DAE in a nutshell

Decentralized Autonomous Education (DAE) is an innovative learning model based on the principles and applications of Web3. This model is realistic and effective, venturing well beyond the traditional education system without straying into science fiction.

DAE is a gamification of the learning process modeling a class as a Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO).

The goal of DAE is to maximize the transfer of knowledge from the teacher to the learners in a homogeneous way. The learning game involves stakeholders such as teachers, students, or even companies interested in hiring the students. The game uses a karma-based system, where students' karma (reputation) can increase through virtuous actions, such as flip teaching.

Students can use their karma in many ways:

• to govern the class by taking decisions through proposals, discussions, and voting;
• to influence the final assessment given by the teacher to the student, if any. Such assessment can be also influenced by the karma-weighted evaluation of peer students;
• to gain rewards. Rewards can be in-game assets, like access to premium internships or one-to-one meetings with domain experts, or more liquid assets in the form of fungible and non-fungible tokens.

Finally, as in any DAO, also the DAE class has a treasury. This is a fund with assets of economic value to be spent, through collective decisions, to achieve the aim of the game, for instance to invite an external expert for a lesson on a specific topic.

DAE and Web3

DAE fully leverages some principles shared by Web3 philosophy, such as participation, responsibility, autonomy, inclusivity, scalability, composability, and transparency. Moreover, an instance of the DAE model - a course taught with this learning approach - takes advantage of some Web3 applications. In particular,

• Rewards are fungible tokens (cryptocurrency) and non-fungible tokens (NFTs). These tokens are transferable and tradable by nature;
• Karma points are instead implemented as soulbound tokens, as are any individual educational qualifications accrued during the course. These tokens are bound to the soul of the owner, hence cannot be transferred, bought, sold or traded;
• All game rules, token smart contracts and token transactions are recorded immutably and transparently on a blockchain;
• Finally, the learning game is organized according to the DAO model, with collective decisions, token-based governance, treasury administration, as well as smart contract automation.

The underlying philosophy

We believe that free education is a public good, and we all should invest resources directly or indirectly in the building and dissemination of trustworthy knowledge bases. In particular, a sound Web3 user should be polymath, with basic knowledge in topics like cryptography, distributed systems, cybersecurity, game theory, decentralized finance, and more.

Behind the scenes, the proposed learning model has the invisible goal of instilling freedom and responsibility - two sides of the same coin - in all participants, teachers and learners at first. It wants to experiment with a tangible concept of meritocracy and a sense of belonging to a community where each individual is valuable and every individual action reflects on the whole community.

The "mental model" of the DAE project is scalable both horizontally and vertically to a wider society centered around a sense of responsibility and collectivity, in which the individuals who intend only their own gain are led, as if by an invisible hand, to advance the interests of the whole society.

Both the DAE learning model and its implementation (DAE app) will be free, public and open-source. Our goal is the maximal diffusion and adoption of the learning model, with no rent extraction outside the one necessary to develop the project.

The working team

The principal investigator of the project is Massimo Franceschet. He is an Associate Professor of Computer Science at the University of Udine (Italy) with over 25 years of experience in academic research and teaching. He is active in the research fields of blockchain and crypto art and currently teaches Data Science, with a significant part dedicated to blockchain and crypto assets. He is currently on sabbatical leave to develop the DAE project.

With the artistic name of hex6c, he is also a generative artist and an OG in the crypto art scene, with artworks minted since early 2018 in the principal curated marketplaces, including SuperRare, KnownOrigin, ArtBlocks and Async Art.

