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John Carvalho

CEO at Synonym, creators of Pubky, Bitkit, and Blocktank.

236 Following

742 Followers

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John Carvalho

John Carvalho

1w ago

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John Carvalho

walker

1mo ago

I’ve gotten solid feedback on this episode of @THE Bitcoin Podcast with @John Carvalho (and of course some saying they didn’t like it one bit).

I’ve learned that the vast majority of Bitcoiners just want moonboi Bitcoin NGU hopium mixed with macro death-of-the-dollar doom porn. How do I know this? Because I see which episodes get the most traction. Bitcoiners may say they want “different guests and opinions” on Bitcoin podcasts, but their actions tell a very different story… The numbers are clear. That’s why even though Saylor has done 69,420 podcasts and everyone has listened to countless hours of him, the majority of people will still watch any new Saylor conversation over some lesser-known person. This isn’t a dig on Saylor, it’s just reality.

That said, if you are one of the minority of Bitcoiners who enjoys having your preconceived notions challenged, and have the ability to approach

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John Carvalho

All in Bitcoin with CK

6d ago

WHAT'S BITCOIN FOR YOU?

For @John Carvalho, it’s a game. A representation of the economic ladder.

“The more Bitcoin you have, the more you’re winning… but win too much, and the game breaks.”

You can earn it. You can mine it. You can’t fake it.

Catch this clip from my conversation with John on the ALL IN BITCOIN podcast.



Links to the full episode here: https://linktr.ee/allinbitcoin

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John Carvalho

1w ago

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John Carvalho

1w ago

Pubky vs Nostr - Under the Hood

Here's an AI-generated breakdown of the key differences under the hood between Pubky and Nostr, focusing on architecture, protocols, and design principles:

🔑 1. Identity Model

Pubky:
- Uses PKARR (Public Key Addressable Resource Records) to map pubkeys to resources (e.g., profile, index, feed, etc.) via the Mainline DHT.
- Treats a public key like a domain name, with multiple associated records (like DNS).
- Emphasizes self-custodial identity with keychain-style apps (like Pubky Ring) to manage access.

Nostr:
- Identity is simply a public key.
- No native support for structured resource discovery—clients infer structure (e.g., via nip-05, which is optional and centralized).
- No native key management or delegation system.

🧠 2. Data Architecture

Pubky:
- Data is hosted via homeservers, which can

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John Carvalho

1w ago

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John Carvalho

1w ago

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John Carvalho

1w ago

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John Carvalho

1w ago

As we build Pubky, I have a sidequest of preventing it from being a weird cesspool of niche socially dysfunctional morons and nihilistic perpetually traumatized losers. That's hell.

Signal, relevance and authenticity are of high importance, and I think that will show in our design choices.

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John Carvalho

1w ago

Behold! Bitcoin payments at scale!
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John Carvalho

Vlad, Bitcoin Takeover Podcast

4w ago

TOP 10 BITCOIN TAKEOVER PODCAST EPISODES
ACCORDING TO GROK AI:

1. S16 E10 WITH Eric Voskuil & @John Carvalho
2. S15 E71 WITH Amir Taaki
3. S15 E16 WITH Paul Sztorc
4. S13 E3 WITH Casey Rodarmor
5. S16 E12 WITH @Martti Malmi
6. S15 E66 WITH @Jameson Lopp
7. S10 E9 WITH GUACAMOLE ZUCCHINI
8. S15 E50 WITH Murch
9. S15 E57 WITH Orkun
10. S15 E53 WITH Charlie Shrem

HONORABLE MENTIONS:
S14 E1 WITH BURAK KECELI
S15 E21 WITH @fiatjaf

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John Carvalho

2w ago

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John Carvalho

2w ago

GM

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John Carvalho

2w ago

The Lisbon Bitcoin Maximalists meet again!

This, week the Synonym team is meeting up in Lisbon, so I decided to try and combine that with a re-union of the LBM... for a MEGA MEETUP!

New location: Delirium Cafe
April 8, 6:30PM

RSVP here:
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https://www.meetup.com/lisbon-bitcoin-maximalists/events/307123239/

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John Carvalho

2w ago

Behold! Bitcoin payments at scale!

el

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John Carvalho

2w ago

What's your hot nostr take?

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John Carvalho

3w ago

In an ocean of content, one ignorant post is enough to get blocked or muted.

Be the signal, or be forgotten.

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John Carvalho

3w ago

Vibe check: How much do you actually care about zapping/tipping in your bitcoin-y/nostr-y apps these days?

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John Carvalho

3w ago

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John Carvalho

Vlad, Bitcoin Takeover Podcast

3w ago

Running Pubky

In 2-3 months, you will too!

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John Carvalho

4w ago

I wanna invite @jack to the Pubky private beta, what's his email address?

