tech enigma Amir Taaki on Forbes and fighting Isis in Syria|author=Susannah Butter|work=Standard.co.uk}}</ref>
'''Amir Taaki''' ({{langx|fa|امیر تاکی}}; born 6 February 1988) is a British-Iranian anarchist revolutionary, [[hacktivist]], and [[programmer]] who is known for his leading role in the [[Bitcoin]] project, and for pioneering many [[Open-source software|open source]] projects.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Colao |first=J.J. |title=Amir Taaki, 25 - In Photos: 2014 30 under 30: Technology |url=https://www.forbes.com/pictures/elld45eemkm/amir-taaki-25/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140109072551/http://www.forbes.com/pictures/elld45eemkm/amir-taaki-25/ |archive-date=9 January 2014 |website=Forbes}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Ball |first=James |date=20 April 2012 |title=Hacktivists in the frontline battle for the internet |work=The Guardian |location=London |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2012/apr/20/hacktivists-battle-internet |access-date=20 April 2012}}</ref> Forbes listed Taaki in their [[Forbes 30 Under 30|30 Under 30]] listing of 2014.<ref>{{cite web |title=Forbes 30 Under 30 |url=https://www.forbes.com/special-report/2014/30-under-30/technology.html |website=Forbes |access-date=4 October 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/analysis-and-features/meet-the-worlds-next-billionaires--from-mashables-pete-cashmore-to-bitcoin-renegade-amir-taaki-9042710.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140107154641/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/analysis-and-features/meet-the-worlds-next-billionaires--from-mashables-pete-cashmore-to-bitcoin-renegade-amir-taaki-9042710.html |archive-date=2014-01-07 |url-access=limited |url-status=live|title=Meet the world's next billionaires - from Mashable's Pete Cashmore to Bitcoin renegade Amir Taaki|work=The Independent|date=7 January 2014 }}</ref> Driven by the political philosophy of the [[Rojava]] revolution, Taaki traveled to Syria, served in the YPG military, and worked in Rojava's civil society on various economic projects for a year and a half.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.standard.co.uk/lifestyle/london-life/tech-enigma-amir-taaki-on-forbes-and-fighting-isis-a3509096.html|title=Tech enigma Amir Taaki on Forbes and fighting Isis in Syria|author=Susannah Butter|work=Standard.co.uk|date=6 April 2017 }}</ref>


== Biography ==
== Biography ==
=== Early years ===
⚫
Amir Taaki was born 6 February 1988<ref>{{cite web |title=Amir Taaki |url=https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/officers/sEU_7R7M4GXsOIcg6vWFrVMoE6Q/appointments |website=Companies House |accessdate=4 October 2018}}</ref> in London, the eldest of three children of a Scottish-English<ref name="standard1"/> mother and an Iranian father who is a property developer. From an early age Taaki took an interest in computer technology, [[autodidacticism|teaching himself]] [[computer programmer|computer programming]].<ref name=EPCA>[https://web.archive.org/web/20110326214259/http://www.epcaconference.com/index.php/2011/2011/speakers/%28offset%29/20 "Speakers 2011,"] 11th International EPCA Summit, European Payments Consulting Association, www.epcaconference.com/ Retrieved 11 October 2011.</ref>


