Michael Gronager, co-founder and chief executive officer of Chainalysis Inc., speaks during during a conference in 2022. His software is now being used by dozens of government agencies conducting thousands of investigations.When Michael Gronager was still a boy he filed for his first patent, a new kind of multi-cylinder engine. Though it turned out the patent application had a few problems, he fell in love with technology as a way to solve problems.
Fast forward five decades and Gronager is at it again, using sophisticated forensic techniques to help the U.S. Department of Justice, the Internal Revenue Service and dozens of other government agencies around the world track down illegal and illicit uses of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.