The Early Adopter Who Made Bitcoin History: How One Guy Buys Pizza With Bitcoin and Changes Everything

When a user named Laszlo posted a simple request on the Bitcoin forum on May 18, 2010, few could have predicted he was about to create one of the most memorable moments in cryptocurrency history. He was looking for someone willing to accept 10,000 bitcoins in exchange for two large pizzas. At that time, bitcoin was practically worthless—those 10,000 coins were valued at merely $30. The post didn’t generate immediate interest. Most forum members couldn’t fathom the concept of trading digital currency for real-world goods, and most importantly, few had the pizza-delivery capability Laszlo required.

The First Real-World Bitcoin Transaction

Four days later, on May 22, 2010, Laszlo confirmed the deal was complete. A young California resident named Jeremy Sturdivant, then 19 years old, had accepted the challenge. He ordered the pizzas and received 10,000 bitcoins in return. This moment became pivotal not just for these two individuals, but for the entire Bitcoin ecosystem.

Why was this seemingly simple transaction so significant? Because it proved that bitcoin could function as actual money—not merely a digital artifact to be stored or analyzed, but a medium of exchange for tangible goods and services. Prior to this, bitcoin existed largely as a theoretical concept. Laszlo’s pizza deal transformed it into something practical, demonstrating the cryptocurrency had genuine utility beyond speculation.

The timing was perfect. As one of the earliest bitcoin miners and a talented programmer, Laszlo had accumulated substantial quantities of the digital asset. His wallet reached a peak of 20,962 BTC in May 2010 alone. Despite spending 10,000 coins on pizza, he quickly replenished his holdings through mining—eventually accumulating over 43,000 BTC by June 2010. For Laszlo, the pizza purchase represented something liberating: “I coded this thing, mined bitcoin, and feel like I won the internet that day. I got pizza for contributing to an open-source project.”

No Regrets From Either Party

As bitcoin’s price climbed into the hundreds, then thousands, then hundreds of thousands per coin, observers couldn’t resist calculating what those pizzas would be worth. By 2023 values, those 10,000 bitcoins exceeded $260 million. Yet neither Laszlo nor Jeremy expressed regret about the transaction.

Jeremy, the pizza seller, calculated that he received approximately $400 worth of value at the time of the deal—a tenfold profit when accounting for immediate resale. He spent his 10,000 bitcoins on a memorable trip with his girlfriend. When interviewed years later, Jeremy maintained his satisfaction with the arrangement. “I never imagined bitcoin would appreciate so dramatically,” he acknowledged, “but I have no regrets.”

Laszlo demonstrated even more philosophical acceptance. In a 2019 interview with Bitcoin Magazine, he explained his perspective: “Hobbies usually cost money and time. In this case, my hobby bought me dinner. To me, it was free pizza.” He elaborated further on his relationship with bitcoin, emphasizing that it remained a hobby rather than an obsession. “I feel a bit detached because there is too much attention. I don’t want it to become my responsibility and profession. I am happy to be involved to this extent.”

The Legacy of the Bitcoin Pizza Purchase

The significance of this transaction extended far beyond two individuals receiving pizza. In total, Laszlo would go on to spend approximately 100,000 bitcoins during bitcoin’s early years—a sum now worth over $40 billion. Yet he maintained his low-profile approach, avoiding social media and public prominence.

The Bitcoin community recognized Laszlo’s contributions as fundamental to the ecosystem’s development. Beyond the now-famous pizza transaction, he pioneered GPU mining technology, which democratized bitcoin mining and accelerated the network’s security. Bitcoin Magazine noted in 2019: “He provided us with Bitcoin Core on MacOS and GPU mining—not to mention the pizza meme. For the community, it has made May 22nd unforgettable.”

Today, that day stands as a testament to early adopters who believed in bitcoin’s potential when it was worth almost nothing, and were willing to test its practical applications. The guy who bought pizza with bitcoin didn’t just enjoy a meal—he validated an entire technology’s foundational premise: that digital currency could genuinely function as money in the real world.