⚫
Amir Taaki was born 6 February 1988<ref>{{cite web |title=Amir Taaki |url=https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/officers/sEU_7R7M4GXsOIcg6vWFrVMoE6Q/appointments |website=Companies House |access-date=4 October 2018}}</ref> in London, the eldest of three children of a Scottish-English<ref name="standard1"/> mother and an Iranian father who is a property developer. Taaki grew up in nearby [[Kent]].<ref name=dark-bartlett>{{Cite book |last=Bartlett |first=Jamie |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/900594552 |title=The dark net : inside the digital underworld |date=2015 |isbn=978-1-61219-489-9 |location=Brooklyn |oclc=900594552|author-link=Jamie Bartlett}}</ref> From an early age Taaki took an interest in computer technology, [[autodidacticism|teaching himself]] [[computer programmer|computer programming]].<ref name=EPCA>[https://web.archive.org/web/20110326214259/http://www.epcaconference.com/index.php/2011/2011/speakers/%28offset%29/20 "Speakers 2011,"] 11th International EPCA Summit, European Payments Consulting Association, www.epcaconference.com/ Retrieved 11 October 2011.</ref>
=== Free software ===
⚫
After briefly attending two British universities,<ref name="standard1">{{cite news|last1=Herrmann|first1=Joshi|title=Silicon Roundabout's not for him: meet super-hacker, master coder and Bitcoin boy Amir Taaki in his Hackney squat|url=https://www.standard.co.uk/lifestyle/london-life/silicon-roundabouts-not-for-him-meet-superhacker-master-coder-and-bitcoin-boy-amir-taaki-in-his-hackney-squat-9093228.html|accessdate=30 June 2015|date=29 January 2014}}</ref> Taaki gravitated to the [[free software]] movement. Taaki assisted in the creation of SDL Collide, an extension of [[Simple DirectMedia Layer]], an open source [[library (computing)|library]] used by video game developers.<ref>{{cite web |title=SDL_Collide |url=https://sourceforge.net/projects/sdl-collide/ |website=SourceForge |accessdate=4 October 2018 |date=8 Jan 2015}}</ref>


⚫
After briefly attending two British universities,<ref name="standard1">{{cite news|last1=Herrmann|first1=Joshi|title=Silicon Roundabout's not for him: meet super-hacker, master coder and Bitcoin boy Amir Taaki in his Hackney squat|url=https://www.standard.co.uk/lifestyle/london-life/silicon-roundabouts-not-for-him-meet-superhacker-master-coder-and-bitcoin-boy-amir-taaki-in-his-hackney-squat-9093228.html|access-date=30 June 2015|date=29 January 2014}}</ref> Taaki gravitated to the [[free software]] movement. Taaki assisted in the creation of SDL Collide, an extension of [[Simple DirectMedia Layer]], an open source [[library (computing)|library]] used by video game developers.<ref>{{cite web |title=SDL_Collide |url=https://sourceforge.net/projects/sdl-collide/ |website=SourceForge |access-date=4 October 2018 |date=8 Jan 2015}}</ref>
In 2006, Taaki became heavily involved in [[Crystal Space]] development under the pseudonym of '''genjix'''.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JtGsQPoqm8Y "Blender & CrystalSpace"] in Blender Conference 2006, Youtube.</ref> He also developed a number of video games making use of free software, including the adventure game Crystal Core<ref>[http://www.blender.org/community/blender-conference/blender-conference-2006/proceedings/pablo-martin-moreno-amir-taaki/ "Pablo Martin Moreno and Amir Taaki,"] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110519094738/http://www.blender.org/community/blender-conference/blender-conference-2006/proceedings/pablo-martin-moreno-amir-taaki/ |date=19 May 2011 }} Blender Conference 2006 Proceedings, Blender</ref> and the futuristic racer game Ecksdee.<ref>{{cite web |title=Conference 2006 |url=http://www.crystalspace3d.org/main/Conference2006#Ecksdee_Demonstration_.28Vincent_Knecht_and_Amir_Taaki.29%202006 |website=Crystal Space |accessdate=4 October 2018}}</ref> Taaki was also a participant in the [[Blender (software)|Blender]] project ''[[Yo Frankie!]].''<ref>[http://www.yofrankie.org/team/ Yo Frankie developer list], www.yofrankie.org/</ref>


