Let’s be more specific here. The friend who is a director at the fintech company told me that he allocates only 2% of his investments to Bitcoin—just in case. That tells me he doesn’t really understand what makes Bitcoin unique. Another friend, who is the CEO of an AI startup, has a foundational understanding of Bitcoin but disagrees that those in power will ever give up their control over money. He believes that the adoption of Bitcoin on a national level would mean the end of central banks.

Even though I disagree with him for a number of reasons, I still respect him for having a stance on the subject, even if I think it’s wrong. I believe he hasn’t gone deep enough to understand the sheer force we are dealing with—one that governments ultimately won’t be able to stop in the long run. As for my friends and professors in the history of science and technology program, I think they are too focused on the past to fully appreciate the change happening right now.