Solana co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko has raised concerns that artificial intelligence could pose a serious threat to the next generation of cryptographic protections in the crypto industry. According to him, AI may be capable of breaking post-quantum cryptography (PQC) signature schemes sooner than expected, potentially before developers fully understand or secure their weaknesses.
AI Could Outpace Post-Quantum Defenses
Yakovenko emphasized that the industry is still in the early stages of understanding both the mathematical foundations and real-world implementation risks of PQC systems. He warned that unknown vulnerabilities—what he described as both “math footguns” and “implementation footguns”—could be exploited by increasingly powerful AI systems.
To mitigate these risks, Yakovenko advocates for a layered security approach. Specifically, he suggests using a two-of-three multisignature (multisig) setup that combines independent signature schemes. On Solana, this could be implemented directly within the transaction system using Program Derived Addresses, adding redundancy in case one scheme fails.
If we know exactly what to verify. I’d still like 2/3 different signature schemes.
— toly 🇺🇸 (@toly) May 2, 2026
While some experts, including Curve Finance founder Michael Egorov, have suggested formal verification as a solution, Yakovenko remains skeptical. He argues that verification is only effective when developers know exactly which vulnerabilities to test for, which may not yet be the case for PQC.
Bitcoin Community Weighs Quantum Threats
At the same time, discussions within the Bitcoin ecosystem are converging on how to address long-term quantum risks, particularly regarding the dormant holdings believed to belong to Satoshi Nakamoto.
Alex Thorn, head of research at Galaxy Digital, noted that conversations among developers and analysts suggest a growing consensus. Satoshi’s estimated 1.1 million BTC is distributed across roughly 22,000 early wallet addresses. Thorn pointed out that any quantum-based attack would likely need to compromise each address individually, making such an effort extremely complex.
He also highlighted that modern exchanges and active users could transition to quantum-resistant addresses well before any credible quantum threat materializes. Additionally, Bitcoin markets have historically handled selling pressure of over one million BTC, suggesting resilience even in extreme scenarios.
i had many discussions about quantum & bitcoin in las vegas this week, both on and off stage, with skeptics, advocates, and many overall smart bitcoiners
some consensus i feel is emerging:
1) satoshi’s coins (P2PK) should not be touched. violating his property rights could be…
— Alex Thorn (@intangiblecoins) May 2, 2026
An Open Question for the Industry
As quantum computing research advances and AI capabilities expand, the crypto sector faces a critical question: should it prioritize wallet-level redundancy or rely on cautious protocol-level changes?
For now, there is no definitive answer. But with both AI and quantum technologies evolving rapidly, the urgency to strengthen cryptographic defenses is becoming increasingly clear.
