Galaxy Research flags 28 mystery poems embedded in Bitcoin transactions in 12 days
In brief
- Galaxy Research says an unknown sender put 26 copies of one poem into Bitcoin transactions.
- The same cryptographic keys issued a second poem twice, bringing the total to 28 messages in 12 days.
- 103-byte OP_RETURN outputs carried the copies, above the previous 83-byte default relay limit.
- Galaxy researchers floated several possible motives, including an AI agent, but confirmed none.
What showed up on the timechain
The poem is three lines long.
thoughtless quartz clocks drift / blocks stack each a strict proof / timechain keeps score
Galaxy Research explained on X that the sender had been injecting that same message into Bitcoin transactions over a period of about two weeks, as reported by U.Today. Per the firm, the duplicates were stored in 103-byte OP_RETURN outputs. That's above Bitcoin's previous default relay limit of 83 bytes.
The research unit also found the same keys behind a different poem, which was issued twice. Add those two to the 26 duplicates and you get 28 mystery messages in 12 days (Galaxy's count, not an independent tally).
Following the satoshis
Galaxy Research said it's unlikely the activity is traditional money laundering, since the funds only moved back and forth between the sender and a custodial service. The costs were small by the firm's count. Across 28 deposits and 14 round trips, the researchers found just 8,015 satoshis in mining fees, plus a single 100,000-satoshi deduction the service took on Oct. 19.
Theories, but no answers
Galaxy Research put forward a few possible explanations, and it's careful to frame each one as a theory. The first is that the sender is trying to fake deposit metrics or transaction volume for a custodial platform. The second is that it's an automated integration test of some kind, running in production. The third involves AI: an autonomous agent that's been given access to a Bitcoin wallet and tasked with making transactions.
The researchers couldn't confirm any of them.
They haven't worked out a motive either, so for now the sender's identity and the purpose of these transactions on the blockchain remain unknown.
Frequently asked questions
What does the poem on the Bitcoin blockchain say?
The poem reads: "thoughtless quartz clocks drift / blocks stack each a strict proof / timechain keeps score." Galaxy Research says an unknown sender embedded it 26 times in Bitcoin transactions, storing each copy in a 103-byte OP_RETURN output.
Who is sending the poems, and why?
No one knows. Galaxy Research floated theories that include faking deposit metrics for a custodial platform, an automated integration test running in production, or an autonomous AI agent with wallet access. The researchers couldn't confirm any of them.
Is the poem activity linked to money laundering?
Galaxy Research said that's unlikely, because the funds only moved between the sender and a custodial service. Across 28 deposits and 14 round trips, it counted 8,015 satoshis in mining fees plus one 100,000-satoshi deduction by the service.
