Bitcoin Core Developer Garzik Dismisses Lightning Network as Red Herring

Jeff Garzik, a former Bitcoin Core developer, has expressed his views on the future of Bitcoin and the Lightning Network. Garzik, who has been involved with Bitcoin since its early days, believes that Bitcoin will outlast all other technologies and protocols. However, he is skeptical about the Lightning Network's ability to keep up with user demand and scale effectively.

During a conversation with Bitcoin historian Pete Rizzo, Garzik dismissed the Lightning Network as a "red herring" and suggested that programmable Layer-2 solutions, rather than payment channels, will bring the next billion users to Bitcoin. He pointed out that after seven years, the Lightning Network has only about 5,000 BTC, while Wrapped Bitcoin on Ethereum alone has 25 times that amount. This, he argues, shows that capital has already voted against the Lightning Network.

Garzik attributes the limited traction of the Lightning Network to what he calls Bitcoin's "vetocracy"—a governance culture where any one faction can veto consensus changes. This culture, he argues, has stifled innovation on the base layer since the 2017 block-size stalemate. As a result, many developers have left the Bitcoin ecosystem to work on other projects where they can ship their ideas more easily.

Garzik's critique of the Lightning Network is both philosophical and technical. He believes that Bitcoin is a social network first and a monetary network second. Its value comes from people coordinating around it, not from any single line of code. However, this same social layer can veto innovation, leading to stagnation. He sees the future in sidechains like his own project, Hemi, which embeds a fully validating BTC node inside an Ethereum-compatible roll-up. This design allows smart contracts to read and act on Bitcoin Layer-1 without custodial bridges.

Despite his criticism of the Lightning Network, Garzik is confident in Bitcoin's monetary role. He believes that Bitcoin will live alongside gold and that its inevitability rests on network effects, regulatory clarity, and deep-pocketed holders. However, he warns that Bitcoin's future growth depends on extending programmability without compromising the asset the world already trusts. This means leaving the Lightning Network behind and focusing on Layer-2 solutions.

Garzik's message is clear: Bitcoin's future is assured, but the Lightning Network is not. Whether the broader ecosystem agrees may hinge on tangible metrics in the coming year, such as capital allocated to Lightning versus emerging BitVM roll-ups, node counts versus wrapped-BTC supply, and the fees users are willing to pay for each path. For now, Garzik's stance is that Bitcoin's future lies in programmable Layer-2 solutions, not the Lightning Network.