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PODCAST

POD256 | Bitcoin Mining, Freedom Tech, and Awesome Tangents

A Bitcoin podcast focused on open-source Bitcoin mining, energy, and freedom tech. Recorded weekly at Bitcoin Park in Nashville, TN. Co-hosted by: @econoalchemist, @skot9000, and @tylerkstevens

technology

All Episodes

00:51:54

109. Hashrate Heat, Home Sovereignty, and the...

POD256 | Bitcoin Mining, Freedom Tech, and Awesome... ·

2026/03/25

In this episode, Tyler and eco hold down the fort while Skot is away and dive deep into the frontier of Bitcoin-powered heating and open-source mining. They walk through a new Home Assistant + Venstar-based dashboard built for a customer that tracks miner-delivered BTUs vs. natural gas, stage changes, outdoor temps, sats earned, and economics—proving a single 5kW miner can carry a 3,000+ sq ft home through shoulder season. We unpack heat pumps versus combustion heat, why furnaces are oversized, the

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01:16:45

108. From Mixers to Miners: Why Samourai Matters for...

POD256 | Bitcoin Mining, Freedom Tech, and Awesome... ·

2026/03/18

In this live episode from Denver, we rally behind the Samourai Wallet developers, Keonne Rodriguez and William Hill, who are serving federal prison sentences for building noncustodial privacy software. We preview our evening event and planned livestream with Lauren Rodriguez—who then drops in mid-show to share first-hand updates on the case, including SDNY’s aggressive jurisdiction tactics, the judge swap that curtailed their defense, and why Treasury guidance and DOJ memos haven’t protected

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01:10:08

107. Hacking the Antminer: Mujina on Stock Control...

POD256 | Bitcoin Mining, Freedom Tech, and Awesome... ·

2026/03/11

In this episode, we go deep on open-source Bitcoin mining firmware and tooling with Tyler, Skot, and eco. Skot shares his hack of running Mujina on stock Bitmain Antminer S19 control boards—no SD card, just Ethernet/USB flashing via LuxOS—unlocking full control of fans, single-board operation, and APW12 PSU management (with a cautionary tale about overheating and tripping a breaker). We discuss writing drivers for temps, fans, and the undocumented APW12 interface, 120V APW12 hardware mods (hat tip

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00:44:01

106. High Signal in the Hashtub: Workshops, Open...

POD256 | Bitcoin Mining, Freedom Tech, and Awesome... ·

2026/03/04

In this episode, we debrief the second annual Heatpunk Summit from the legendary Hashtub in Denver. We recap how builders from HVAC, hydronics, and home mining came together to advance hashrate heating—complete with live hardware demos, workshops, and a brutally constructive critique of our boiler setup from a pro hydronics engineer. We dig into galvanic corrosion gotchas, smarter system design, and why practical, hands-on education is the real unlock for bringing Bitcoin miners back into homes and

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01:09:02

105. Chips, Chains, and Hot Tubs: Open Mining Goes...

POD256 | Bitcoin Mining, Freedom Tech, and Awesome... ·

2026/02/19

In episode 105, we finally get the stream dialed and dive straight into hands‑on Bitcoin mining and open-source hardware updates. We share the latest on Ember One: a sneaky IO voltage domain bug uncovered by Mujina dev Ryan led to a desk‑side hardware fix that’s now pushing ~2 TH/s (target is 3.6 TH/s across 12 chips with proper cooling). We unpack chip and hashboard design lore—from stacked voltage domains and reliability in long chains to the insider politics at big silicon shops like Intel. We

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00:57:13

104. AI, Open-Source Bitcoin Mining, and Battling...

POD256 | Bitcoin Mining, Freedom Tech, and Awesome... ·

2026/02/11

In this live episode of POD256 (Ep. 104), eco is joined by Scott and Tyler—freshly minted 256 Foundation board members—for a fast-paced tour through open-source Bitcoin mining, DIY heat reuse, and the growing role of AI in hardware and firmware. We showcase D++’s new livestream overlay and the public monitoring dashboard at dash.256f.org/monitor.html, experiment with zap-based chat, and talk through the recent major difficulty drop and what it means for home miners. We revisit the 2021 China mining

