VMware’s CEO says Bitcoin is bad for humanity

Pat Gelsinger, the CEO of business software giant VMware often speaks about the harmful social effects of technology development. He believes that tech companies must take ethical approach and consider how their products affect society. No wonder that he is no fan of Bitcoin. Speaking recently in the interview with Fortune, he said that the first cryptocurrency was “bad for humanity.”

Notably, he regards the blockchain as an example of a “neutral” technology; however, bitcoin, the digital currency build on the blockchain, is a bad example of how the good technology can be misused. 

In particular, Gelsinger pointed out that Bitcoin mining requires lots of energy and thus contributes to the climate crisis.

“It takes the energy of a home, half-a-home a day, to do a single entry into a Bitcoin ledger. It’s climate intolerant, it is so extreme, it is bad design,” Gelsinger said.

Apart from that, he mentioned Bitcoin usage for illegal activities such as money laundering and tax evasion. 

He said that he is ready for a backlash from Bitcoin enthusiasts that consider the cryptocurrency as a digital form of gold and a future of money.

 “We don’t get to be absent from the policy and social debates—we have to be an active participant in them in shaping technology to be good,” he said.