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John Carvalho

1mo ago

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John Carvalho

All in Bitcoin with CK

1mo ago

Hey everyone,
Hope you’re having a great Sunday!

Some of you already know me. I’m CK. I quit my fiat job, moved to El Salvador, and launched the ALL IN BITCOIN podcast on January 29th. Now I’m all-in on it. Maybe a bit delusional, but I truly believe what I’m doing here matters. It’s a podcast about Bitcoin, Freedom Tech, Sound Money, and Austrian Economics.

In this episode “BITCOIN, BUSINESS, AND BEEF,” I sit down with @John Carvalho , one of Bitcoin’s boldest thinkers. Expect a high-energy conversation packed with personal responsibility, some beef, and a bold vision for the future of Bitcoin and financial freedom.

For those who haven’t had the time to listen yet watch it now! 🔥

You can catch a less-than-1-minute teaser at the beginning to get a feel for the episode before diving in.

Hope

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John Carvalho

1mo ago

Last weekend, I got together with Eric Voskuil and Vlad and we went in depth on Bitcoin topics for EIGHT HOURS.

Eric is one of the few Bitcoin devs I have deep respect for. If you truly want to understand Bitcoin, dig in here.

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John Carvalho

Alby

2mo ago

Join us tomorrow for another ALBY COMMUNITY CALL! ☎️ 🐝

This is a special meeting - one featured project and QUIZ with rewards!

Prove your knowledge of Lightning, Nostr to win sats and Alby Cloud subscriptions ⚡ ⚡⚡⚡⚡

Everyone can participate in Alby CC - you can just listen, or do an intro and brag what side project you are working on

🗓️ Thursday, 3pm UTC
🔗 cal.com/getalby/communitycall
☎️ communitycall.getalby.com

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Tomorrow you will have a chance to meet @John Carvalho & #Synonym team, who's attempting to rebuild the internet with #Pubky

Is Nostr not enough? 😉

Visit this project at ⬇️ ⬇️ ⬇️ ⬇️

https://pubky.app/

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John Carvalho

2mo ago

Ar entered Synonym as a frontend web dev and left as a next-web protocol rockstar.

Now, he knows more about the trends, people, and projects in P2P research than anyone.

He is a force to be reckoned with, and if you are strong enough to collaborate with such force, beautiful things can happen.

Pubky is the result of years of arguments and research to discover the very best solutions for digital freedom. Few people could have grinded through it all like we did at Synonym, with Ar.

I cherish the time we had working together, and all that we learned and designed together.

I doubt this is the end of our story, but for now, it must be.

npub1jvxva

2mo ago

Starting yesterday, I am no longer a Synonym employee.

I am thankful for John for taking a chance on me and empowering me for the past few years. without such chance I don't think I would have had the time, resources, or confidence to design what is now the foundation of Pubky.

I loved working with that team, and I am confident that they will be able to materialise what was and still is our shared vision for the Web.

This post is meant to clarify, for anyone who cares that;

1. If you are following me merely for being a Synonym employee, you should consider that I no longer speak on their behalf nor have access to anything you don't.

2. If you were interested in Pkarr or Pubky, then rest assured that I will remain a resource for

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John Carvalho

2mo ago

Please stahp.

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John Carvalho

Daniel

2mo ago

What in your mind needs the most improvement in Nostr? I though John Carvalho had some good critiques of Nostr in his recent interview with Guy Swann. I like some of his ideas for Pubky. Is Notr the thing? Or is it the thing before the thing? Really curious what you think.

npub1qny3t

Sep 28, 2024

MY PLAN IS TO HELP BOOTSTRAP NOSTR, MAKE THIS SHIT THE STANDARD, THEN FADE OUT OF PUBLIC TO FOCUS ON FAMILY.

LETS SEE IF I CAN PULL IT OFF.

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John Carvalho

2mo ago

Are any people on Nostr not tribal, not haters?

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▄︻デʟɨɮʀɛȶɛֆƈɦ-ֆʏֆȶɛʍֆ══━一,

2mo ago

PKARR PKDNS and by extension the whole PubKY project is blowing my mind. Crazy times

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John Carvalho

2mo ago

Odell supports BIP21Q!

https://github.com/BitcoinAndLightningLayerSpecs/balls/blob/main/BIP%2021Q.md

npub1qny3t

2mo ago

Replying to @npub107jk7

ZAP AS A TERM IS GOOD. PEOPLE SEEM TO PICK IT UP PRETTY QUICKLY AND IT “FEELS BETTER” THAN TIP.

USING BITCOIN RATHER THAN SATS MAKES SENSE TO ME.

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John Carvalho

2mo ago

Tipping is not a revolutionary concept, nor is it a tool for empowering individuals.

In fact, any economy that embeds tipping ends up regretting it and using it as a way to exploit naive workers to pay them less.

