"Donald Trump is a man of his word," the Silk Road founder said in a video published on X hours after release from prison.

Ulbricht's story has long been a lightning rod for discussions around sentencing reform, the ethics of decentralized platforms, and the role of government in

U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday pardoned Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht, who was sentenced to life in prison for running an underground online marketplace where drug dealers and others conducted more than $200 million in illicit trade using bitcoin.