I’m back home from @OsloFF and I still don’t fully have the words for what this experience meant to me. Without a doubt, this was the most important event I’ve attended this year. This conference genuinely rewired something in my brain. I learned so much about authoritarian regimes, the people living under them, and the extraordinary lengths governments will go to silence individuals whose only crime is asking for basic rights and freedoms. Some of the stories I heard were heartbreaking, others were deeply inspiring but all of them reminded me that freedom is never something to take for granted. More importantly, this experience gave me a new perspective on the work we’re doing in #Bitcoin. I have always loved Bitcoin. I have always enjoyed educating people about it and building tools that make it easier to use. But being in a room full of activists, journalists, human rights defenders, and people fighting for freedom all over the world made me see Bitcoin through a different lens. For the first time, I felt the full weight of WHY this work matters. Bitcoin is not just an interesting technology. It is not just a financial tool. For many people, it represents access, opportunity, resilience, and freedom. It gives people options when powerful systems fail them or work against them. That realization has left me more convinced than ever that Bitcoin education matters. Building accessible tools matters. Getting Bitcoin into the hands of ordinary people matters. I came home with a renewed sense of purpose. I feel incredibly honored to have been invited, and I know this is an experience I will carry with me for the rest of my life. A huge thank you to the entire @HRF team, especially @arshmolu, Adela, and Sir @gladstein . This was actually my second attempt at attending this conference, I had been denied a visa before, and there were moments when it felt like it wouldn’t happen. Through the entire process, they went above and beyond to help me navigate everything, from my visa application to making sure I could be there. Your kindness, patience, and support meant more than you know🧡. Thank you for believing in me and for giving me the opportunity to be part of something so meaningful. Now it’s time to get back to work⚡️ This is the short version of what I’m feeling right now. I have a lot more thoughts to share, and I’m sure they’ll come with time. For now, I’m just grateful❤️

One more Oslo Freedom Forum, a lot more lessons learned I'm not sure there is any greater inspiration for building freedom tech than spending most of a week hearing the stories of those actually fighting for freedom every day in their countries. The rare chance to talk to real people, about real needs, who have real (and specific) ways they need technology to empower them not only gives inspiration and motivation, but helps me fine tune how we should be building Cake (and other apps in our ecosystem) from first principles. Add on top of that the unique chance to get together with many of the best builders in the Bitcoin and freedom tech space for intimate dinners and small settings gives space for rare, slow conversations with nuance and purpose that can be the foundation for new ideas to spring from. Lessons learned 1. Most freedom fighters are still hesitant about crypto in general, and those using it are mostly leveraging stablecoins (still) and not Bitcoin 2. There is a critical need for simpler wallets and apps that make Bitcoin easier to understand and use, and feel more like other apps. Less lingo, acronyms, and technical jargon, more simplicity, simple education, and entry-level focus 3. The positive use of AI by activists is enabling some powerful new things, like custom-built websites and social platforms that are built for a single mission, single purpose, and single country. While it's just the start, there were some awesome examples and workshops. 4. The interest in AI has far overtaken the interest in Bitcoin among the audience from what I could tell, and even much of the HRF programming in the freedom tech track was AI-centric 5. The number of people living under autocratic rule has skyrocketed, and is now 3 in 4 people (76%) 🥲 It was a fantastic time as always, and gives me so much fuel for building over the next weeks and months. A huge thank you to @HRF for having @vikrantnyc and I, to @gladstein for his amazing vision and team-building, @arshmolu and @ck_SNARKs for the insane logistical juggling they do behind the scenes, and the rest of the awesome HRF team who make all of this possible.

NEW: @HRF just released “Bitcoin for Nonprofits: A Guide To Help Your Movement Achieve Financial Freedom.” The guide is a free resource for activists and civil society who need a financial tool no regime can freeze and no bank can block. Read online or download the PDF: hrf.org/latest/bitcoin-for-n…

Loved the conversation on Freedom Tech with @BitcoinMagazine thank you for having us! @HRF #bitcoinlasvegas2026

🌎 Nobel Peace Prize laureate María Corina Machado is joining us at the Oslo Freedom Forum. A leading voice in Venezuela’s pro-democracy movement, her influence extends beyond borders as a global symbol of resistance. Join her in Oslo this June to be part of the conversation shaping a better tomorrow.

Really looking fwd to speaking on this panel and representing @MyFirstBitcoin_ at @TheBitcoinConf next week in Vegas!

ANNOUNCEMENT: @HRF's "Freedom Go Up" stage is coming to Bitcoin 2026 🙌 The stage will feature some of Bitcoin’s top voices as they jam on freedom topics in a more intimate setting. Don't miss this!

NEW: the AI Hack for Freedom 2.0 in Nashville, TN on May 9-10 9 top global activists, armed with AI tools, will team up with open-source devs to build tech they desperately need $50k in prizes, paid out in BTC A few dev spots still open Apply today! aihackforfreedom.org/apply

📣 Calling all students! Attend @TheBitcoinConf '26 for FREE through the @BTCStudents' Student Pass: 🔗Apply here: 2026.b.tc/earn-your-pass Special thank you to @TheBitcoinConf team for offering this pass 3 years in a row!

At the 2026 Oslo Freedom Forum, we are dismantling dictatorship: convening activists, thinkers, technologists, and artists disrupting authoritarian regimes with ingenuity, creativity, and solidarity. Join us June 1–3 at the Oslo Konserthus.

If you're a strategic doer with a passion for freedom tech, apply now: hrf.org/career/freedom-tech-…

Turn that Don Toliver back on

all of a sudden ramen noodles taste great

HRF is hiring a Freedom Tech Events Producer who will play a core role in shaping and delivering HRF’s most influential global Freedom Tech gatherings. Learn more 👇 hrf.org/career/freedom-tech-…

We're hiring! HRF is looking for a Freedom Tech Events Producer to lead the production of high-impact gatherings like the Global Bitcoin Summit and AI Summit, events that accelerate tools for financial freedom and individual rights.

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🚨@HRF’s Bitcoin Development Fund is pleased to announce grants of 1.3 billion satoshis in support of 22 projects worldwide These initiatives support Bitcoin mining decentralization, education, development & freedom tech to advance civil liberties & challenge authoritarianism

HRF and the Finney Family award the Finney Freedom Prize for era 2016-2020 to Andreas M. Antonopoulos (@aantonop) for educating millions about Bitcoin, inspiring countless new users and developers, and pioneering the story of how the currency strengthens human rights.

The @HRF CBDC Tracker documents developments in more than 145 different jurisdictions. As I told @arshmolu at @planb_network, this has become a global effort by central bankers.

Dictators fuel bitcoin adoption with @AnyaChekhovich | The Last Free Americans – Self-custody is a matter of survival, not convenience – Privacy tools like coinjoin protect donors and staff – Why multisig matters for nonprofits and activist networks