S16 E37: Andrew Poelstra on Simplicity, Bitcoin Smart Contracts & Upgrades

Simplicity, a scripting language so simple that it can fit on a t-shirt, has finally launched on Liquid after a decade of development. Andrew Poelstra, who works as director of research at Blockstream, explains how it works & why it's good for Bitcoin.

Time stamps:

(00:00:50) Introducing Andrew Poelstra

(00:01:45) Simplicity: Now Live on Liquid

(00:02:12) Elements and Liquid’s Technical Evolution

(00:03:09) Is Simplicity a Response to Solidity?

(00:05:40) Simplicity’s Programming Model & Rust Inspiration

(00:08:04) Demo Applications and Simplicity Playground

(00:10:03) Why Not Stick with Bitcoin Script?

(00:11:48) Bitcoin Script’s Limitations and Quirks

(00:19:14) Simplicity’s Capabilities: Computation & Covenants

(00:22:26) Formal Verification and Multi-Language Implementations

(00:25:21) Machine-Checkable Proofs and Contract Safety

(00:29:07) Covenants, OP_CAT, and Script Extension Fears

(00:33:26) Simplicity as a Future Script Extension Path

(00:34:31) Ethereum’s Design Mistakes & Simplicity’s Approach

(00:53:00) Simplicity’s Lateness and Ethereum’s Rise

(01:01:12) Simplicity’s Usability and Adoption Challenges

(01:04:18) Potential Use Cases for Simplicity: Vaults, Business Logic, Quantum Signatures

(01:08:06) Wallets and Simplicity Integration

(01:16:30) Simplicity vs. Soft Forks for New Opcodes

(01:19:01) Jets: Optimizing Simplicity with Native Code

(01:22:44) Collider Script and High-Cost Emulation

(01:24:44) Resource Limits and Transaction Size

(01:29:34) Non-Scammy, Technologically Interesting Altcoins: Monero, Zcash, Grin, and Sia

(01:33:14) Where to Learn More About Simplicity