⚫
In 2009 and 2010, Taaki made his living as a professional [[poker]] player.<ref name=EPCA /> His experience with [[online gambling]] attracted him to the [[Bitcoin]] project.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ball |first=James |author-link=James Ball (journalist) |date=2011-06-22 |title=Bitcoins: What are they, and how do they work? |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2011/jun/22/bitcoins-how-do-they-work |access-date=2024-04-13 |website=The Guardian |language=en-GB}}</ref> At one point, he was listed among Bitcoin's main developers.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Herrmann |first1=Joshi |title=The Anarchist Hacker Bitcoin Would Rather Not Talk About |work=Vice |date=2015-07-10 |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/ypw985/the-anarchist-hacker-bitcoin-would-rather-not-talk-about |language=en |access-date=2021-08-13 }}</ref> He founded the first UK Bitcoin exchange, "Britcoin", which was succeeded in 2011 by a new British exchange called Intersango, in which he was a principal developer.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20120426062717/https://intersango.com/about-us.php "About Us: Personal Statements,"] Intersango, britcoin.co.uk</ref><ref name=dark-bartlett/> Intersango has since closed.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Cryptoanarchists pull trigger on fight over future of Bitcoin |work=[[Financial Times]] |date=2013-10-31 |url=https://www.ft.com/content/f0574260-e364-3e4f-91fc-13680ce65688 }}</ref>
Taaki was a speaker at the 2007 [[Games Convention]] in [[Leipzig]].


In 2012, Taaki organized the first Bitcoin conference in London.<ref>{{cite news |url = https://newint.org/features/2012/12/01/open-source-digital-freedom-keynote |title=Internet showdown: Why digital freedom matters to us all |last=Healy |first=Hazel |work=New Internationalist |date = 1 December 2012 |access-date =16 August 2022 |location=London}}</ref>
=== Bitcoin ===
⚫
In 2009 and 2010, Taaki made his living as a professional [[poker]] player.<ref name=EPCA /> His experience with [[online gambling]] attracted him to the [[bitcoin]] project.<ref>[[James Ball (journalist)|James Ball]], [https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2011/jun/22/bitcoins-how-do-they-work "Bitcoins: how do they work?"] ''The Guardian,'' 22 June 2011.</ref> He founded a UK bitcoin exchange called "Britcoin", which was succeeded in 2011 by a new British exchange called Intersango, in which he was a principal developer,<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20120426062717/https://intersango.com/about-us.php "About Us: Personal Statements,"] Intersango, britcoin.co.uk</ref> which was closed after their UK bank account was restricted following an investigation by [[Metro Bank (United Kingdom)|Metro Bank]].{{cn|date=May 2019}}


