According to TechFlow, the OP_CAT upgrade of the Bitcoin network has sparked new interest in Bitcoin application development. This upgrade may reintroduce features that Satoshi Nakamoto removed in 2010. At the Bitcoin2024 conference, Bob Bodily, CEO of Bioniq, a Bitcoin NFT (Ordinals) trading platform that does not require gas fees, said that hundreds of developers are "voicing" the potential benefits of this upgrade.

Bodily is optimistic about Bitcoin Improvement Proposal 420 (BIP 420), which could restore the Operational Connection (OP_CAT) functionality to the Bitcoin network in 2025. OP_CAT will introduce smart contract functionality to the Bitcoin network and is currently available on the Bitcoin Signet testnet.

OP_CAT will enable covenants, which will enable technical advances such as shared unspent transaction outputs (UTXO), which will improve the scalability of the Lightning Network and others. Despite the conservative "fixation camp" and concerns about unforeseen impacts, Bodily believes that maintaining the status quo of the Bitcoin network is more risky.