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01:19:57

103. Closed-Source is Retarded: Building Bitcoin...

POD256 | Bitcoin Mining, Freedom Tech, and Awesome... ·

2026/02/04

In this episode, eco & Tyler Stevens, CEO and founder of Exergy Heat, to dig into why open-source hardware and firmware are critical for the future of Bitcoin mining, especially for heat reuse in homes and businesses. We had a surprise visit from Skot and Joe Nakamoto dialing in from El Salvador, providing us with updates from the Plan B conference. We talk candidly about the constraints of closed, proprietary miners, shifting hardware trends (hydro-only, three‑phase, fewer 240V options), and

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01:10:25

102. Why Open Firmware Wins: A Post-NEMS Debrief with...

POD256 | Bitcoin Mining, Freedom Tech, and Awesome... ·

2026/01/30

In episode 102, we are joined by Ryan, lead developer of the Mujina firmware, for a debrief on Telehash #3 live demo and the momentum around the 256 Foundation’s fully open Bitcoin mining stack. We walk through the sous vide miner demo that cooked ribeyes while mining on three Ember One hashboards with custom water blocks, controlled by our Libre board prototype running Mujina and pointed at Hydra Pool; an eight-hour, live-streamed showcase of the entire open stack working together. We reflect on

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01:27:53

101. HydraPool, HashDash, and the Telehash Playbook:...

POD256 | Bitcoin Mining, Freedom Tech, and Awesome... ·

2026/01/14

In this episode, the 256 Foundation crew and developer d++ go deep on HydraPool, our open‑source Bitcoin mining pool stack, and the new HashDash and upcoming TeleDash dashboards powering the Telehash fundraiser stream. We unpack how HydraPool fits into the broader plan to open‑source the entire mining stack (hashboard, control board, firmware, and pool), its Rust-based design inspired by CKPool and P2Pool v2, and flexible payout models (solo, PPLNS, and multi-address coinbase). We also talk user

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01:36:57

100. Dismantling the Black Box: Hydra Pool, Libre...

POD256 | Bitcoin Mining, Freedom Tech, and Awesome... ·

2025/12/31

In our 100th episode, we celebrate three years of POD256 and almost two years of building the open-source Bitcoin mining stack. We share behind‑the‑scenes stories from our first Telehash block find and chart what’s coming for 2026. We walk through how the 256 Foundation allocated over $400k in grants across Ember One (open hashboard design), Libre Board (open control board), Mujina (open miner firmware), and Hydra Pool (self‑hosted pool), and how these projects are already flipping the closed “black

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02:24:47

Code Is Not Crime: Samourai Petition, Pool Scams, and...

POD256 | Bitcoin Mining, Freedom Tech, and Awesome... ·

2025/12/17

In today’s POD256, we opened with a timely update on the Change.org petition to pardon Samourai Wallet developers Bill and Keonne. We dug into confusing verification flows, the low conversion rate from views to valid signatures, why pseudonyms and disposable emails are allowed, and why donations on Change.org don’t reach the families; direct support should go to GiveSendGo. We also covered the growing media push, the reported acknowledgment from President Trump, and counter-narratives forming in the

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01:58:56

098. From Mauritius to Modular Miners: Open-Source...

POD256 | Bitcoin Mining, Freedom Tech, and Awesome... ·

2025/12/13

In this episode, eco & Tyler welcome back Skot who was at the African Bitcoin Conference, this year hosted in Mauritius, where he spoke on open-source Bitcoin mining. We swap travel tales (including Scott’s chaotic Paris layover) and impressions of Mauritius, the conference venue, and side events focused on Bitcoin education. We dig into mining headlines: Bitdeer’s missed ASIC roadmap and investor lawsuit, Bitmain’s history (Antbleed) and why open-source mining matters, and MicroBT’s M70-series

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01:38:06

097. From Lab to Hash: Ember One, Libre Board, and an...

POD256 | Bitcoin Mining, Freedom Tech, and Awesome... ·

2025/12/03

In this episode of POD256, Tyler and eco catch up on winter in Colorado, project trucks, and then dive deep into the latest in Bitcoin mining and freedom tech. We recap last week’s conversation with Keonne Rodriguez of Samourai Wallet, the urgent push for signatures on the pardon petition, and practical ways to support; while clarifying privacy-friendly ways to sign. We also discuss GrapheneOS stepping back from France amid regulatory pressure, the broader trend of governments targeting toolmakers,