In 2014, together with [[Cody Wilson]], he launched the [[Dark Wallet]] project after a crowdfunding run on [[IndieGoGo]] which raised over $50,000.<ref name="NYR">{{cite web|last=Del Castillo|first=Michael|title=Dark Wallet: A Radical Way to Bitcoin|url=http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/currency/2013/09/dark-wallet-bitcoin.html|work=The New Yorker|date=24 September 2013|accessdate=15 May 2014}}</ref><ref name="DWF1">{{cite web|last=Greenberg|first=Andy|title=Dark Wallet Aims To Be The Anarchist's Bitcoin App of Choice|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/andygreenberg/2013/10/31/darkwallet-aims-to-be-the-anarchists-bitcoin-app-of-choice/|work=Forbes Online|date=31 October 2013|accessdate=15 May 2014}}</ref><ref name="DWW1">{{cite web|last=Greenberg|first=Andy|title='Dark Wallet' Is About to Make Bitcoin Money Laundering Easier Than Ever|url=https://www.wired.com/2014/04/dark-wallet/|work=Wired|date=29 April 2014|accessdate=15 May 2014}}</ref> Taaki, along with other developers from Airbitz, a bitcoin software company, created a prototype for a decentralised marketplace called "DarkMarket" in 2014, at a hackathon in Toronto, which was forked into the [[OpenBazaar]] project.<ref name=wired-darkmarket-prototype>{{cite magazine | url = https://www.wired.com/2014/04/darkmarket | title = Inside the 'DarkMarket' Prototype, a Silk Road the FBI Can Never Seize | last = Greenberg | first = Andy | magazine = [[Wired (website)|Wired]] | date = 24 April 2014 | accessdate = 23 August 2014}}</ref>
In 2014, together with [[Cody Wilson]], he launched the [[Dark Wallet]] project after a crowdfunding run on [[IndieGoGo]] which raised over $50,000.<ref name="NYR">{{cite magazine|last=Del Castillo|first=Michael|title=Dark Wallet: A Radical Way to Bitcoin|url=http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/currency/2013/09/dark-wallet-bitcoin.html|magazine=The New Yorker|date=24 September 2013|access-date=15 May 2014}}</ref><ref name="DWF1">{{cite web|last=Greenberg|first=Andy|title=Dark Wallet Aims To Be The Anarchist's Bitcoin App of Choice|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/andygreenberg/2013/10/31/darkwallet-aims-to-be-the-anarchists-bitcoin-app-of-choice/|work=Forbes Online|date=31 October 2013|access-date=15 May 2014}}</ref><ref name="DWW1">{{cite magazine|last=Greenberg|first=Andy|title='Dark Wallet' Is About to Make Bitcoin Money Laundering Easier Than Ever|url=https://www.wired.com/2014/04/dark-wallet/|magazine=Wired|date=29 April 2014|access-date=15 May 2014}}</ref> Taaki, along with other developers from Airbitz, a Bitcoin software company, created a prototype for a decentralised marketplace called "DarkMarket" in 2014, at a hackathon in Toronto, which was forked into the [[OpenBazaar]] project.<ref name=wired-darkmarket-prototype>{{cite magazine | url = https://www.wired.com/2014/04/darkmarket | title = Inside the 'DarkMarket' Prototype, a Silk Road the FBI Can Never Seize | last = Greenberg | first = Andy | magazine = [[Wired (website)|Wired]] | date = 24 April 2014 | access-date = 23 August 2014}}</ref>


⚫
As of 2013, he resided in an anarchist squat in the former anti-[[G7 (forum)|G8]] HQ building in London, England.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Siddique|first1=Haroon|title=G8: riot police enter central London building occupied by protesters|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jun/11/g8-riot-police-building-protesters|access-date=8 July 2015|date=11 June 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Copestake|first1=Jen|title=Hiding currency in the Dark Wallet|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-29283124|access-date=8 July 2015|date=19 September 2014}}</ref>
=== Activism ===
⚫
As of 2013, he resided in an anarchist squat in the former anti-[[G7 (forum)|G8]] HQ building in London, England.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Siddique|first1=Haroon|title=G8: riot police enter central London building occupied by protesters|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jun/11/g8-riot-police-building-protesters|accessdate=8 July 2015|date=11 June 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Copestake|first1=Jen|title=Hiding currency in the Dark Wallet|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-29283124|accessdate=8 July 2015|date=19 September 2014}}</ref>


⚫
In 2015, Taaki went to [[Rojava]] (Syrian Kurdistan) to offer his skills to the revolution and served the YPG military.<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Greenberg |first1=Andy |title=How an anarchist Bitcoin coder found himself fighting ISIS in Syria |url=https://www.wired.com/2017/03/anarchist-bitcoin-coder-found-fighting-isis-syria/ |magazine=Wired |access-date=4 October 2018 |date=29 Mar 2017}}</ref> He had no training but spent three and a half months in the [[People's Protection Units|YPG military]] fighting on the front. He was then discharged and worked in the civil society for over a year on various projects for Rojava's economics committee.
===Rojava===
⚫
In 2015, Taaki went to [[Rojava]] (Syrian Kurdistan) to offer his skills to the revolution, and served the YPG military.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Greenberg |first1=Andy |title=How an anarchist Bitcoin coder found himself fighting ISIS in Syria |url=https://www.wired.com/2017/03/anarchist-bitcoin-coder-found-fighting-isis-syria/ |website=Wired |accessdate=4 October 2018 |date=29 Mar 2017}}</ref> He had no training, but spent three and a half months in the [[People's Protection Units|YPG military]] fighting on the front. He was then discharged and worked in the civil society for over a year on various projects for Rojava's economics committee.


