In its early stage, PRODAO performs the role of a core operations team for building a robust protocol and activating the ecosystem, but it ultimately aims to transition to a transparent, fair, and community-led Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO). This is to guarantee the long-term sustainability and democratic development of the platform. PRODAO's governance model presents principles and procedures designed in accordance with this forward-looking goal.
8.1. PRODAO Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) Structure
PRODAO aims to gradually transition to a DAO structure operated by the collective intelligence of the community, without the control of a single central authority. This structure will implement a transparent and automated decision-making process using blockchain technology.
- Core principle: PRODAO aims for full decentralization in which all important protocol changes, fund executions, policy decisions, and the like are ultimately made through votes by token holders.
Key Participating Entities (After Transition)
- PROD token holders: As the most fundamental participants in PRODAO governance, they will exercise voting rights in proportion to the amount of PROD tokens they hold or stake.
- Signer nodes: As core entities participating in block generation and transaction verification on the PRODAO Mainnet, they may have greater influence in specific decisions in recognition of their contribution to network operation.
- Expert star clusters and stars: “Star clusters” (expert groups) and “stars” (individual experts) may play important roles in proposal creation, in-depth discussion, or voting on specific technical/professional fields, based on their specialized knowledge and contribution score (CS) in a particular field.
- Governance smart contract: Records the rules and execution logic of all governance processes on-chain, guaranteeing automatic execution according to voting results.
- Community treasury: A fund pool under the control of the DAO, to be used to fund various projects approved by the community.
8.2. Token-Holder-Based Voting and Decision-Making Process
PRODAO's final decisions will be made through a systematic voting process based on the PROD token.
Proposal Creation
- A participant who holds a certain amount of PROD tokens or more, or who meets a specific Contribution Score (CS), can create a PRODAO Improvement Proposal (PIP).
Discussion & Feedback
- Submitted proposals are publicly discussed in community channels such as the official forum, and the proposal may be improved during this process.
Voting Initiation & Period
- The final, revised proposal—after sufficient discussion—is put to an on-chain vote, and during a designated period PROD token holders use their tokens to express approval or disapproval. Voting power is proportional to the amount of PROD tokens held/staked.
Result Tallying & Execution
- After the voting period ends, a proposal that meets a specific quorum and approval threshold is deemed to have passed. A passed proposal is either automatically executed by the governance smart contract (on-chain changes) or carried out through the DAO's multi-signature wallet (off-chain activities).
8.3. On-Chain / Off-Chain Governance Model
Pursuing both efficiency and security, PRODAO plans to adopt a hybrid approach that combines on-chain and off-chain governance models in the future.
8.3.1. On-Chain Governance
- Characteristics: Recorded directly on the blockchain and immutable, with voting results automatically enforced through smart contracts. Provides high transparency and security.
- Fields of application: Applied to major changes that form the foundation of the ecosystem, such as core protocol changes (e.g., adjusting PoC algorithm parameters), smart-contract upgrades, large-scale fund executions, and token-economy adjustments.
- Mechanism: Uses a voting system based directly on the on-chain holdings of PROD tokens.
8.3.2. Off-Chain Governance
- Characteristics: A decision-making process that takes place outside the blockchain; it is flexible, low-cost, and facilitates complex discussion and the gathering of diverse opinions.
- Fields of application: Used for decisions that do not require immediate on-chain execution, such as ideation and initial proposals, detailed discussion and proposal improvement, and small-scale community initiatives.
- Mechanism: Gathers public opinion mainly using off-chain voting tools such as the PRODAO forum, Discord channels, or Snapshot.
8.3.3. On-Chain / Off-Chain Interaction
PRODAO's governance model will adopt an approach in which the completeness of proposals is raised through off-chain discussion and consensus, and only validated proposals are ultimately put to an on-chain vote. This reduces unnecessary on-chain transaction costs and induces careful decision-making through sufficient prior review.
This hybrid model will be a core strategy of PRODAO governance, maintaining the principle of decentralization while simultaneously pursuing the efficiency and agile development of the ecosystem.