What is a DAO, and what isn’t? Why do DAOs matter? How do DAOs fit within web3, crypto, the creator economy, the future of work, and many other domains?
Inspired by our NFT Canon earlier this year, and the original Crypto Canon, we’ve assembled the list below of resources for people looking to understand, build, and otherwise participate in these “decentralized autonomous organizations” — which point toward the future of community, coordination, work… and much, much more. If you have suggestions for strong pieces to include, let us know @a16z.
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Definitions; conceptual foundations, evolutions definitions & foundations
Why decentralization matters — decentralized networks aren’t a cure-all, but they provide a far better model than centralized systems by Chris Dixon https://cdixon.org/2018/02/18/why-decentralization-matters
The meaning of decentralization — one of the most often used yet least well-defined words; reasons for; three types of by Vitalik Buterin https://medium.com/@VitalikButerin/the-meaning-of-decentralization-a0c92b76a274
A glossary definition — laying out the “decentralized”, the “autonomous”, and “organization”, all made possible by blockchains by Alex Pruden and Sonal Chokshi https://a16z.com/2019/11/08/crypto-glossary/
Defining D, A, O — organizations and DAOs as instruments for coordinating human activity; moving beyond organization to organism by Philippe Honigman https://hackernoon.com/what-is-a-dao-c7e84aa1bd69
D is for…, A is for…, O is for… — what is a DAO? by Aragon https://blog.aragon.org/what-is-a-dao/
DAOs defined: the big picture — from traditional organization to internet-native organizations by Aragon https://blog.aragon.org/a-dao-defined-the-big-picture/
‘Scissor labels’ — on narratives, incentives, and how terms may divide by John Palmer https://j.mirror.xyz/RUeJfZEZxr-hkuzUCakQyUuf2kOJVMPPiAWBaQFhhqc
Terminology guide — smart contracts, autonomous agents; decentralized applications, decentralized organizations, decentralized corporations by Vitalik Buterin https://blog.ethereum.org/2014/05/06/daos-dacs-das-and-more-an-incomplete-terminology-guide/
Who will control the software that powers the internet? — toward an internet run by open, community-governed services by Chris Dixon https://www.wired.com/story/how-blockchain-can-wrest-the-internet-from-corporations/
DAOs: a new organizational and governance paradigm — a conceptual introduction by Louis Grx https://medium.com/@LuigiGrx/2-2-daos-a-new-organizational-and-governance-paradigm-93e889df1b39
The successor to the ‘organization man’? The ‘blockchain man’ — on cooperation, a world without transaction costs, and “protocolism” by Taylor Pearson https://www.ribbonfarm.com/2017/10/10/the-blockchain-man/
On cryptocurrency communities — how company building and cryptocurrency building differ by Nick Tomaino https://thecontrol.co/on-cryptocurrency-communities-f592b5ce6b0b
The slow death of the firm — why do firms exist; making decentralized organizations more widely adopted by Nick Tomaino https://thecontrol.co/the-slow-death-of-the-firm-1bd6cc81286b
Bootstrapping a decentralized autonomous corporation — encoding a corporate mission statement in code by Vitalik Buterin https://bitcoinmagazine.com/technical/bootstrapping-a-decentralized-autonomous-corporation-part-i-1379644274
Companies, networks, crowds [a16z podcast] — ‘The DAO’ vs. a DAO; automation, contingencies, smart contracts; will the firm disappear? with Erik Brynjolfsson, Andrew McAfee, Frank Chen, Sonal Chokshi https://future.com/podcasts/machine-platform-crowd/
Past, present, future: From co-ops to cryptonetworks — how cooperative governance can be both efficient and representative by Jesse Walden https://a16z.com/2019/03/02/cooperatives-cryptonetworks/
On web3 and participatory governance — policy frameworks for the internet’s third generation by a16z Crypto https://a16z.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/How-to-Win-the-Future-1.pdf
DAOs and legal questions — on legitimacy, legal ramifications, and more with Priyanka Desai and Aaron Wright https://modern.finance/episode/flamingo-dao/