⚫
In February 2018, Taaki created a group in [[Catalonia]] dedicated to leveraging [[blockchain]] technology to help [[national liberation]] causes such as the [[Catalan independence movement]].<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.wired.co.uk/article/amir-taaki-dark-wallet-cryptocurrency-bitcoin-revolution-catalonia|title=Amir fought Isis in Syria, now he's enlisting an army of hacker monks to save bitcoin from itself|magazine=wired|date=6 Mar 2018|last1=Volpicelli |first1=Gian |access-date=3 Oct 2018}}</ref>
===Catalonia===
⚫
In February 2018, Taaki created a group in [[Catalonia]] dedicated to leveraging [[blockchain]] technology to help [[national liberation]] causes such as the [[Catalan independence movement]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.wired.co.uk/article/amir-taaki-dark-wallet-cryptocurrency-bitcoin-revolution-catalonia|title=Amir fought Isis in Syria, now he’s enlisting an army of hacker monks to save bitcoin from itself|website=wired|date=6 Mar 2018|last1=Volpicelli |first1=Gian |accessdate=3 Oct 2018}}</ref>


In 2023, ''[[Politico]]'' reported that Taaki was working on an anarchist project called DarkFi that aimed to allow people to form organizations that collectively raise and distribute money in complete secrecy.<ref>Schreckinger, Ben (February 2, 2023) [https://www.politico.com/news/2023/02/02/crypto-anarchist-coders-evade-law-enforcement-00080950 "A new crypto threat to government launches."] Politico. (Retrieved March 6, 2023).</ref>
⚫
== References ==
⚫
{{Reflist}}


Taaki appears in the Bitcoin documentary [[Money Electric: The Bitcoin Mystery]],<ref>{{Citation |last=Hoback |first=Cullen |title=Money Electric: The Bitcoin Mystery |date=2024-10-08 |type=Documentary |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt33600145/ |access-date=2024-10-29 |others=Cullen Hoback, Samson Mow, Ricardo Salinas Pliego |publisher=HBO Documentary Films, Hello Pictures, Hyperobject Industries}}</ref> released in October 2024. He has publicly disagreed with the film's theory of [[Peter Todd (cryptographer)|Peter Todd]] as [[Satoshi Nakamoto]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Taaki |first=Amir |title=Amir Taaki on Peter Todd |url=https://x.com/Narodism/status/1844017533336142025 |access-date=October 29, 2024 |website=Twitter}}</ref>
== Further reading ==


==See also==
{{refbegin}}
* [[Crypto-anarchism]]
* [[Cypherpunk]]


⚫
== References ==
* {{Cite web |last1=Wong |first1=Joon Ian |title=Anarchist hacker Amir Taaki says bitcoin’s boom means it’s on the verge of a collapse |work=Quartz |date=2018-02-08 |url=https://qz.com/1192640/anarchist-cryptocurrency-hacker-amir-taaki-says-bitcoin-is-in-a-speculative-bubble/ |language=en |accessdate=2018-11-03 |df=mdy-all }}
⚫
{{Reflist}}

{{refend}}


== External links ==
== External links ==
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20180310052352/https://amirtaaki.org/ Personal website]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20180310052352/https://amirtaaki.org/ Personal website]
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TwNfBgwbqng Interview with "Gavin Andresen and Amir Taaki, Bitcoin,"], ''This Week in Startups'', video on [[YouTube]]
* [https://www.theguardian.com/technology/video/2013/mar/22/bitcoin-currency-video Bitcoin: the fastest growing currency in the world – video], The Guardian


