Las Vegas — MARA Holdings (MARA) CEO Fred Thiel announced the launch of the MARA Foundation at the Bitcoin Conference on Monday, outlining a broad effort to support the long-term resilience of the Bitcoin network beyond the company’s Bitcoin mining and AI operations.
“Bitcoin is the most important decentralized system ever created, but its future is not guaranteed,” Thiel said, framing the initiative around the idea that the network requires active management.
Thiel described Bitcoin as “a utility that no one owns, but everyone depends on,” adding that decentralization “doesn’t mean it runs on its own, it means the responsibility is distributed.”
The foundation will focus on maintaining the fundamental properties of bitcoin as a “sound and sustainable currency,” while advocating for its open and global use. Key priorities include supporting the network security budget, particularly the development of a sustainable transaction fee market, and funding research into emerging risks, such as quantum computing.
MARA also plans to fund open source development in the areas of scaling, mining, and user infrastructure, expand access to self-custody, and promote financial sovereignty worldwide.
Education and policy engagement are at the heart of the initiative, including technical training, multilingual resources and outreach to regulators.
As part of the launch, MARA will award $100,000 to one of three nonprofits, with the recipient chosen by community vote, highlighting Thiel’s call for shared responsibility across the ecosystem.
