Non-Custodial Bitcoin Bridge Boltz Shuts Down After AI-Assisted Attacks

Boltz has suspended its Bitcoin swap service after a series of AI-assisted attacks caused losses for the bootstrapped five-person company, with the shutdown announced on August 3 and a new group of veteran Bitcoiners now preparing to take over the project.

The episode points to a growing security problem for small open-source crypto services, where automated attackers can move faster than small teams can investigate and patch vulnerabilities.

Boltz Suspended Swap After Repeated Attacks Boltz said attackers had targeted its infrastructure with increasing frequency, intensity, and sophistication over the past several months.

Several attacks succeeded, but the company stressed that its non-custodial design kept customer funds out of reach. “The entirety of the risk was ours,” the team said, explaining that losses from the attacks led it to suspend the service on August 3 to prevent further damage.