1 - Nick Szabo, is an American of Hungarian descent.
So far, we don't know the date or place of his birth. He graduated in computer science in 1989 from the University of Washington.
2 - Recently, in 2017, he received an Honorary Doctorate in Social Sciences from Francisco Marroquín University.
It is not known if he is married or has been and if he has children, his private life is precisely private in every sense.
3 - However, the high level of confidentiality of his private life corresponds with his great achievements.
4 - In 1995 he started talking about smart contracts.
In 1996 he published the paper, "Smart contracts: building blocks for markets."
Where he laid the initial foundations for the operation of smart contracts on digital platforms.
5 - "The basic idea of smart contracts is that many types of contract clauses (such as encumbrances, sureties, delimitation of property rights, etc.) can be built into the hardware and software we deal with.
6 - 1998, Nick Szabo presents a work that would make him widely known in the online cypherpunk communities:
Bit Gold
A digital currency that never came into existence. However, the initiative enunciated many of the necessary structures that would bring about cryptocurrencies later on.
7 - Bit Gold had the following characteristics:
- Use of a decentralized structure.
- Clear focus on privacy.
- Use of cryptography.
- Proof of work functions.
8 - Nick has always been concerned about online privacy,
In 1997, he published a paper under the name of:
"Formalization and protection of relationships on public networks."
Where he explained that the computer age could completely transform working relationships and trust.
And he added that cryptography and smart contracts would be the main tool for these changes.
Changes that would improve the privacy of the parties.
9 - In 2001, he published, "Trusted third parties are security holes."
This paper focused on demonstrating the different security holes included in "Trusted Third Parties."
10 - Szabo developed new features for cryptocurrencies. His interest focused on solutions to increase the scalability, security, and privacy of Bitcoin. His contributions focused on the side chains that make Lightning Network development possible.
Nick collaborated in making it possible for us to have Bitcoin the way we have it today. Whether he is Satoshi, we do not know, but just the fact that he was mentioned in the BTC paper shows his genius.