The rise of ‘Lex Cryptographia’ — a new branch of law for rules administered through self-executing smart contracts and DAOs by Aaron Wright and Primavera de Filippi https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2580664
Overviews & guides
A prehistory of DAOs — defining a chimeric term; layers of cooperatives, gaming guilds, and the networks ahead by Kei Kreutler https://gnosisguild.mirror.xyz/t4F5rItMw4-mlpLZf5JQhElbDfQ2JRVKAzEpanyxW1Q
A beginner’s guide to DAOs — definitions, mindsets, tools, examples by Linda Xie https://linda.mirror.xyz/Vh8K4leCGEO06_qSGx-vS5lvgUqhqkCz9ut81WwCP2o
The Dao of DAOs — NFTs and DAOs; why DAO, how DAOs can be a competitive edge; types of DAOs now and later; DAO lego kits by Packy McCormick https://www.notboring.co/p/the-dao-of-daos
DAOs, NFTs, and the new creator economy — a DAO lets its creators, supporters, contributors, and audience become owners in the collective by Jarrod Dicker, Brian Flynn, Patrick Rivera https://www.coindesk.com/business/2021/03/04/nfts-daos-and-the-new-creator-economy/
The ABCs of DAOs — internet-native constitutions; how DAOs are automating the corporation, more by Theodor Marcu https://1729.com/daos
DAOs and the future of organizations online — public goods on the internet; governing and funding projects with Chris Dixon interviewed by Steven Johnson https://adjacentpossible.substack.com/p/lets-run-the-experiment-a-conversation
DAO landscape — different types and use cases of DAOs; how DAOs change over time by Cooper Turley https://coopahtroopa.mirror.xyz/_EDyn4cs9tDoOxNGZLfKL7JjLo5rGkkEfRa_a-6VEWw
Everything you need to know about DAOs — a primer on how DAOs are working to collectively shape the new creative economy by Foundation https://foundation.app/blog/everything-you-need-to-know-about-daos
DAO applications: communities, creators, future of work, cities, more applications
15 ways the world is being transformed by DAOs — doing for organizations what the internet did for communication by Aragon https://blog.aragon.org/15-ways-the-world-is-being-transformed-by-daos/
Community DAOs — what makes a DAO a DAO; moving from group chats to real businesses by Patrick Rivera https://p.mirror.xyz/cVN3KOss0uqpZwxHQKtC4Syvn1RfXaxofFKHJuKLWS4
Giving communities the power to bid — pooling capital, fractional ownership, more with John Palmer interviewed by Cooper Turley https://zine.zora.co/party-dao-interview
‘Fantasy Hollywood’: Crypto and community-owned characters — helping communities introduce new characters and culture to the world by Cuy Sheffield https://future.com/fantasy-hollywood-crypto-and-community-owned-characters/
DAOs and the promise of utopia in the music industry — reshaping how music and art pass through their usual life cycles by Resident Advisor https://ra.co/features/3914
Why DAOs are essential to DeFi — almost all major DeFi applications are now governed by DAOs by James Beck, Mattison Asher https://consensys.net/blog/codefi/daos/
Minimum viable participation in crypto — a spectrum of participation from capital to earning your place at the table to taking part in crypto by Elena Burger https://future.com/minimum-viable-participation-in-crypto-games-costs-accessibility/
Squad wealth — informal peer-to-peer institutions, role of trust in squad logic; theory of the squad; a new model of group coordination; can squads scale? by Sam Hart, Toby Shorin, Laura Lotti https://otherinter.net/research/squad-wealth/
The future of work — “you will probably work for a protocol someday”; from create-to-earn to judge-to-earn to participate-to-earn by Stephen McKeon https://medium.com/collab-currency/the-future-of-work-5d7b47cff308
…plus DAO stories stories & journeys
From contemptuous to indifferent to curious to pretty damn excited: my journey to web3 — what if NPR Planet Money could have been reinvented with DAOs? by Adam Davidson https://adamd.mirror.xyz/ef3BZjrJGk7bb1ElhVdz5AMWxEAN7GIOQhsXMKTmOWY
ConstitutionDAO — the great decentralized blockchain experiment by Kate Irwin https://decrypt.co/86359/constitutiondao-hits-30m-ethereum-raised-one-day-before-sothebys-auction
Examples of DAOs for economic empowerment — more easily organizing human and financial capital to invest in projects and people, enabled at scale by SyndicateDAO https://syndicate.mirror.xyz/xeRR8PJUnGr-mUlwLJppFHe65WPpyyULFBiz89K1qfI
