DAOs
Decentralized organizations for collective decision-making
DAOs
Imagine a group of people trying to build a house together. But instead of one person being the boss, everyone gets to help decide what happens — from the design to how they spend money on supplies.
That's kind of how a DAO works.
DAO stands for Decentralized Autonomous Organization. It's a new kind of group that operates through smart contracts — self-executing code on the blockchain that enforces rules and handles shared resources. There's no central leader or company in charge.
One of the best things about DAOs is that much of what they do happens out in the open. Votes, proposals, and how money is spent are usually recorded on the blockchain, so anyone can see what's going on.
How do decisions get made?
Usually, someone submits a proposal — an idea for what the DAO should do. Members vote using tokens they hold. The more tokens you have, the more voting power you usually get (though some DAOs experiment with more equal approaches). If enough people vote yes, the proposal passes — and smart contracts can trigger it automatically.
DAOs are also where new ideas about governance are being tested. Some try quadratic voting, delegation, or reputation systems. These experiments help us learn what works when groups make decisions together online.
Real examples:
Of course, DAOs face real challenges: low voter turnout, unclear accountability, and sometimes too much power in too few hands. But they're offering a new blueprint for collective action.