Developer Embeds Image in Bitcoin Transaction Without Taproot or OP_RETURN

In a bold experiment, Slovak programmer Martin Habovstiak has embedded a 66 KB image directly into the Bitcoin blockchain, raising questions about the effectiveness of proposed spam prevention measures outlined in BIP-110.

"Oooops, my contiguous image file got misinterpreted as a transaction WITHOUT OP_RETURN by the Bitcoin network and now it's forever contiguously stored in the chain!" — Martin Habovstiak (@kixunil) February 27, 2026

The transaction, which lacks OP_RETURN opcodes and does not utilize Taproot, instead employs SegWit v0. This method allowed Habovstiak to bypass the restrictions intended by BIP-110, which was introduced in December 2025. The proposal aims to reduce the size of data transmitted in transactions as a temporary spam protection measure, and currently has about 8.8% node support.

The embedded image shows a crying Luke Dash Jr., a notable advocate for BIP-110. Habovstiak has provided instructions on his blog for others to verify the transaction and access the image, asserting that his experiment serves as evidence against the claims made by BIP-110 supporters.

"The idea of reducing data size to prevent illegal content is absurd," he remarked, criticizing the rationale behind the proposal.

Although he describes this project as a "one-off event," Habovstiak has chosen not to share the code to prevent a surge of unwanted tokens on the Bitcoin network. He expressed a strong stance against misinformation, stating that spammers will always find loopholes, and criticized the proposed measures as ultimately counterproductive.

In related commentary, Blockstream CEO Adam Back previously labeled the BIP-110 update as an attack on Bitcoin's reputation, likening it to a "Lynch mob."