What is it like to join a DAO? — experiences of the first four weeks of joining a DAO by Shawn Cubbedge https://blog.aragon.org/what-is-it-like-to-join-a-dao/
Life of a ‘protocol politician’ — overseeing governance, making proposals, voting, more by Cooper Turley https://newsletter.banklesshq.com/p/the-life-of-a-protocol-politician
How-to’s & getting started with DAOs: how to’s; get started
DAOs and creators — guides to begin today from 101 and well beyond by Kinjal Shah https://kinjal.mirror.xyz/eD3-Sgv2h50j-kwjHQCOnwqMKqSLTfnrqrtNypU-P5k
How to DAO — fundamentals and beginner answers from Aragon https://blog.aragon.org/how-to-dao-answers-for-beginners/
How to join a DAO — reasons to join, defining goals, and getting started by William Peaster https://newsletter.banklesshq.com/p/how-to-join-a-dao
How to build a DAO in three days — the DAO stack and parts, with a ConstitutionDAO case study by Packy McCormick https://www.notboring.co/p/lets-buy-the-us-constitution
How to DAO from day one to deeper stages — from vibe check to creating value to committing to do it full-time by Jack Fancy https://forefront.market/learn/guides-tutorials/how-to-dao
Building & participating in DAOs: mechanics, incentives, governance, legal, and more mechanics & more
Progressive decentralization: A playbook for building — product-market fit, community participation, ownership; how to avoid getting stuck by Jesse Walden https://a16z.com/2020/01/09/progressive-decentralization-crypto-product-management/
Come for the creator, stay for the economy — go-to-market strategy and the three stages of creator mode, org mode, protocol economy by Patrick Rivera https://p.mirror.xyz/1EpvJwUpx_KlRcHOKLNqADEkwHL_Z1ZYKobF2uLwgBg
How to get paid by DAOs — various ways to contribute to DAOs by Lucas Campbell https://newsletter.banklesshq.com/p/how-to-get-paid-by-daos
Creator DAOs, web3, and incentives — weaving together social and financial, intrinsic and extrinsic motives, from badging to tokens by Jarrod Dicker, Jonathan Glick, Tal Sachar https://darkstar.mirror.xyz/Tf9IS6yNxtPXwC5mmfi_UISe8v6BOfef2bDmQSxoJao
Building and running a DAO: Why governance matters — how financial incentives develop, why the mechanics matter, practical challenges by Tarun Chitra https://future.com/building-and-running-a-dao-why-governance-matters/
Moving beyond coin governance — from Defi to ‘DeGov’, looking at the governance design space; answers for keeping voting and DAOs safe by Vitalik Buterin https://vitalik.ca/general/2021/08/16/voting3.html
How DAOs could approach treasury management — functions for handling treasuries from spending and asset allocation to borrowing and reporting by Shreyas Hariharan https://newsletter.banklesshq.com/p/how-daos-should-approach-treasury
Organization legos: The state of DAO tooling — DeFi’s “money legos” have had a Cambrian explosion, but “organization legos” are still in their infancy by Nichanan Kesonpat https://medium.com/1kxnetwork/organization-legos-the-state-of-dao-tooling-866b6879e93e
How to grow decentralized communities: community building for token networks — funnels that turn discoverers into participants by Peter Yuan Pan (pet3rpan) https://medium.com/1kxnetwork/how-to-grow-decentralized-communities-1bf1044924f8
How to assess new community building hires for token networks — what matters, what doesn’t; questions for candidates; judging track records by Peter Yuan Pan (pet3rpan) https://medium.com/1kxnetwork/how-to-assess-new-community-building-hires-for-token-networks-a2672c07dd58
On-chain vote buying and ‘dark DAOs’ — security for blockchain voting; how to prevent decentralized cartels, opaque vote buying, and more by Phil Daian, Tyler Kell, Ian Miers, and Ari Juels https://hackingdistributed.com/2018/07/02/on-chain-vote-buying/
Voting, security, and governance in blockchains [a16z Podcast] — voting in social systems (blockchains, boardrooms, elections); gaming mechanisms with Phil Daian and Ali Yahya https://a16z.com/2019/02/09/voting-blockchains-governance-security-cryptoeconomics/
A legal framework for DAOs — on taxation, entity formation, and operational issues related to decentralized autonomous organizations by David Kerr and Miles Jennings https://a16z.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/DAO-Legal-Framework-Jennings-Kerr10.19.21-Final.pdf