Reviews from readers of "The Internet of Money Vol. 1"
When I dove down the rabbit hole of Bitcoin in late 2013, Andreas’ YouTube talks and podcasts pulled me further in, and this book is a compilation of these entertaining and informative talks. The source videos are well worth watching, and this book is a good complement to them. His engaging speaking style comes through on the page, and his enthusiasm about the technical, economic, and societal changes that are possible with the invention of decentralized consensus protocols is infectious.
Beyond the more pragmatic applications of cryptocurrency for the millions of unbanked around the world, Andreas also waxes philosophic on deeper topics such as the history of money, the role cryptocurrency can play for individual sovereignty and privacy, and the implications of currency as language, where currency transfer is, at root, an expression of value akin to speech.
When I read these edited and updated transcripts, I hear them in his voice, which only makes me want to watch the linked videos all over again. This compilation is a great resource to be read, re-read, gifted, and shared with family and friends. It provides a uniquely accessible take on a mind-bendingly abstract system, and is perfect for those with a casual or budding interest in the field of cryptocurrency.
With his encyclopaedic grasp of blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies, aided by his long involvement with the internet, as well as his training in computer science, Andreas Antonopoulos can rightfully be described as the “Carl Sagan and Alvin Toffler rolled into one” of cryptocurrencies and the blockchain. Just as Sagan brought complex cosmological theory to regular people, and Toffler extrapolated future trends from current realities, so Antonopoulos, with The Internet of Money, explains the Byzantine intricacies of the blockchain and cryptocurrencies so that non-technical people can understand what the hell this is all about.
But he doesn’t stop there. Having explained what it’s about, he then presents a compelling and, I believe, prescient vision of where this is all going. I have been a bitcoin enthusiast since early 2013. Since then I have read literally hundreds of articles and all of the books published on the subject.
The Internet of Money is the one I wish I had been able to read when I first got involved. I would have been saved a lot of time and money and spared much confusion and misconception.
“I’ve always wondered what would have happened if we had built one-click payments into the browser from the very beginning. With bitcoin, we finally get this ‘Internet of Money’. But this book isn’t just an ode to bitcoin — it’s an ode to open protocols, what happens when you connect people online, and the power of innovation on the internet.”
Marc Andreessen, co-founder Netscape and Andreessen Horowitz
“With Mastering Bitcoin, Andreas Antonopoulos wrote one of the best technical books on digital currency. With The Internet of Money, he’s matched that feat by compiling his talks into one of the best books on Bitcoin for a broad audience. Highly recommended!“
Balaji Srinivasan, CEO 21.co
“Over the past three years, awareness of the sweeping, transformative potential of bitcoin and its underlying blockchain technology has grown exponentially. That required people to grasp not only how this unorthodox technology worked but also its profound promise for society. No one has done more than Andreas Antonopoulos to get them over that hurdle. Read him. It will make you wiser.”
Michael J. Casey, co-author of The Age of Cryptocurrency: How Bitcoin and Digital Money are Challenging the Global Economic Order