• Time: 26 hours
    • Free Certificate
    The sheer breadth of the Bitcoin universe is incredibly expansive. The first experience of any person who starts down the Bitcoin rabbit hole is the realization that there are many pathways of knowledge and areas of focus to explore. You may have heard about mining, wallets, self-custody, centralized and decentralized exchanges, methods of acquiring Bitcoin, KYC/AML regulations, cryptography, cold vs hot storage, backup keys, coin-joining, and more. This course addresses very few of the topics mentioned above, and intentionally so. Instead, "The Saylor Series," has a different intention and focus. Built around a long-form discussion between Michael Saylor and Robert Breedlove that was released as 17 episodes on Breedlove’s podcast (The "What Is Money?” Show), this course is designed to facilitate a deep and reflective dive into the intersecting themes of energy, technology, and anthropology. If you're looking for a shorter, less philosophical survey of the Bitcoin landscape that provides a practical guide to acquiring, storing, and spending it, we highly recommend Stephan Livera's course here at Saylor Academy, "Bitcoin for Everybody". Simply put, the Saylor Series is different. The curriculum for this course is itself the discussion between Saylor and Breedlove, with discussion prompts and quiz questions along the way to help deepen your engagement, reflection, and understanding of its overarching theme: Bitcoin as the intersection of energy, anthropology, and technology.

    • Unit 1: Historical and Philosophical Foundations of Bitcoin: Unraveling Human History and Technological Progress

      In this unit, direct discussion of Bitcoin is minimal. Saylor and Breedlove focus on laying the historical and intellectual foundation for our understanding of energy, anthropology, and technology, specifically how they provide a lens through which we can interpret human history. Bitcoin did not spring up out of nowhere; it's the natural result of a long series of developments, a capstone innovation to and an inheritor of centuries of human ingenuity employed in the efficient capturing and wielding of energy. All these elements converge and reach an apotheosis in Bitcoin. Be ready and willing to think abstractly about these themes and how they impact the very basics of our survival.

      Completing this unit should take you approximately 5 hours.

    • Unit 2: Energy, Money, and the Evolution of Digital Power

      In this unit, Saylor and Breedlove go deep into the ways energy has been captured, retained, transferred, channeled, and spent – from the prehistoric days of fire, missile, and waterpower to breakfast cereals and ketchup, from the gold standard to various fiat standards and, finally, to the Bitcoin standard. The fiat system encourages the use of leverage to protect one's savings from leaking value. Inflation is like a steady drip of toxic chemicals into the bloodstream of the economy. But Bitcoin is the cleansing antidote to dishonest money, and it aspires to become the treasury reserve asset of the world. It's also a digital organism that adapts in real time to attacks. Beware of the Malthusian fallacy and the narrow limitations of a linear worldview when evaluating problems. Betting against technology and the creative ingenuity of man is generally a poor strategy.

      Saylor and Breedlove will guide students through the mechanics of harnessing, conserving, transferring, directing, and spending energy. From ancient fire to modern-day staples like breakfast cereals and ketchup, you'll explore human energy consumption. Next, you'll cover financial systems, contrasting the gold standard with various fiat standards and the future Bitcoin standard. Prepare to discover leveraging techniques to protect savings from inflation. Bitcoin emerges as a transparent alternative, aiming to become the global treasury reserve asset while adapting to real-time threats. Finally, this unit will also caution against the Malthusian fallacy and encourage a broader perspective on very complex issues. You'll learn that betting against technology and human ingenuity is usually unwise.

      Completing this unit should take you approximately 5 hours.

    • Unit 3: Resilience, Function, and Philosophical Implications of Bitcoin

      In this unit, Saylor returns to the missile analogy to elaborate on the ways Bitcoin protects itself from threats. As you'll see, the network's adaptability in response to attack is as impressive as it is wide-ranging. We also get into the debate over whether Bitcoin is (or should be) a medium of exchange and what we should expect from a base-layer protocol. Could other economic/technological layers perform certain functions of money better than Bitcoin can? If so, is that acceptable, even preferable? Finally, we will learn together some practical guidelines for designing an asset mix that aligns with your portfolio and lifestyle.

      Completing this unit should take you approximately 5 hours.

    • Unit 4: Transformative Money and the Evolution of Sociopolitical Systems

      In this unit, we will continue to compare and contrast the various monetary standards throughout history – gold, fiat, and Bitcoin. Then, we'll move into a discussion of Bitcoin as a cybernetic lifeform that consumes and subsumes many functions and roles that are important in the fiat world.

      Completing this unit should take you approximately 6 hours.

    • Unit 5: Bitcoin's Path to Immortality: Exploring Security, Evolution, and Transformative Applications

      In the final unit, we'll cover the means and pathways for Bitcoin to achieve immortality, specifically Saylor's thesis about its seven layers of security. Next, we'll discuss predictions about Bitcoin's future energy usage, the costs for the network to continue securing itself, and some practical applications of the Lightning Network.

      Completing this unit should take you approximately 5 hours.

    • Supplemental Materials

      The course designer gathered some students to discuss the course, and we are presenting those discussions as supplemental materials. You are not responsible for their content on the final exam.

    • Course Feedback Survey

      Please take a few minutes to give us feedback about this course. We appreciate your feedback, whether you completed the whole course or even just a few resources. Your feedback will help us make our courses better, and we use your feedback each time we make updates to our courses. If you come across any urgent problems, email contact@saylor.org.

    • Certificate Final Exam

      Take this exam if you want to earn a free Course Completion Certificate.

      To receive a free Course Completion Certificate, you will need to earn a grade of 70% or higher on this final exam. Your grade for the exam will be calculated as soon as you complete it. If you do not pass the exam on your first try, you can take it again as many times as you want, with a 7-day waiting period between each attempt. Once you pass this final exam, you will be awarded a free Course Completion Certificate.