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02:08:38

096. From Open Source to Federal Sentence: The...

POD256 | Bitcoin Mining, Freedom Tech, and Awesome... ·

2025/11/27

In this urgent and heartfelt conversation, we sit down with Keonne Rodriguez, cofounder of Samourai Wallet, to unpack his prosecution and five-year federal sentence for building noncustodial Bitcoin privacy software. From the government’s shifting theory of “unlicensed money transmission” to conspiracy charges built on out-of-context tweets and slides, Keonne details how a noncustodial wallet was framed as a financial institution, even after FinCEN itself reportedly said it was not. We dig into

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01:32:25

095. Open-Source or Bust: Mujina, Miner Firmware...

POD256 | Bitcoin Mining, Freedom Tech, and Awesome... ·

2025/11/19

In this episode, we go deep on the shifting landscape of Bitcoin mining hardware, open-source firmware, and why trustless stacks matter for miners big and small. Fresh off the local Bitcoin++ in Durham, we recap the vibe: a developer-heavy crowd, real collaboration between devs and miners, and our announcement of the Mujina developer preview—an open-source mining firmware now publicly accessible for hands-on testing. We discuss practical demo plans for the HeatPunk Summit, creative power ideas (from

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01:17:54

094. PPLNS, Pick-and-Place, and Pardon: A Deep Dive...

POD256 | Bitcoin Mining, Freedom Tech, and Awesome... ·

2025/11/12

In episode 94 of POD256, we cover a full slate of Bitcoin mining and freedom tech updates from Nashville to Denver. We recap the Bitcoin Veterans telehash fundraiser that briefly peaked near 98.5 PH, discuss PPLNS dynamics at Ocean and Slush/Brains, and explore Square’s new Lightning payments rollout. We share a field report from installing an immersion-based hashrate heating system on subsidized power in Buena Vista, the pros/cons of immersion (including an oil-leak mishap), and how recapturing

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02:00:22

093. Decentralize or Die: Open Miners, Pool Payouts,...

POD256 | Bitcoin Mining, Freedom Tech, and Awesome... ·

2025/11/05

In this episode, we dive into Canaan’s surprising GitHub drop and what it could mean for open-source mining, license tangles and all. We unpack the inclusion of CGMiner, the BSD-3 vs GPLv3 conflict, and Canaan’s RISC-V K230 SDK. We also explore the Nano 3/Nano 3S design, home-mining momentum, and the practical realities of certification (FCC/UL/CE/RoHS) for miners and heater-integrations. From local vs remote control to insurance implications, we discuss the gauntlet that open hardware must run and

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02:15:16

092. Hashrate at Home: Zigbee Thermostats, Bitaxe...

POD256 | Bitcoin Mining, Freedom Tech, and Awesome... ·

2025/10/29

In this episode, we range from ice-cold mornings and sunny Colorado skies to a deep dive on home mining, heat reuse, open hardware, and sovereign home automation. We recap getting featured in Forbes on Heat Punk projects and how mainstream coverage is finally grokking mining-as-heat, Canon’s heating-first designs, and Bitmain’s market dominance risks. We share real-world progress: integrating Canaan home miners with Home Assistant via APIs and Node-RED, using Zigbee sensors for room-aware

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01:41:51

091. Hash, Heat, and Hardware: LibreBoard, Mujina,...

POD256 | Bitcoin Mining, Freedom Tech, and Awesome... ·

2025/10/22

In this episode, we go deep on two fronts: protecting open-source projects from trademark hijacking and advancing real-world hash rate heating. We share the ongoing battle to oppose fraudulent USPTO filings on the BitAxe mark, why “TM” vs. registered matters, and how we’re navigating opposition, Madrid Protocol options, and the broader goal of keeping open hardware open without enabling scammers. We then switch to practical engineering: Tyler walks us through immersion mining powering radiant floor

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01:22:16

090. Make Every Meetup a Pool: Stratum v2, Hole...

POD256 | Bitcoin Mining, Freedom Tech, and Awesome... ·

2025/10/15

In this episode of POD256, we go deep on open-source Bitcoin mining with live updates from TabConf. We kick off with some tax-day banter and quickly shift into the real meat: the imminent release of Mujina; an open-source, Rust-based, modular mining firmware designed for flexibility (think hot-swappable hashboards, per-chip capability-aware work assignment, and embedded Linux distro ambitions). We discuss the Ember One hashboard iterations, pragmatic scope control, and why a community-driven,

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108 results

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