The Blockspace Pod: The Shortest Bear Market Ever w/ Matt Hougan of Bitwise

Matt Hougan, CIO of Bitwise, breaks down why we’re still in a crypto winter, the truth about central bank gold buying, and why Bitcoin’s revenue problem doesn’t matter… yet. We dive into the Kevin Warsh Fed era, quantum risks, and the rise of AI agents. Get your tickets to OPNEXT 2026 before prices increase! Join us on April 16 in NYC for technical discussions, investor talks, and intimate conversation with the brightest minds in Bitcoin. Matt Hougan, CIO of Bitwise, joins us to talk about the current state of the crypto winter and when the bottom is finally in. We explore the digital gold narrative, explaining why central bank buying—not debasement—drove gold’s recent surge. Matt details the institutional vs. retail divide, the impact of Fed Chair Kevin Warsh, and the looming debate over Bitcoin’s security budget. Plus, we tackle the quantum discount and how AI agents could 1000x on-chain activity. Subscribe to the newsletter! https://newsletter.blockspacemedia.com Notes: * Altcoins like Sui and Aptos fell 70%+ in 2025. * Institutions might end the winter by Q2 2026. * BTC volatility capped at 50-60% drawdowns. * Gold price surge driven by central bank buys. Timestamps: 00:00 Start 03:22 Is it still "crypto winter"? 04:34 Why January? 06:36 Market segments 08:31 Gold 10:54 Central banks & Bitcoin 12:56 Causes of the crash 14:52 Kevin Warsh 16:58 Fed hawks become doves 17:34 Quantum... oh so scary! 19:59 Bitcoin Core 21:44 Revenue 24:37 Beyond "digital gold" narrative 26:44 AI 👉CleanSpark, America's Bitcoin Miner! CleanSpark (Nasdaq: CLSK) is a market-leading data center developer with a proven track record of success. We own a portfolio of power, land, and data centers across the United States powered by globally competitive energy prices. Sitting at the intersection of Bitcoin, energy, operational excellence and capital stewardship, we optimize our infrastructure to deliver superior returns to our shareholders. Monetizing low-cost, high reliability energy by producing a global emerging critical resource – compute – positions us to prosper in an ever-changing world.