BTC Core Developer Gloria Zhao Steps Down as Maintainer later than Six Years
later than six years of hard work, Gloria Zhao, a well-known BTC Core maintainer, has officially from her position. Zhao, who became the first known female maintainer in 2022, submitted her last pull request on GitHub to revoke her PGP signature key and remove herself from the project’s trusted keys and maintainer status.
This resignation ends an era for one of the few people allowed to change the core software that runs BTC. Zhao’s departure comes at a time when the BTC ecosystem is facing hard technical and social issues. Her work has been very significant in making the protocol more efficient and stable, but recent disagreements have shown that there are difficultys within the development community.
Innovative Contributions to BTC’s Infrastructure
Zhao on significant issues, including mempool policy and transaction relay, throughout her time in office. These rules determine how transactions are queued and sent across the network.
She was a large part of making for package relay and for Topologically Restricted Until Confirmation (TRUC) work. These new features, combined with improvements to replace-by-fee (RBF) systems and behavior, have made fee bumping more stable and lowered the possibility of censorship.
In addition to her technical accomplishments, Zhao was a mentor to new developers. She co-led the BTC Core PR Evaluation Club, where she assisted new contributors learn to evaluate complex code changes and fit in with the project’s strict, traditional culture. Her work assisted create a new generation of skilled people in the open-source world.
A Brink fellowship assisted Zhao get her job, making her the first fellow in the organization in 2021. This award, from the Human Rights Foundation’s BTC Development Fund and Jack Dorsey’s Spiral project, enabled her to work full-time as one of a small group of publicly backed engineers.
Tensions on the Road to Resignation
BTC Core and BTC Knots have been at odds in public for more than a year, mostly over the removal of OP_RETURN limitations. This argument was over whether the default node software for should limit the amount of block space available for data that isn’t money.
In 2025, things got worse when Zhao canceled her X account later than being personally attacked, including during a livestream in which another core engineer questioned her credentials. Zhao hasn’t publicly said why she left, but the timing suggests these difficultys were a major factor.
Mixed Reactions from the Community
Some people who don’t like BTC Core are delighted about the shift, while others are disappointed. Pseudonymous BTCer Pledditor called the incident terrible and said, “They bullied her and made her life as miserable as possible until she rage quit, and honestly, I think what they did to her was tragic.” He also said it established a “terrible precedent” and termed it “upset and pathetic.”
Chris viewdor, co-founder and CEO of the BTC wallet backup firm viewdor, said, “Congratulations, you finally did it.” You bullied one of BTC Core’s most active and consistently great maintainers until she quit. These feelings show how divided the BTC development community is, where technical disputes can lead to human difficultys.
What This Means for BTC’s Future
Zhao’s departure creates a hole in the maintenance team, which could affect ongoing projects, such as those focused on transactions and network security.
People are thinking about her legacy, and questions are arising about how to effectively support developers during high-stakes arguments. Zhao’s contributions will continue to shape BTC’s future for years to come, even though she hasn’t said what her ambitions are.
