NEW YORK, NEW YORK

In August 2011, around 50 early Bitcoin enthusiasts converged on New York’s Roosevelt Hotel for the world’s first Bitcoin Conference and World Expo. After years of interacting online, it was a chance to put faces to usernames and to discuss key issues concerning the development and use cases for Bitcoin.

It was a largely male affair, with just one woman in attendance, in keeping with the demographic initially drawn to Bitcoin. As one reporter observed, the gathering felt “like the first day of camp – a boys’ camp – where everyone already knew each other in an alternate universe.”

This was to change in later years, however, as Bitcoin went mainstream and more women entered the industry. Bitcoin educator Natalie Brunell notes: “In 2022, alongside my dear friend Calli Bailey, I co-chaired the very first Women of Bitcoin Brunch at Bitcoin 2022 in Miami. What started as a small, heartfelt gathering of women passionate about this revolutionary new form of money has now grown into a vibrant, welcoming community of more than more than 500 women at our most recent event.

“For too long, our financial system has made many women feel small, intimidated, or dependent. Bitcoin changes that. It’s a tool that doesn’t care about your gender, race, income, or where you were born. It’s accessible to anyone with an internet connection. But access isn’t the same as understanding, and that’s where education and community come in.”

But back in 2011, the inaugural Bitcoin conference was historic in a number of ways. Not only was it the first event of its kind, but it was one whose participants were willing to travel the world to be there. Attendees flew from China, Europe, and South America to meet in New York on this momentous occasion.

Like subsequent Bitcoin conferences, the event attracted a curious blend of developers, entrepreneurs, miners, and evangelists, each interested in a different aspect of Bitcoin but united in wanting to see it succeed. It also captured Bitcoin’s emerging culture: equal parts idealism and profit-seeking, technical geekery and libertarian zeal, camaraderie and chaos.

Orchestrated by Wagner

The event had been organised by Bruce Wagner, host of The Bitcoin Show on OnlyOneTV, who originally planned to host the conference at his studio. Demand rapidly outstripped the available space, however, prompting Bruce to book the Roosevelt Hotel. Many of the 50-odd individuals in attendance would go on to become major figures in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. They included Mt. Gox founder Jed McCaleb, Roger Ver, Jesse Powell, Trace Meyer, Erik Voorhees, and Charlie Shrem. When the event officially began on Saturday, everyone in the room stood up to introduce themselves by both their online handle and real name.

The conference itself proved to be somewhat chaotic, the main day dogged by technical issues with the AV equipment that delayed the first keynote by four hours. The delegates didn’t appear bothered though: they were just happy to be hanging out and the tech gremlins simply provided more time in which to debate niche aspects of Bitcoin’s architecture.

“The first Bitcoin conference was very exciting,” reflects Jed McCaleb, adding: “‘Conference’ is too strong a word for it though. I think it was only maybe 30-50 people – more of a meetup. We almost all knew each other from the forum so it was cool meeting everyone in person. There were only a few thousand people that had even heard of Bitcoin at that point so it really felt niche and underground. There was a lot of optimism and hope but I don't think anyone expected it to grow as fast as it did. There was also a lot of speculation and worry about how governments would react to the technology.”

Gavin Andresen finally took to the stage at 5PM on Saturday to provide his keynote, followed by shorter talks from developers Jeff Garzik and Stefan Thomas.

As journalist Adrianne Jeffries reported at the time for Observer.com, “Highly-active Bitcoin developer Jeff Garzik spoke on “The State of the Coin,” emphasizing that the economy is still very, very young–about $81 million USD–and that it’s a “start-up currency” that could still fail, but the fundamentals of the Bitcoin economy are strong. He also spoke about the need for a Bitcoin public relations effort, as the complicated e-currency has occasionally been mangled in translation. “I predict there will be a Bitcoin-specific law,” he said. “Hopefully it’s not banning.””

At 7PM, Bruce Wagner delivered the closing remarks and then the attendees headed to Hell’s Kitchen for what many saw as the main event: a Bitcoin dinner.

While they would be eating the same fare as their fellow diners at Meze Grill, they would be paying with Bitcoin. When the meal was over, the Bitcoiners attempted to pay the bill with BTC, which proved more convoluted than they had anticipated, largely due to the complexity of splitting the bill so many ways. Even though settling payment took the better part of an hour, the group was in high spirits, recognising that not for the first time that weekend they were making history.