Skull of Satoshi
XRP funded Greenpeace hit piece backfires and creates iconic Bitcoin Symbol.
OutdoorSocial Media
- Sponsors
- Greenpeace USA, XRP, Ripple
- Designers
- Benjamin Von Wong
- Date
- 3/23/2023
- Location
- New York City
- Format
- Outdoor, Social Media
- Objective
- Create negative press for Bitcoin mining so companies and governments force Bitcoin to change the code. Bitcoiners embraced the icon and celebrated the art. Created a massive public pressure campaign to investigate the funding source that turned out to be Ripple / XRP executives who had to apologize and donated the art to the Bitcoin Museum.
- Target Audience
- Financial institutions, Democrat Voters, Liberal Media, Enviormental Activist, XRP Holders,
- Creative Idea
- A dramatic physical symbol acquired a meaning different from its original campaign message.
- Call to Action
- Original: support Change the Code, Not the Climate. Community: share and remix the skull.
- Funding
- Chris Larsen, the co-founder of Ripple / XRP
- Budget
- Rumored US$ 4 Million Dollars donated in XRP.
- Results
- Bitcoiners embraced the Skull of Satoshi and transformed an attack on Bitcoin into a symbol of the community itself. The campaign failed to create meaningful pressure to change Bitcoin’s code and instead hardened opposition to Ripple and XRP across much of the Bitcoin industry. What was intended as criticism of Bitcoin ultimately became a case study in the community’s ability to reclaim the message, defend the network, and push back against a highly funded advocacy campaign.