DSF - DeFi in One Click

What is a DAO and what are its types?

Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs) are rightfully considered one of the trends in the world of digital assets. The transformation of the traditional financial system through blockchain technology has led to the possibility of creating autonomous organizations made up of individuals who may not know each other personally. DAOs have become the most effective way to manage investments and projects with like-minded individuals around the world.

The very idea of such organizations is even more radical than the cryptocurrencies themselves. We are talking about a global decentralized management system, not just about financial relationships between people.

Let's take a closer look at what DAOs are, what are their basic operating principles and advantages.

What is a DAO?

A DAO is a decentralized, autonomous organization that operates on a blockchain using smart contracts. It is governed by all its members, giving everyone a say in internal matters. DAO is characterized by democracy, independence and transparency through open source. Decentralized autonomous organization can be created on the basis of a blockchain project, a metaverse, or a crowdfunding company.

The goal of DAO is to create a transparent and decentralized system in which decision-making power is distributed among its participants. This means that no one person or group has complete control over the organization. Instead, decisions are made collectively through voting and consensus mechanisms among participants.

The use of blockchain technology is critical to the functioning of DAOs. Smart contracts, which are self-executing agreements stored in blockchain, play a central role in automating processes and enforcing organizational rules and protocols. These smart contracts serve as the backbone of a DAO's governance structure, ensuring secure and transparent transactions and interactions between its members.

In the blockchain and cryptocurrency industry, DAOs have gained popularity for their ability to eliminate intermediaries, reduce transaction costs and increase transparency. They offer an alternative to traditional hierarchical structures, allowing members to directly influence the decision-making process and direction of the organization.

How does a DAO work?

DAOs work on the principle of decentralized management, which means that decision-making power is distributed among the members of the organization, rather than being concentrated in the hands of a central authority. Let's take a look at the basic principles of how a DAO works:

Creation of a DAO. To create a DAO, its founders define a set of rules and protocols that determine how the organization will operate. These rules are usually encoded in smart contracts. Smart contracts act as the backbone of the DAO, ensuring that transactions and interactions between members comply with pre-determined rules.
Membership and participation. Individuals wishing to join a DAO can purchase membership tokens or tokens representing their stake in the organization. These tokens entitle them to participate in decision-making processes, such as voting on motions or proposing changes to DAO protocols. The number of tokens a participant owns determines the «weight» of their vote.
Proposals and voting. Anyone at a DAO can propose ideas or changes to the organization. These suggestions are usually submitted through a special platform or interface. Members can then vote on these proposals using their membership tokens. Voting mechanisms can vary, but common methods include majority voting or quadratic voting, in which voting rights increase non linearly depending on the number of tokens owned.
Funding and resource allocation. When smart contracts are ready, the DAO needs to receive funding in order to operate. DAO smart contracts are supposed to create and distribute some form of internal ownership, such as a proprietary token that can be spent by the DAO, used in voting mechanisms or to incentivize certain activities. Participants can contribute funds to the DAO treasury and cryptocurrency or other assets directly to a smart contract address. These funds are then collectively held by the organization.
Deployment and execution. Once the DAO receives sufficient funding, further decisions are made by vote. As a result, token holders become stakeholders who make suggestions about the future of the DAO and how the funds are spent. Smart contracts are used to automate the distribution of funds or perform certain tasks.
Continuous management and evolution. DAOs are dynamic entities that can evolve over time. Participants can make new proposals, vote on changes to DAO rules, or propose updates to smart contracts. This continuous management allows the organization to adapt to changing circumstances, make improvements, and consider the collective will of its members.

Types of DAOs

DAO can be very different and applied in different directions, everything is limited only by the design of the developers and the limitations of blockchain technology.

All DAO projects on the market can be roughly divided into several general types, each serving different purposes and meeting specific needs. Let's look at some of them:

Investment DAO. Such organizations focus on pooling participants' resources to invest in various assets, such as cryptocurrencies, stocks or real estate. Participants collectively make investment decisions and share profits or losses together. One example is MetaCartel Ventures, an investment DAO that supports early stage projects in the Ethereum ecosystem.
Grant DAO. Grant DAOs are designed to provide financial support to individuals or projects in need of funding. They aim to empower communities by allowing members to collectively decide which initiatives or proposals should receive grants. MolochDAO is an example of this type of DAO, which provides funding to projects in the Ethereum community.
Protocol DAO. These autonomous organizations focus on managing and maintaining decentralized protocols or blockchain networks. They facilitate decision-making and protocol updates, ensuring that the underlying technology runs smoothly and evolves. An example is MakerDAO, which manages the Maker protocol, which allows users to generate stable coins using collateral.
Service DAOs. They provide specific services or products to their members or the broader community. These DAOs aim to create decentralized platforms where members can offer services or access them directly. The dxDAO is an example of a service DAO and focuses on decentralized trading and liquidity provision.
Operational DAO. Operational DAOs focus on the day-to-day operations of an organization or project, such as marketing, development or community management. They allow participants to put their skills and expertise to work in support of the DAO's goals. An example is dOrg, a DAO that provides web development and consulting services.
Media DAOs. This category covers DAOs that serve specific industries or interests. It includes communities that aim to support decentralized media platforms, guilds — gaming DAOs and social DAOs. Examples include The Defiant (media DAO), Aavegotchi (gaming DAO), and Friends With Benefits (social DAO).

Advantages and problems of DAO

Decentralized, autonomous organizations are the answer to classical business schemes, in which a small group of people, and sometimes one person has control over the company. DAOs are a decentralized management model that allows all participants to directly influence the decision-making process. This promotes inclusiveness, transparency, and collective decision-making power, allowing for a democratic and fair system. But beyond that, autonomous organizations offer many other benefits.

Increased transparency. DAOs run on blockchain, providing transparency and verifiability of transactions. Participants can get real-time information about fund allocations, voting results and other important data, which increases trust and accountability.
Autonomous transactions. Through the use of smart contracts, DAOs can automate various transactions, reducing the need for middlemen and manual intervention. This results in greater efficiency and eliminates possible human bias or error.
Efficiency and automation. DAOs use smart contracts to automate processes, ensuring that transactions occur automatically and according to predefined rules. This efficiency reduces the need for intermediaries, streamlines transactions and minimizes potential human errors.
Inclusivity. DAOs are not limited by geographical boundaries, allowing people from all over the world to join and contribute to the organization.
Flexibility. Thanks to decentralized decision-making, DAOs can quickly adapt to changing circumstances, introduce new ideas and explore new technologies. This flexibility allows them to respond quickly to changing market conditions.

Despite all the advantages the DAO has its disadvantages. Among them are the following points:

Governance issues. DAOs often face problems related to the decision-making process, as reaching consensus among a large and diverse group of participants can be difficult.
Legal uncertainty. DAOs operate in a rapidly changing regulatory landscape. As a result, they often face legal challenges, compliance issues, and uncertainty about their status.
Scalability. Scaling a decentralized organization while maintaining efficiency and participation can be challenging, especially in terms of resource allocation and coordination.

Despite these challenges, the benefits of DAOs in terms of decentralized governance, transparency, efficiency, community empowerment and innovation are driving their continued growth and adoption. Autonomous organizations have great potential to revolutionize traditional organizational structures and empower individuals to actively participate in decision-making processes.

DAO is a new approach to organizational management that helps bypass the shortcomings of traditional business structures. Autonomous organizations allow to be free from dependence on classical management institutions. Instead of a central organization coordinating participants, management rules are automated and guide participants to the most beneficial outcome for the network.