BIP-110 has gained support from only a tiny fraction of miners, but its user-activated structure means the proposal is still moving toward its scheduled activation point and could continue beyond that milestone.
Bitcoin is nearing an unusual experiment this weekend, as a small number of nodes prepare to reject blocks created by nearly the entire mining network.
The Bitcoin Improvement Proposal (BIP)-110, which seeks to temporarily limit the amount of non-payment data that can be added to the Bitcoin blockchain, is approaching its planned mandatory signaling phase, expected around Aug. 9. If activation occurs, enforcement would begin at block 965,664, which is projected to arrive roughly four weeks later.
The proposal’s standard 55% miner approval requirement is now effectively unattainable.
Nodes are computers running Bitcoin software that independently verify transactions and blocks according to the network’s rules. They reject blocks they consider invalid, while miners are responsible for producing new blocks that nodes then evaluate.
From a traditional perspective, BIP-110 appears defeated, with mining pool support sitting below 3% and only a short time remaining before Bitcoin reaches the required block height.
If BIP-110 were decided through a public vote, the level of opposition would represent a historic defeat.
However, supporters argue that Bitcoin’s open-source nature allows anyone to run alternative software and enforce the rules they believe should govern the network.
Dathon Ohm, the pseudonymous creator of BIP-110, argued that the proposal represents a grassroots effort by Bitcoin users pushing back against powerful organizations that seek influence over the network.
Despite the strong language, his post on X mainly provided guidance for miners interested in enforcing BIP-110. He encouraged them to switch to Bitcoin Knots, the main software implementation supporting the proposal, and warned against running Bitcoin Core, the dominant Bitcoin software client, because he claimed it would no longer provide adequate security under the new rules.
BIP-110 aims to temporarily tighten Bitcoin’s consensus rules by making inscription-based activities such as Ordinals and Runes more difficult to use. Supporters argue that storing large amounts of non-financial data consumes block space, raises operating costs, and moves Bitcoin away from its role as a digital monetary system.
Opponents argue that the proposal’s lack of miner backing shows it has little chance of success. Supporters disagree, saying miners do not control Bitcoin’s rules — they only produce blocks, while nodes determine whether those blocks follow the network’s consensus rules.
This approach follows the philosophy behind user-activated soft forks (UASFs), which allow node operators to enforce new rules at a specific block height without requiring miner approval.
A similar strategy was used during the 2017 SegWit activation, when users pushed the upgrade forward despite miner opposition. SegWit separated digital signatures from transaction data, a change that later helped enable technologies such as Ordinals and Runes — the very systems BIP-110 seeks to restrict.
When Bitcoin reaches block 961,632, nodes running BIP-110-compatible software will begin rejecting blocks that do not follow the proposal’s signaling requirements, even if those blocks are accepted by most of the network.
If some miners support the new rules while others continue operating normally, the network could split into separate chains. Initially, the BIP-110 chain would likely control only a small portion of Bitcoin’s total computing power.
Whether that minority chain can gain traction remains uncertain, with many observers viewing its chances as limited. Still, some bitcoin-focused exchanges plan to temporarily suspend deposits and withdrawals around the activation period, recognizing that Bitcoin consensus depends not only on miners or nodes individually, but also on coordination among exchanges, wallets, developers, and users.
Outside the mining industry, BIP-110 appears to have limited support from major Bitcoin figures, with critics including Michael Saylor and Adam Back expressing opposition.
Opponents argue that Bitcoin’s strength comes from its extremely high barrier for changing consensus rules and believe market demand and transaction fees should determine how block space is allocated.
Supporters take the opposite view, arguing that BIP-110 does not fundamentally alter Bitcoin but instead restores its original purpose. They maintain that users have both the right and the responsibility to reject software changes they believe move the network away from its intended design.
Regardless of whether BIP-110 succeeds or fails, its impact is likely to extend beyond the immediate debate over Ordinals, Runes, or block space usage.
The proposal’s next major test will not be decided through online arguments but through actual blocks. If BIP-110 nodes reject the dominant chain, the key question will be whether enough miners, exchanges, and users choose to support the alternative chain and keep it alive.
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