I don’t understand how Bitcoin isn’t a Ponzi scheme. Obviously Bitcoin isn’t creating value so all value increase is coming from late investors.

I’ve heard that it’s not a Ponzi scheme because investors are investing in the technology, not for the Bitcoins themselves. But it’s open source and I don’t think that any new advances have been made in the fundamental workings of Bitcoin, so how are the investors supposed to benefit from the Bitcoin if not through speculation?