Ross Ulbricht to Speak Publicly at Bitcoin Conference in Las Vegas

Ross Ulbricht, the founder of the Silk Road darknet marketplace, has announced that he will make his first public appearance since his release from prison at an upcoming Bitcoin conference in Las Vegas. This announcement was made on Thursday via a post on X, where Ulbricht expressed his excitement about the event.

Ulbricht's appearance at the conference comes just months after he was granted a full and unconditional pardon by US President Donald Trump. This pardon was part of a campaign promise Trump made during the Libertarian National Convention in 2024, where he pledged to commute Ulbricht’s sentence on his first day back in office. The pardon was officially signed in January through an executive order.

Ulbricht's Silk Road venture, which began as a libertarian experiment in free trade, ended in a historic federal sentence. He was convicted in 2015 on seven charges for operating Silk Road, a marketplace on the dark web that facilitated the sale of illegal drugs and services. The site processed over 1.5 million transactions worth an estimated $213 million, all conducted using Bitcoin. Ulbricht, a physics graduate and early advocate of Bitcoin, envisioned Silk Road as a platform where users could buy anything anonymously without government interference. However, US prosecutors argued that the platform enabled widespread criminal activity and undermined public safety.

Ulbricht was arrested in 2013 in a San Francisco library and later admitted to creating Silk Road. His case became one of the most high-profile prosecutions in cryptocurrency history, drawing both criticism and support from across the political spectrum. Since his release, Ulbricht has remained engaged with the crypto community. In February, he publicly advocated for clemency for Roger Ver, a prominent Bitcoin investor facing serious tax-related charges.

Ulbricht's upcoming appearance at the Bitcoin conference in Las Vegas marks a significant moment in his post-prison journey. It provides him with a platform to share his experiences and insights with the crypto community, which has been closely following his case. His presence at the conference is expected to generate considerable interest and discussion among attendees.