Jack Liao is a Shenzhen-based, Chinese software engineer known as the founder of Bitcoin Gold. ^[1]

Career

Bitcoin Gold

Jack Liao forked Bitcoin Core at block 491,407 to launch Bitcoin Gold in September 2017. The aim was to create an ASIC-resistant version of Bitcoin to decentralize the network, addressing the concentration of mining power. The concept behind Bitcoin Gold was "one CPU one vote," reflecting Satoshi Nakamoto’s original vision where every node could mine coins. ^[2]

During the 2017 debates on Bitcoin forks, Liao engaged in discussions with figures like Craig Wright and Jihan Wu. Since 2018, Liao has remained low profile, while the Bitcoin Gold community continues developing BTG. ^[2]

In May 2018, Bitcoin Gold experienced a 51% hashing attack by an unknown actor, allowing manipulation of the blockchain ledger and double-spending of digital coins. During this attack, approximately 388,000 BTG (worth around US$18 million) was stolen from several cryptocurrency exchanges. Subsequently, Bitcoin Gold was delisted from Bittrex after the team declined to contribute to damages. ^[3]

Lightning ASIC

Jack Liao is also the founder and CEO of Lightning ASIC, a computer mining firm based in Hong Kong and founded in September 2013. Lightning ASIC focuses on cryptocurrency and invests in ASICs (Application-Specific Integrated Circuits), mining, transaction systems, etc. ^[1]