- The “Open Ordinals Institute” is a new non-profit organization dedicated to advancing the Bitcoin Ordinals protocol and its reference implementation, Ord.
- Led by Casey Rodarmor, the Institute will financially support core developers like Raph to foster an open-source contributor environment for sustained growth.
- As a 501(c)(3) non-profit, the Open Ordinals Institute will accept tax-deductible donations to ensure a transparent and sustainable funding model for the protocol’s development.
Ordinals announced on Tuesday that it had established a non-profit organization to support the development of its protocol for “inscribing” NFT-like assets to the Bitcoin blockchain—just as the total number of inscriptions has surpassed 21 million.
Ordinals, which was launched earlier this year by developer Casey Rodarmor, quickly established itself as a hotbed for innovation surrounding crypto’s oldest coin. The protocol allows users to assign data to a single satoshi (equivalent to 1/100,000,000 of a Bitcoin), such as art, profile pictures, or even playable games.
The Open Ordinals Institute, a California-based non-profit, will fund the protocol’s core group of developers, including the project’s pseudonymous lead maintainer, Raph, creating an open-source contributor environment that encourages long-term growth and high-quality contributions.
Raph emphasized the importance of collaboration and community engagement in the Ordinals protocol development stating, “We want to create an open-source contributor environment where long-term and high-quality commitments are possible. Close collaboration and wider community engagement with Ordinals is encouraged and supported.”
The Open Ordinals Institute will accept tax-deductible donations as a 501(c)(3) non-profit, allowing for a transparent and sustainable funding model. Previously funded privately and through personal donations, this change ensures the protocol’s neutrality while also assisting developers.
Core developer for Ordinals In a statement, Ordinally echoed this sentiment, claiming that the non-profit organization presents itself as “the cleanest way” to compensate developers without jeopardizing the protocol’s neutrality.
Four people are expected to serve on the Institute’s board, Raph stated; himself, Rodarmor, Hell Money podcast host Erin Redwing, and Ordinally, a pseudonymous Ordinals technical fellow.
Raph compared the move to other crypto projects that have established foundations, but he admitted that the initiative is still in its early stages.
“At the moment, it’s very simple,” he explained. “It’s the most minimal structure you can imagine.”
Along with the change, the Ordinals team launched Ordinals.org, where members will post community updates and other resources about the project’s development.
Rodarmor announced the new direction for Ordinals’ team in May, explaining that he couldn’t give Ordinals the attention it deserved.
According to a Dune Analytics dashboard, the total number of Ordinals inscriptions surpassed 21 million on Tuesday. This could be considered a significant milestone since Bitcoin’s total supply is forever capped at 21 million Bitcoin.
The establishment of the Open Ordinals Institute ensures a bright future for the transformative Bitcoin Ordinals protocol, facilitating its ongoing growth and development.
