Timothy C. May
 | |
| Nationality | American |
|---|---|
| Occupation | Engineer, writer |
| Known for | "The Crypto Anarchist Manifesto", co-founding the Cypherpunks, The Cyphernomicon |
Timothy C. May (December 21, 1951 – December 2018) was an American engineer and writer who co-founded the cypherpunk movement. A former Intel physicist, he wrote "The Crypto Anarchist Manifesto" (1988) and The Cyphernomicon (1994), and has been described as a significant influence on both Bitcoin and WikiLeaks.[1]
Intel
At Intel in the 1970s, May and Murray Woods discovered that alpha particles emitted by trace radioactive material in chip packaging were causing "soft errors", random bit flips, in memory chips. They presented the finding in 1978, and their 1979 paper won the IEEE W.R.G. Baker Prize.[2] He retired in 1986, at 34, on the proceeds of his stock options.[1]
Cypherpunks
In 1988, May wrote "The Crypto Anarchist Manifesto" and distributed it at the Crypto '88 conference. It predicted that cryptography would let people communicate and trade anonymously, which would "alter completely the nature of government regulation, the ability to tax and control economic interactions".[3] In September 1992, he co-founded the Cypherpunks mailing list with Eric Hughes and John Gilmore.[4]
In 1994, he compiled The Cyphernomicon, a long FAQ on the movement's ideas. In it he argued that advances in computing favor those who encrypt over those who try to break encryption: "The effects of increasing computer power confer even greater advantage to the cipher user than to the cipher breaker."[5]
Later life
May welcomed Bitcoin, calling its white paper "perhaps the most important development since the invention of double-entry book-keeping", but criticized the industry that grew around it. Writing about exchanges' identity checks and account freezes in 2018, he said "I think Satoshi would barf."[6] He died of natural causes at his home in Corralitos, California, in December 2018, at 66.[4][1]
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Epstein, Jim (December 16, 2018). "Tim May, Father of 'Crypto Anarchy,' Is Dead at 66". Reason. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
- ↑ Orlowski, Andrew (December 17, 2018). "Timothy C. May, cypherpunk". The Register. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
- ↑ Timothy C. May. "The Crypto Anarchist Manifesto". activism.net. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Khatri, Yogita (December 17, 2018). "Cypherpunk Legend Timothy May Has Passed Away". CoinDesk. Retrieved November 12, 2026.
- ↑ Timothy C. May (September 10, 1994). "The Cyphernomicon, Chapter 2". Retrieved November 12, 2026.
- ↑ Timothy C. May (October 19, 2018). "Enough With the ICO-Me-So-Horny-Get-Rich-Quick-Lambo Crypto". CoinDesk. Retrieved November 12, 2026.