Important Points:
- Ordinals follow satoshis’ numbering scheme that allows inscriptions, similar to NFTs
- The protocol launch jolts controversial debate among crypto community members on Bitcoin NFTs
- Will non-fungible tokens embrace in the Bitcoin ecosystem or not?
Recently, the Ordinals Protocol was launched in the Bitcoin blockchain for the first time. Created by software engineer Casey Rodarmor, this protocol uses Satoshis, the smallest unit of Bitcoin, for inscriptions for unique data.
In other words, digital assets can become stored as non-fungible tokens on the Bitcoin blockchain.
However, the BTC community seems to be divided about this new protocol. Some people have embraced the change while others think this is going against the original creator Satoshi Nakamoto’s vision of Bitcoin.
How does Ordinals Protocol work?
According to the official blog post, this Protocol is built on Ordinal theory related to satoshis, which is the atomic currency of Bitcoin. Such that:
1 BTC = 100,000,000 Satoshis.
Ordinals use Inscription to inscribe “arbitrary content” on individual satoshi. This content can be images, texts, SCG, or HTML on-chain held on a Bitcoin wallet and traded on the ecosystem like any NFT.
Creator Rodarmor claims the inscriptions are greater than NFTs because they can be stored off-chain in a centralized system with back-door keys.
The protocol stuffs Inscription in Witness data, which is cheaper than Ethereum and has “bytes count for 1/4 the amount as other parts of a transaction.”
The protocol’s successful development is thanks to Bitcoin’s Segregated Witness (SegWit) upgrade 2017 and the Taproot upgrade 2021.
The creator combined both elements to create inscriptions using satoshis via links to files, code, or text in their captions. Thus, users can easily trade, buy, sell, and store digital assets on the Bitcoin blockchain.
Community’s heated debate over Bitcoin NFTs
Following the protocol launch, many people anticipate Bitcoin NFTs are coming soon. However, half of the community members are against this idea.
The traditional Bitcoin developers claim Satoshi Nakamoto is against the idea of developing non-financial content on the Bitcoin blockchain.
According to CoinDesk, in the early days, some devs wanted to launch a domain name system called BitDNS but Nakamoto immediately declined the proposal saying it was a “red herring” for Bitcoin.
“It’s easy to trade Bitcoins for other non-repudiable commodities,” he stated.
A few members are defending the creator’s vision that doesn’t allow NFTs on the Bitcoin blockchain. They also claim that these transactions will take up space in a block, slowly down the processes.
Since the protocol will allow images and videos on the blockchain, it will also become vulnerable to criminals and black market data stored permanently on the blockchain.
Others call it another “centralized solution.”
Rodarmor defends Ordinals by saying “Bitcoin isn’t really for anything, it just exists.” He also adds that the current blockchain has “transcended the intentions of its creator.”
Regarding the decentralization of Ordinals, the software engineer hints at the possibility
“but won’t be until there is enough expertise, review, and adoption for the community to meaningfully resist me if I try to make bad changes to the protocol or software,”
Will the Ordinals really introduce Bitcoin NFTs on the mainnet or will it be collectively dismissed by the crypto community? The debate is still ongoing as Rodarmor continues to develop it.
