BlockDAG Network held a public AMA session on December 29, 2025, to address recent questions around leadership, project direction, and launch timelines. The discussion was positioned as a transparency-focused update following internal changes and ongoing speculation around the project’s management and technical readiness.
During the AMA, BlockDAG representatives discussed a leadership transition, the current state of the blockchain mainnet, presale and token generation plans, mining hardware distribution, and the introduction of an oversight structure involving community members. The session also included direct remarks from the project’s founder regarding funding, past involvement, and future role.
BlockDAG confirmed a change in executive leadership during the AMA. Nic van den Bergh, who has been BlockDAG’s Chief Marketing Officer, was introduced as the new Chief Executive Officer. At the same time, Jeremy Harkness was reaffirmed as Chief Technology Officer. According to statements made during the session, the CTO has been involved with the project since its early development stages.
The project’s founder, Gurhan Kiziloz, appeared in the AMA and acknowledged his role in originating the BlockDAG concept. He stated that he personally funded the early stages of the project, citing an initial contribution of approximately $14 million and the formation of a technical team that has worked on the blockchain over several years. These statements were presented as personal claims made during the AMA.
Kiziloz also said he would no longer be involved in day-to-day operations or marketing activities. Instead, he described a transition to a background role focused on funding support and participation in an oversight capacity. He attributed the earlier appointment of the prior CEO, Antony Turner, to an attempt to distance the project from his past ventures, which he acknowledged had been unsuccessful.
The leadership update was framed as an effort to clarify responsibilities and establish a more defined operational structure moving forward.
The technical status of the BlockDAG blockchain was a central topic of the AMA. Harkness, BlockDAG’s Chief Technology Officer, stated that the core blockchain network is functional within a development environment. He explained that internal testing includes an operational ASIC mining setup, indicating that block production and mining logic are working at a technical level.
However, several components were confirmed as still pending. The staking mechanism is not yet complete, and full third-party audits have not been finalized. Harkness emphasized that both testing and audits are required before a full public mainnet launch can take place.
Regarding timelines, the project reiterated plans to conclude the BDAG token presale on January 26th. A token generation event (TGE) was discussed as potentially occurring roughly one week after the presale ends, followed by exchange listings targeted for early to mid-February. These dates were described as conditional and dependent on audit completion and technical readiness, with the CTO characterizing the schedule as ambitious.
The AMA clarified that some previously discussed features may be delayed to focus on delivering a minimal, core blockchain release.
Mining hardware and miner compensation were also addressed. BlockDAG representatives stated that ASIC mining devices, including X10 and X100 units, have not yet been fully distributed. Kiziloz stated that payments for mining hardware procurement would be completed this week, presenting it as a firm commitment.
The AMA included a prominent acknowledgment regarding network centralization at launch. According to Harkness, the blockchain is expected to go live in a partially centralized configuration. Initial mining will be conducted on a closed network controlled by the project, with tokens mined and held until mining hardware is delivered to participants. Once hardware distribution is completed, mining access is intended to be opened more broadly.
This approach was described as a temporary measure to enable token existence, staking functionality, and exchange integration before full decentralization through distributed mining equipment becomes possible.
BlockDAG also outlined plans to establish an oversight committee that would include selected community members. During the AMA, the founder, Kiziloz, publicly invited two community members, Reed and Muhammad, to participate in the proposed structure.
Kiziloz described both individuals as long-time contributors who have been closely involved in community coordination and technical discussions related to the BlockDAG blockchain. The stated purpose of the oversight committee is to improve accountability and strengthen coordination between the development team and the wider community.
No formal governance framework, legal structure, or decision-making authority for the oversight committee was detailed during the session. The initiative was presented as an early-stage organizational step rather than a finalized governance model.
The AMA concluded with a statement that additional sessions would be held regularly leading up to the planned launch milestones, with further updates promised on audits, mining hardware payments, and network readiness.
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