Ep. 83: Marty Bent - Freedom Tech vs. The State

You're The Voice | by Efrat Fenigson

My guest today is Marty Bent, a writer, investor, and one of the most influential voices in the Bitcoin media ecosystem. As the founder of the popular podcast and newsletter TFTC (Truth for the Commoner) and managing partner at Ten31, a venture firm investing exclusively in Bitcoin infrastructure, Marty has helped shape the conversation around Bitcoin’s future for nearly a decade. In this episode, Marty walks us through his journey from unemployed blogger to leading Bitcoin commentator and how he's leveraging AI to scale his media output across platforms. We explore the impact of open protocols like Nostr, the potential of podcasting 2.0, and the need for content authentication in the age of deepfakes. Marty also shares how Bitcoin is solving real-world energy problems, from stranded power to nuclear buildouts, and why self-custody and decentralization remain essential to Bitcoin’s resilience.

► This episode is part of the "Bitcoin Vegas 2025 Special" in collaboration with Ben Samocha, Founder of Israel’s CryptoJungle and Crypto Talks podcast.

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-- LINKS –

Marty’s Twitter: https://x.com/CaitlinLong_

TFTC Twitter: https://x.com/TFTC21

TFTC Website: https://www.tftc.io/

Ten31’s Website: https://ten31.vc/

Efrat's Twitter: https://twitter.com/efenigson

Efrat's Telegram: https://t.me/efenigson

Ben's Twitter: https://x.com/bensamocha

Ben's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-samocha-728147153/

Watch/listen on all platforms: https://linktr.ee/yourethevoice

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-- CHAPTERS –

00:00 Coming Up...

01:10 Welcome from Bitcoin Vegas

01:58 Introducing Marty Bent

03:19 Vegas, gambling, and societal decay

04:50 The origins of TFTC and Marty's media journey

09:00 Using AI to grow and streamline content

14:22 Onboarding newcomers through relatable content

15:56 Open-source media, Podcasting 2.0, and Nostr

20:36 Content authenticity in the AI age

25:05 Most influential podcast guests for Marty

30:08 Why Ten31 invests only in Bitcoin infrastructure

35:24 Bitcoin mining, climate realism, and energy use

43:53 Biggest threats to Bitcoin: apathy and custody risks

49:15 What trends will accelerate Bitcoin adoption

54:29 Bitcoin gifting stories and early advocacy

56:17 What gives Marty hope