Opinion
Opinion

Even as a Free Man, Ross Ulbricht Still Under Fire

Even as a Free Man, Ross Ulbricht Still Under Fire
Online marketplace Silk Road creator Ross Ulbricht speaks at The Bitcoin Conference at The Venetian Convention & Expo Center in Las Vegas, Nev., on May 29, 2025. Ian Maule/Getty Images
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Commentary

In 2009, I received an email from an obviously brilliant young software developer named Ross Ulbricht. We discussed a “venture to create a free market computer simulation based on the Austrian theory.” His idea was to use many of the newest digital tools to create a digital marketplace, one that would experiment with a new form of digital money called Bitcoin. It was obvious from my correspondence that Ross’s interest was entirely in applied economics with an idealistic bent.

Jeffrey A. Tucker
Jeffrey A. Tucker
Author
Jeffrey A. Tucker is the founder and president of the Brownstone Institute and the author of many thousands of articles in the scholarly and popular press, as well as 10 books in five languages, most recently “Liberty or Lockdown.” He is also the editor of “The Best of Ludwig von Mises.” He writes a daily column on economics for The Epoch Times and speaks widely on the topics of economics, technology, social philosophy, and culture. He can be reached at [email protected]