Jack Mallers Says Bitcoin and AI Could Give People Back Their Time
Key Takeaways
- •Mallers said Bitcoin could improve purchasing power by limiting the time and energy lost to monetary weakness.
- •He argued that artificial intelligence could reduce routine labor and create more opportunity for creative work.
- •Bitcoin gained approximately 25% in August and ended the month near $78,000.
- •The rally followed expanded long-dated Treasury buybacks, lower yields and billions of dollars in short liquidations.
- •Core consumer prices increased 0.3% in August, while U.S. debt reached $40 trillion and the Federal Reserve was widely expected to raise interest rates.
Bitcoin, together with artificial intelligence, could help people reclaim time for creative work, according to Strike CEO Jack Mallers.
Mallers made the remarks on Bitcoin Magazine’s debut television show on Monday. He argued that hard money does not take away people’s time and energy and instead rewards time and energy that are spent productively.
“Money broadly is our time and energy in an abstracted form — it is the market good that represents the effort, the labor,” Mallers said.
“If the money is bad, it’s very destructive to our time and energy: It robs us of our time and energy. You have to work longer and harder to get a house; you have to work longer and harder to get a vacation. You have to work longer and harder to have hours to pursue your artistic interests.”
“And if the money is good, it actually gives you and rewards back time and energy,” he continued. Mallers said Bitcoin and AI could help free people from the “drudgery” associated with bad money. In his framing, Bitcoin addresses the monetary system while AI could reduce the routine work that consumes people’s time, combining two distinct parts of his argument about making more time available for productive and creative pursuits.
He cited the Wright brothers, the creators of the airplane, as an example of inventors who developed their work while the United States was on a gold standard.
Mallers’ comments followed Bitcoin’s strongest run in years. The cryptocurrency gained about 25% in August, making it the strongest month of 2026 and its first positive August since 2021. Bitcoin closed the month near $78,000.
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The move came after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent expanded long-dated bond buybacks. The decision pushed yields lower and triggered billions of dollars in short liquidations.
The so-called debasement trade has returned to the headlines since the announcement. The term refers to traders buying assets such as gold or bitcoin as a hedge against a decline in the value of a currency.
The dollar fell after the Treasury buyback news and an announcement the same week that U.S. debt had reached $40 trillion.
Addressing the condition of the U.S. economy, Mallers said: “This level of debt is unsustainable, so when people debate, oh well, what if they hike rates? What if they cut rates? It doesn’t matter: it’s all inflationary and it’s all untenable.”
Data released on Friday showed that the consumer price index excluding food and energy rose 0.3% in August from the previous month, exceeding expectations.
The United States is facing an affordability crisis, while the Federal Reserve is widely expected to raise interest rates this week to contain inflation as oil prices have climbed. Those economic conditions provide the immediate backdrop for Mallers’ broader argument about purchasing power, work and the time available for activities beyond meeting basic costs.
The program is available through Bitcoin Magazine’s official broadcast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FZBdtoiYf8
This article first appeared on Bitcoin Magazine: https://bitcoinmagazine.com/news/jack-mallers-says-bitcoin-rewards-work
Written by Mathew Di Salvo: https://bitcoinmagazine.com/authors/mathewdisalvo