{{Bitcoin|state=expanded}}
{{Bitcoin|state=expanded}}
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[[Category:1988 births]]
[[Category:People from London]]
[[Category:Military personnel from London]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:English computer programmers]]
[[Category:English computer programmers]]
[[Category:English people of Iranian descent]]
[[Category:English people of Iranian descent]]
[[Category:British Esperantists]]
[[Category:People associated with Bitcoin]]
[[Category:People associated with Bitcoin]]
[[Category:Free software people]]
[[Category:Free software people]]
[[Category:Crypto-anarchists]]
[[Category:Crypto-anarchists]]
[[Category:Iranian people of English descent]]
[[Category:Poker players from London]]
[[Category:Iranian people of Scottish descent]]
[[Category:British anarchists]]

Latest revision as of 21:44, 5 November 2024

Amir Taaki
Amir Taaki in Bratislava, 2012
Taaki in Bratislava, 2012
Born (1988-02-06) 6 February 1988 (age 36)
London, United Kingdom
NationalityBritish
OccupationProgrammer
Military career
AllegianceRojava
Service / branchYPG
Years of service2015
Battles / warsSyrian Civil War

Amir Taaki (Persian: امیر تاکی; born 6 February 1988) is a British-Iranian anarchist revolutionary, hacktivist, and programmer who is known for his leading role in the Bitcoin project, and for pioneering many open source projects.[1][2] Forbes listed Taaki in their 30 Under 30 listing of 2014.[3][4] Driven by the political philosophy of the Rojava revolution, Taaki traveled to Syria, served in the YPG military, and worked in Rojava's civil society on various economic projects for a year and a half.[5]

Biography

[edit]

Amir Taaki was born 6 February 1988[6] in London, the eldest of three children of a Scottish-English[7] mother and an Iranian father who is a property developer. Taaki grew up in nearby Kent.[8] From an early age Taaki took an interest in computer technology, teaching himself computer programming.[9]

After briefly attending two British universities,[7] Taaki gravitated to the free software movement. Taaki assisted in the creation of SDL Collide, an extension of Simple DirectMedia Layer, an open source library used by video game developers.[10]

In 2009 and 2010, Taaki made his living as a professional poker player.[9] His experience with online gambling attracted him to the Bitcoin project.[11] At one point, he was listed among Bitcoin's main developers.[12] He founded the first UK Bitcoin exchange, "Britcoin", which was succeeded in 2011 by a new British exchange called Intersango, in which he was a principal developer.[13][8] Intersango has since closed.[14]

In 2012, Taaki organized the first Bitcoin conference in London.[15]

In 2014, together with Cody Wilson, he launched the Dark Wallet project after a crowdfunding run on IndieGoGo which raised over $50,000.[16][17][18] Taaki, along with other developers from Airbitz, a Bitcoin software company, created a prototype for a decentralised marketplace called "DarkMarket" in 2014, at a hackathon in Toronto, which was forked into the OpenBazaar project.[19]

As of 2013, he resided in an anarchist squat in the former anti-G8 HQ building in London, England.[20][21]

In 2015, Taaki went to Rojava (Syrian Kurdistan) to offer his skills to the revolution and served the YPG military.[22] He had no training but spent three and a half months in the YPG military fighting on the front. He was then discharged and worked in the civil society for over a year on various projects for Rojava's economics committee.

In February 2018, Taaki created a group in Catalonia dedicated to leveraging blockchain technology to help national liberation causes such as the Catalan independence movement.[23]

In 2023, Politico reported that Taaki was working on an anarchist project called DarkFi that aimed to allow people to form organizations that collectively raise and distribute money in complete secrecy.[24]

Taaki appears in the Bitcoin documentary Money Electric: The Bitcoin Mystery,[25] released in October 2024. He has publicly disagreed with the film's theory of Peter Todd as Satoshi Nakamoto.[26]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Colao, J.J. "Amir Taaki, 25 - In Photos: 2014 30 under 30: Technology". Forbes. Archived from the original on 9 January 2014.
  2. ^ Ball, James (20 April 2012). "Hacktivists in the frontline battle for the internet". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 20 April 2012.
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