The project is supported also by:

• Andrea Antonutti, full-stack Web2 and Web3 developer based in Udine (Italy)
• Luca Donno, Web3 researcher e developer based in Bologna (Italy)
• Dario Serio, graphic designer based in Milan (Italy)

Roadmap and future work

DAE started in August 2022 and has no deadline. The progress to date is as follows:

• Q3 2022
  • review of related literature
  • write specifications of the learning model
• Q4 2022
  • present and discuss the learning model at educational venues (Fabrica of Benetton, Scuola Holden, Indire, H-Farm)
  • write full documentation
  • write a paper for Right Click Save
• Q1 2023
  • develop the first MVP
  • run a simulation online
  • create an NFT digital art collection supporting the project
• Q2 2023
  • add Web3 topics to the knowledge base of the project
  • teach an online Web3 course using the learning model
  • apply for a SuperRare space linked to the project
• Q3 2023
  • write smart contracts for soulbound fungible tokens to implement the karma system
  • develop a DAE decentralized app (more below)
  • write an academic paper
  • apply for a Gitcoin grant
• Q4 2023
  • add AI topics to the knowledge base of the project (more below)
  • teach an in-presence course with the DAE model at the Master in Computer Science of the University of Udine (Italy)

It is worth pointing out that the first DAE MVP is implemented as a collection of composable Web3 apps. In particular it uses Otterspace badges to coarsely simulate the karma system, and Snapshot for making proposals and voting with the Otterspace badges. This choice maximizes flexibility at the expense of usability. We are building a user-friendly dapp that leverages Web3 apps under the hood, concealing complexity without sacrificing decentralization. Also, the DAE dapp will pair Otterspace badges with a new karma system based on soulbound fungible tokens that we developed.

At the moment the DAE knowledge base contains learning material on the basics of Web3: blockchain, wallets and accounts, fungible, non-fungible and soulbound tokens, DAOs, voting and funding methods, smart contracts. It also includes more advanced material, in the form of digested readings, on topics like decentralized and social identity, proof of personhood, zero-knowledge proofs, blockchain scalability and layer 2 solutions, and more. In the near future, we are planning to add more Web3 topics as well as AI topics, in particular generative AI and its potential integration in the educational system.

The final goal is to build a learning hub comprised of:

1. A learning model, called Decentralized Autonomous Education (DAE). It is a theoretical framework based on democratic education that anyone can learn, fork and apply it in the setting they like.
2. An implementation of the learning model, called DAE App. It realizes the learning model using a learn-by-doing approach.
3. A learning hub for Web3 and AI, called DAE Lab. A place with innovative resources and curated material to consciously learn these cutting-edge topics.

Notice that both the learning model and its app can be applied to learn any topic, from Web3 and AI to medieval philosophy. They can also be applied to settings far from learning, such as the creation of an innovative political party or the management of a theater.

Risks and challenges

The DAE learning model is disruptive with respect to the status quo in education. The traditional learning model is based on minimal effort on the part of teacher and learner, and the object of teaching is (only) the subject matter taught. In contrast, in the DAE model, learning takes place on three levels:

1. a horizontal model of work organization, based on the DAO concept;
2. the philosophy and technologies of the Web3;
3. the subject matter taught.

Of course, this implies a "cubed" effort on the part of teachers and students that goes far beyond the principle of minimum effort in traditional teaching. In particular, getting out of the teacher-large/student-small dynamic is a not inconsiderable effort for the teacher. Likewise, the transition from passive listener to active participant implies a strong motivation and investment of energy on the part of the student. This potential cubic effort poses significant challenges and risks on the effective success and adoption of the learning model. We assume that shortsighted traditional teachers and not well motivated students will oppose resistance to these changes.

Finally, the today's hyper-financialization of Web3, in particular in DeFi and NFTs sectors, is less attracted by the cultivation of values and virtues of deep and well-reasoned knowledge and education, privileging the consumption of fast-forward undigested information. Since our project has potential social and educational impacts, with few financial seductiveness for speculators, it could go unnoticed or even hampered in today's Web3.

Previous funding

We received a grant of 8k$ from SuperRare marketplace. We used the grant for a compensation of the software developers, the graphic designer as well as for distributing rewards to the students participating in the first iteration of the learning model.

How we will use the Gitcoin funding

The funding will be used to continue the development and implementation of the project and to distribute rewards to future students of the DAE model.

Contacts and documentation

The project is fully documented on GitBook and on Linktree. The principle investigator is reachable on Telegram.