Unlocking Bitcoin’s Potential: The Journey of Atomicals
At OAX Foundations, one of our missions is to educate the growing Web3 community about different ecosystems and chains there are in the crypto space, which for newcomers, all this information is a lot to navigate through. One of the up-and-coming ecosystems that we’ve previously highlighted is the Atomicals Protocol - and we noticed a lot of questions and engagement from you guys on ARC-20.
Just a while ago, we met one of the community leaders from Atomicals at Wiki Finance Expo in Hong Kong, and we had the opportunity to interview the folks from Atomicals directly so you can hear it straight from them!
One of the key focuses of this Q&A is decentralization. We are keen on learning how Atomicals is evolving its chain and growing its community organically. As a Foundation, this is also something we wish to integrate more of, having our community be a bigger force in our plans and integrating your ideas into the researches we publish.
1. Can you briefly introduce yourself?
We are the Atomicals Foundation, a decentralized collective of builders, developers, creators, and community members who believe Bitcoin can be more than a store of value. It can be the foundation of programmable assets backed by Bitcoin.
The Atomicals protocol was launched by a pseudonymous creator known as “A”. Since then, Atomicals has taken on a life of its own. Our role isn’t to control the protocol but to support its growth, maintain its infrastructure, and coordinate its evolution in a decentralized and transparent way. Atomicals belong to no one, it runs on Bitcoin.
2. What is the current state of the Atomicals protocol?
The protocol is live, stable, and fully operational. ARC-20 (Atomicals’ fungible token standard) tokens, Realms (Decentralized identity naming system), and DMINT (Decentralized NFT minting and containerized data structures) are all functional today.
It’s clear we’re at a pivotal moment. With A no longer active, progress on features like the Atomicals Virtual Machine (AVM) has slowed. However, the protocol has been battle-tested with consistent usage since its inception, and the community has stepped up.
Working groups have formed. Collaborations with ecosystem players like WizzWallet, Dotswap, and Universe Wallet are active. Momentum is building not through centralized leadership, but through decentralized coordination.
3. Can you explain the open letter and why a soft fork is necessary?
The open letter was a public message to A, the protocol’s original creator. It was a way to respectfully ask: Are you still interested in continuing development? If not, can we receive clarity so the community can confidently move forward?
What A created is remarkable. Atomicals is one of the most feature-rich metaprotocols on Bitcoin, and what’s currently used only scratches the surface. It would be a waste for such a gem to remain idle. That’s why the community is stepping forward not to claim ownership, but to preserve and expand what’s already here.
A soft fork is not about rewriting the protocol, it’s about unlocking progress. As long as protocol-level permissions remain closely tied to A, core changes are difficult to enact. A soft fork allows the community to create an alternative version of Atomicals that simplifies complex areas, documents the system better, and removes bottlenecks to innovation.
Importantly, ARC-20 tokens are unaffected. Fungible assets and existing Realms remain fully compatible. This is a forward path, not a split.
4. Why is it important to continue building Atomicals?
With the open letter deadline based on block 889,888, we did not receive a response from A. The open letter set a clear timeframe, and we’ve moved forward with the assumption that A does not intend to re-engage.
That said, Atomicals is bigger than any one individual. It introduced a truly unique vision for how assets and identities can evolve natively on Bitcoin. Its fundamentals like sat-backed ARC-20s, Realms as decentralized identity, and dynamic container data are unmatched in the Bitcoin ecosystem.
Long-term, we believe attention will return to metaprotocols. Bitcoin will need more activity to support its security model, and Atomicals has the structure to make a major contribution to that next phase.
Atomicals also revives the original Colored Coin vision, an early Bitcoin idea championed over a decade ago by pioneers like Yoni Assia and Vitalik Buterin by bringing it to life through the “1 satoshi = 1 token” principle.
Atomicals isn’t just a continuation of an abandoned protocol it’s a continuation of a vision that predates most of today’s crypto landscape.
Atomicals are also self-sustaining by design. Updates are tied to UTXOs meaning state changes are anchored in Bitcoin itself. No one can unilaterally change or control the protocol.
Open-source tooling, indexers, and marketplaces already maintain the protocol. As long as users and builders continue to engage, the system runs regardless of any one individual’s involvement.
All governance is informal, consensus-based, and transparent. That’s how decentralized tech should work.
5. What are your plans for development and how are you engaging the community?
We’ve begun grassroots fundraising entirely through donations. Everything is community-sourced, and every satoshi is deployed carefully and transparently.
Current development paths include:
- Launching and maintaining the soft fork of the protocol, focused on usability, documentation, and incremental innovation.
- Exploring new features like AI integrations, governance tooling, and novel inscription mechanics.
- Establishing sustainable funding to accelerate innovation, supported by a growing pool of community-donated funds.
- Continuing exploration of the AVM development, while recognizing it as a longer-term path.
On the community side, we’re focused on rebuilding from the ground up with authenticity. There’s no central team, just over 30 contributors volunteering their time and skills. We’re motivated not by hype, but by belief in what Atomicals can be.
Realms, in particular, are a huge opportunity. Their capabilities span decentralized governance, organizational design, immutable media, and DAO structuring all uniquely native to Bitcoin and unlike anything else in DID (Decentralized Identities) systems. Most of the ecosystem hasn’t even discovered this layer yet.
6. How can people from the community get involved?
Start by reaching out. This is a protocol built on openness, and there’s room for anyone to contribute. You can:
- Follow the Atomicals Foundation on X.
- Review the documentation and GitHub repos.
- Join our global community chats in your preferred language.
For developers, protocol architects, marketers, and ecosystem contributors, this is a meaningful opportunity to leave your mark on Bitcoin. Atomicals offer a rare chance to help shape a living protocol with real traction, a committed community, and deep layers of untapped utility.
All of this is happening in a decentralized way, without centralized leadership. The groundwork is already done. What’s needed now are more leaders to help build what comes next.
Wrapping Up
We are truly grateful to the Atomicals community for sharing the intricacies of their protocol updates and vision with us. This discussion has been both insightful and inspiring, offering a valuable glimpse into how a decentralized community can thrive and evolve.
At OAX Foundation, we believe there is much to draw inspiration from projects like Atomicals. It’s not just about the technical innovations, but also about the people and communities driving these initiatives forward. Understanding their challenges, successes, and unique approaches strengthens the collective knowledge that fuels the decentralization movement.
Our mission is not only to educate but also to foster collaboration and learning that brings value to our community. Like Atomicals, we share open source releases on our OAX Github in blockchain development tackling interoperability with a scalable network and shared security. As we aim to strengthen synergies between decentralized ecosystems, connecting developers, creators, and enthusiasts to build stronger, more resilient networks together.
Disclaimer: The above is an opinion piece written by an authorized author, but in no way represents the official standpoint of OAX Foundation Limited, nor should it be meant to serve as investment advice.
