U.S. states that actively embrace cryptocurrencies and digital assets posted notable gains in innovation competitiveness rankings, while traditional tech hubs such as California and New York fell, an analysis showed. The Draper Innovation Index said regions welcoming crypto, blockchain and emerging technologies are gaining an edge in startups and investment. Texas rose to fourth place, while Oklahoma climbed to 15th. New Hampshire ranked third despite its smaller economy and population.

Michael Saylor, chairman of Strategy, compared Bitcoin’s consensus rules to a constitution and argued that attempts to rewrite them infringe users’ economic rights. His comments escalate opposition to Bitcoin Improvement Proposal BIP-110, a temporary soft fork that would limit insertion of non-financial data such as Ordinals inscriptions for about a year. Saylor also grouped covenant and block size expansion proposals in the same category. Critics said the proposals differ and should not be lumped together.