While I had no way of knowing it at the time, this book began in 2015 when I began writing about blockchain for Bloomberg News. I've been incredibly lucky to have been able to follow many of the big stories in this new part of computer science ever since, and I had a tremendous amount of help along the way.
None of this would have been possible without Joel Weber, the amazing editor of Bloomberg Markets in 2016, who came to me with the idea of a heist story. The way he allowed me to run with the reporting and writing of The Ether Thief, and the deft edit he gave the story, set a high-water mark for how beautifully collaborative this journalism thing can be. Along the way, other editors patiently came along with me as I tried my best to explain why this should matter to Wall Street. Rob Urban was there from the start, and spiked my first blockchain story, telling me it was too boring. It was, and he set the bar high for me ever since. Nick Baker helped me think through stories big and small and has a reporter's nose for where the story lies, which is a blessing in an editor. My colleagues Edgar Ortega, Sam Mamudi, John Detrixhe, Nina Mehta, and Annie Massa always made the market structure beat the best place to be in the newsroom. On the blockchain and crypto beat, it's been a pleasure to work with Lily Katz, Camila Russo, Olga Kharif, and Alastair Marsh, all under the benevolent leadership of Dave Liedtka. Kristin Powers was incredibly generous with granting me time off to write this book, and the enthusiasm and support I received from Alan Goldstein and Michael Moore as I was leaving them for many months meant a great deal to me.
I had given up hope of finding an agent for this project when Jeff Herman emailed me out of the blue many months after I'd stopped receiving rejections. His guidance and belief in me from the beginning were immense. Bill Falloon, my editor at John Wiley & Sons, provided a perfect blend of letting me run with this story as I went all over the world and keeping me focused on the people who made this story live and breathe. All the little things in the publishing process at Wiley were made so much easier with the help of Samantha Enders, Purvi Patel, Amy Laudicano, and Jean-Karl Martin. Missy Garnett, thank you for the thorough and justified copy edit.
Maybe the most terrifying moment for a writer is releasing your baby to early readers. But in my case, I was in expert hands. My wife Rebecca is by far the best editor I've ever known, she's as tough as they come and always right. Rob Dieterich convinced me to get more of my voice into the story, and it made the book so much better. To my dad, Jeff, thank you for the incisive tips and I'm glad you thought the story got going after a hundred pages. To Adam, my brother, sorry you didn't like it. Many thanks to Liam Vaughan and Nathaniel Popper for early advice on how to write a book.
As I hope came through in the text, the subjects of this story were wildly generous with their time. A few stand out. Vitalik was always willing to sit down with me, as long as I came to him. It was a pleasure getting to know him over the hours we spent together. His father Dmitry entrusted me with the Encyclopedia of Bunnies, which strange as it sounds really helped me understand his son. Griff Green gave me the prefect ending to this story with his Burning Man involvement, as well as help and guidance all along the way that was vital. Lefteris Karapetsas from the very beginning of my reporting contributed his insights and gave me immeasurable help. Alex Van de Sande did the same. Christoph Jentzsch kindly allowed me in his home to see where he suffered in his office on the day of the DAO attack, and generously put me up in Mittweida when no hotels could be found. Emin Gün Sirer also graciously allowed me to visit his home, and along with Phil Daian gave a lot of their time to help me check my blockchain sleuthing. I was able, maybe, to get a bit more out of Joe Lubin for this book than usual, thanks for putting up with me, Joe. And Andrew Keys was always there to answer questions or help make a connection to someone I needed to speak with. Another early and instrumental source was Anthony Di Ilorio, who gave me hours of his time, including a visit to his gorgeous Toronto condo. After much hounding, Gavin Wood and I exchanged long emails as he was in the midst of launching his latest blockchain project, Polkadot. Thank you, Gavin. Mihai and Roxana were always an absolute pleasure to speak with, and Roxana helped me “see” Calafou with the amazing photos she so kindly allowed me to use. Taylor Gerring did the same for the early days with his photographs and detailed recollections.
I couldn't have attended Burning Man without a camp, and I was very fortunate to be allowed into the Enclave. Thanks to Mark, Zach, Jewels, Melissa, and everyone else who made that week absolutely unforgettable. (Mark, we still need to talk blockchain, give me a call.) Ben Best made that introduction to the Enclave folks for me; thank you, Ben.
For their astute and ambitious public relations help I can't thank you enough Amanda Cassatt, Kelley Weaver, and Carissa Felger. Your kindness and generosity are amazing.
Lastly, my family have always been the rock underneath me during this project. To my boys, Noah and Nate, thank you for letting your dad disappear into the office for several months. To my mom, Tracy, your support and belief in me has never wavered and I'm the man I am because of you. Dad, thank you for showing me that it's possible to love your job. Rebecca, you beautiful thing, I do all of this for you.