A Bitcoin Improvement Proposal (BIP) is the formal process used by the Bitcoin community to propose, discuss, and implement changes or improvements to the Bitcoin protocol. BIPs are submitted as standardized documents that describe new features, processes, or informational guidelines. Notable examples include BIP 32 (hierarchical deterministic wallets) and BIP 141 (Segregated Witness). The BIP process ensures that changes to Bitcoin are transparent, community-reviewed, and consensus-driven.
Example
“BIP 141, which introduced Segregated Witness, was activated in August 2017 and helped reduce transaction fees and enable the Lightning Network.”