Craig Wright won't prove he created Bitcoin
Troubling letter suggests pressure of accusations is taking its toll.
As suddenly as Craig Wright declared himself the creator of Bitcoin, he now says that he won't attempt to prove it. In a strange blog post, the man who claimed to be Satoshi Nakamoto says that "I believed that I could put the years of anonymity and hiding behind me. But as the events of this week unfolded and I prepared to publish the proof of access to the earliest keys, I broke. I do not have the courage." He went on to say that the recent attacks on his qualification and character have taken a toll, and "I now know that I am not strong enough for this."
Wright came out as Satoshi Nakamoto to the BBC, Economist and GQ after his home was raided by Australian police, but his "proof" was quickly attacked. Redditors and researchers pointed out that the signature he revealed was just a copy of one used in a Satoshi Bitcoin transaction from 2009 that can be found by a simple Google search. Furthermore, the Bitcoin Foundation's chief scientist, Gavin Andresen, originally was "convinced beyond a reasonable doubt" that Wright was Satoshi, but now says the statement was a mistake.
To quell doubts, Wright promised "extraordinary" evidence he was Bitcoin's creator by moving a coin from an early block. It doesn't appear he's going to do that anymore, either because he can't or won't. That means the identity of Satoshi Nakamoto remains an open question, and if anything, the situation is even murkier.