In social media, tipping(zapping) provides a very low-value, noisy signal, and is not very useful to people or algorithms for curation.

So, calm down about zapping and try solving real problems.

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John Carvalho

Dec 28, 2024

Caught up with @Marty Bent and we covered BIP 21Q, Pubky, digital identity and a lot more, check it out!

(The headline is clickbait, this is not a finance interview, we just did some speculating about what the big sacrifice could be this cycle!)

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John Carvalho

Dec 20, 2024

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John Carvalho

Dec 10, 2024

You need to fall in love with Mainline DHT and Synonym is going to show you why & how.

Start with this article/research by Severin on DHT censorship-resistance and numbers.

https://medium.com/pubky/mainline-dht-censorship-explained-b62763db39cb/

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John Carvalho

Dec 10, 2024

Check out this new interview with @Nuh, a dedicated Synonym engineer responsible for Pubky Core.

He goes into lots of detail about the pragmatic thinking behind Pubky's design, and of course, Nostr comparisons.

I'm also very proud to see more of the team branching out and doing interviews.

The Synonym team is going to be turning heads in 2025!

https://fountain.fm/episode/HXQpcOdQU9Tnxa9BQO2v

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Nov 30, 2024

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John Carvalho

Nov 13, 2024

You are not a trader, you are a fool.

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John Carvalho

Nov 12, 2024

Tomorrow:

The 1st Pubky Community Call

- Architecture Overview & Updates
- Q1 Roadmap
- Feedback / Q&A

Contact me or @Justpav for an invite.

Let's build the next web.

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John Carvalho

Nov 10, 2024

Synonym was founded roughly 4.5 years ago, before Nostr existed, with a vision & designs for a (bitcoin) key-based identity solution, which we openly shared with many (some nostr) people, including interesting ways you could make use & make something like (nostr) this way. (Keybase was also before many of us fwiw)

Decentralized, key-based web & identity solutions have always been part of Synonym's "atomic economy" ecosystem vision.

(...Side note: some aspects of the upcoming Pubky App, related to Semantic Social Graphs, social tagging, being your own algorithm, etc, come from designs I have had for more than 12(?) years...)

At first, we attempted to map this vision & requirements onto the Hypercore(Holepunch/Pear) system. Synonym had just become part of the Tether & Bitfinex family, and the hyper features and demos were amazing. That project was called Slashtags, and while we demonstrated more interesting

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John Carvalho

Nov 10, 2024

What's next for Pubky?

🚀 1. Launching a relatively feature-rich version of our our flagship "Pubky App": Private beta first, then public beta Q1 2025.

🔑 2. Prototyping & launching a new authenticator app for managing keys, sessions, and DHT records.

🌱 3. Launching initiatives to cultivate an ecosystem of exceptional builders using & contributing to Pubky Core.

This is just the beginning. Our 2025 roadmap is (overly) packed with exciting plans.

Get ready to take back the web with Pubky in 2025.

https://medium.com/pubky/pubky-the-next-web-3287b35408f1

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John Carvalho

Nov 6, 2024

Have you starred any Pubky repos yet?

With Pubky, your public key is your self-sovereign domain name.

We're building more great tools, but which tools would you like to have soon?

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John Carvalho

Nov 5, 2024

For people who prefer Medium over X Articles, here's the Pubky megapost:

https://medium.com/pubky/pubky-the-next-web-3287b35408f1/

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John Carvalho

Nov 5, 2024

It would be unhealthy to think of all new tech as "competition" to Nostr.

Nostr is not Bitcoin, it isn't an investment that will mature and make you rich (unless you get funded by Jack?).

Nostr is derivative networking protocol tech that builds on the ideas of many people before it (including my own, believe it or not). It is tech that already has been improved upon in various ways, both inside and outside the Nostr community.

Pubky is a strict improvement to Nostr and if that makes you uncomfortable, the cure is to learn more, not to attack it like it is some sort of virus or scam.

I have dedicated the past 12 years of my life to Bitcoin and freedom technology, and the Synonym team has similar stories. Do you really want to just ignore us and discredit us

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John Carvalho

Nov 4, 2024

Get in here, loser, we're taking back the web!

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John Carvalho

Nov 1, 2024

Today's Pubky demo features @Alby and a sneak peak at an early version of the upcoming Pubky app!

https://medium.com/@synonym_to/pubky-ai-bot-62ebf7348c2a

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John Carvalho

Oct 31, 2024

If nostr apps removed zaps, how much would you care?

Anyone think posts would be better without money totals on them?

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John Carvalho

Sep 25, 2024

Are any Nostr relays/apps doing illegal content moderation yet?

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John Carvalho

Jun 22, 2024

The little cars on the Uber map aren't yellow and blue anymore.

The loading animations on Google Maps and Figma are Pride colors now.

Why was war in my ride app?

Why is sex in my design app?

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