David Schwartz, the former Chief Technology Officer of Ripple and a key architect of the XRP Ledger, has sparked controversy by dismissing the idea of returning to Bitcoin development and labeling the pioneering cryptocurrency a "largely a technological dead end." His comments, made in a social media exchange on February 10, 2026, reframe the debate around Bitcoin's technological progress versus its social and monetary inertia.
Schwartz entered a discussion criticizing the early "genesis reset" of the XRP Ledger as an example of centralization. He countered by pointing to Bitcoin's own history, citing "at least two incidents that showed way more centralization," including the coordinated 2010 rollback. When directly asked if he would consider developing for Bitcoin again, Schwartz replied, "Not really." He elaborated that Bitcoin's dominance, like the U.S. dollar's, relies less on base-layer tech evolution and more on established trust, stating, "The technology just doesn’t seem to matter all that much to its success, at least not at the blockchain layer."
In a separate but related discussion, Schwartz issued a longer-term warning for Bitcoin's security. He argued that while Bitcoin's current appeal doesn't require cutting-edge blockchain features, one technological shift may be imperative: adapting to quantum computing. Schwartz warned that Bitcoin would likely "need a fork to be quantum proof" to avoid potential collapse if advances in quantum computing weaken its existing cryptographic protections.
These remarks have reignited debates about Bitcoin's upgrade philosophy and future-proofing. For XRP supporters, Schwartz's comments serve as a defense against centralization critiques of the XRPL while challenging the narrative of Bitcoin's flawless, hands-off development history. At the time of the reports, XRP was trading at $1.38.
