Gavin Andresen facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Gavin Andresen
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Gavin Andresen on the centre stage during Day 3 of the 2014 Web Summit
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| Born | November 11, 1966 |
| Other names | Gavin Bell |
| Alma mater | Princeton University |
| Known for | Bitcoin, software |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Computer science |
Gavin Andresen (born November 11, 1966) is a computer expert. He is well-known for his important work with Bitcoin. Bitcoin is a type of digital money. He lives in Amherst, Massachusetts.
Gavin Andresen started working with Bitcoin in 2010. He became the main person in charge of developing Bitcoin's software. In 2012, he helped create the Bitcoin Foundation. This foundation works to support and help Bitcoin grow. By 2014, he left his software development job to focus on his work with the Foundation.
Gavin Andresen's Career
Gavin Andresen (who was known as Gavin Bell then) finished college in 1988. He studied at Princeton University. He began his career working on computer graphics software. This was at a company called Silicon Graphics. In 1996, he helped write the rules for VRML 2.0. This was a way to show 3D graphics on the internet.
After 1996, Andresen worked on many different software projects. He was a chief technology officer for a company that used the internet for phone calls. He also helped start a company that made online games. These games were for people who are blind and their friends.
Working with Bitcoin
Gavin Andresen was a lead developer for the Bitcoin digital money project. He worked to make Bitcoin a safe and stable "cash for the Internet." He found Bitcoin in 2010 and thought its design was very clever. Soon after, he made a website called The Bitcoin Faucet. This website actually gave away small amounts of Bitcoin for free.
In 2011, Andresen said that Bitcoin was made to be a decentralized currency. This means it's not controlled by one bank or government. He also said, "this is like better gold than gold." He joined other developers working on Bitcoin. He then became the main developer for the software that runs the Bitcoin network.
In 2011, he gave a presentation about Bitcoin. This was at a conference for the United States Intelligence Community. He stepped back from being the main developer in 2014. Andresen also created a service called ClearCoin. This service was like an escrow service, which helps people make secure online payments. It closed in 2011.
After working on the software for several years, Andresen left his role as lead developer. He wanted to focus on the bigger picture of Bitcoin's technology. He came up with the idea for the Bitcoin Foundation. This foundation officially started in September 2012.
Andresen has not worked on Bitcoin since February 2016. He felt that Bitcoin developers were not making the network faster. He helped create Bitcoin XT, which was an alternative software. His access to the Bitcoin code was removed in May 2016. In November 2017, Andresen showed support for another digital currency called Bitcoin Cash. He said that Bitcoin Cash was what he originally started working on in 2010. He saw it as both a way to store value and a way to exchange money.
Images for kids
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Gavin Andresen on the centre stage during Day 3 of the 2014 Web Summit
See also
In Spanish: Gavin Andresen para niños
