Stanford DAO Symposium
by Stanford Rock Center for Corporate Governance and Stanford Center for Blockchain Research
The Stanford DAO Symposium, held virtually from May 2 to May 4, 2022, was organized by the Stanford Rock Center for Corporate Governance and the Stanford Center for Blockchain Research. This event aimed to explore the evolving landscape of decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) and their potential to revolutionize governance structures.
Key topics addressed during the symposium included the legal frameworks surrounding DAOs, incentive mechanisms for network participation, voting system designs tailored to specific communities, treasury management strategies, and the classification of governance tokens under federal securities laws. Sessions such as "So You Want to Build a DAO?" and "DAO Hacks and Ways to Avoid Them" provided practical insights into DAO creation and security considerations.
The symposium featured a range of notable speakers, including academics and industry leaders, who shared their expertise on decentralized governance. Attendees had opportunities to engage in real-time Q&A sessions and participate in small group networking, fostering a collaborative environment for discussing best practices and challenges in the DAO ecosystem.
This event was particularly beneficial for DAO builders, developers, community members, delegates, advisors, venture capitalists investing in the Web3 space, governance experts, academics, regulators, and policymakers interested in understanding and enhancing the effectiveness of DAO governance mechanisms.
Speakers(18)
Amy Jung
Investor at Komorebi Collective
Amy Jung is a web3 operator and investor at Komorebi Collective, previously led community development at MakerDAO, and focuses on progressive decentralization and multi-party ownership.
Andrew Hall
Professor of Political Science at Stanford University
Andrew Hall is a Professor of Political Science at Stanford University and, by courtesy, a Professor of Political Economy at the Graduate School of Business. He is the co-director of the Democracy & Polarization Lab and a Senior Fellow at the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research. His research focuses on designing better systems of democratic governance, including work on reducing polarization, increasing accountability in US elections, administering elections, and building effective governance systems for online communities.
Ari Redbord
Head of Legal and Government Affairs at TRM Labs
Ari Redbord leads legal and government affairs at TRM Labs, a blockchain analytics company, and previously served as Senior Advisor at the U.S. Treasury, focusing on sanctions and regulatory tools against threat actors.
Chase Chapman
Co-Founder at Decentology
Chase Chapman is the Co-Founder of Decentology.
Dan Boneh
Professor of Computer Science at Stanford University
Dr. Dan Boneh is a Professor of Computer Science at Stanford University, co-directing the Center for Blockchain Research, focusing on applications of cryptography to blockchains and computer security.
Justine Humenansky
Head of Strategy and Governance at RabbitHole
Justine Humenansky is Head of Strategy and Governance at RabbitHole and a member of the World Economic Forum’s DAO Council.
Kinjal Shah
Partner at Blockchain Capital
Kinjal Shah is a Partner at Blockchain Capital, leading research content strategy, conducting investment diligence, and supporting portfolio companies in the crypto and blockchain ecosystem.
Lucy Frew
Partner at Walkers
Lucy Frew is a partner at Walkers' Cayman Islands office, heading the global Regulatory & Risk Advisory Group, with over 20 years' experience as a specialist financial regulatory lawyer.
Marc Boiron
General Counsel at dYdX Trading Inc.
Marc Boiron is General Counsel at dYdX Trading Inc., with extensive experience advising on blockchain and digital assets, particularly in decentralized finance.
Miles Jennings
General Counsel at a16z crypto
Miles Jennings is the general counsel of a16z crypto, overseeing investments, regulatory and policy matters, and advising portfolio companies and DAOs on decentralized operations and protocol design.
Nathan Schneider
Assistant Professor at University of Colorado Boulder
Nathan Schneider studies religion, technology, and democracy, focusing on models for democratic ownership and governance for online platforms and protocols, and is the founder of the Media Enterprise Design Lab.
Sabina Beleuz
Researcher-in-Residence at Bain Capital Crypto
Sabina Beleuz focuses on decentralized venture models and innovations in crypto governance, co-founded Coinocracy, and serves as Managing Editor of the Stanford Journal of Blockchain Law & Policy.
Sean McElroy
Associate at Fenwick & West
Sean McElroy is an Associate at Fenwick & West, advising clients on domestic and international tax planning, with particular expertise in blockchain and cryptocurrency ecosystems.
Shreyas Hariharan
Co-founder at Llama
Shreyas Hariharan co-founded Llama, which builds economic infrastructure for DAOs, and has worked with leading DAOs including Aave, Uniswap, and Gitcoin.
Stephen Wink
Partner at Latham & Watkins
Stephen Wink is a partner in the New York office of Latham & Watkins and a member of the firm’s Financial Regulatory Practice. He advises a wide range of market players, including fintech companies, investment banks, private funds, exchanges and trading platforms (traditional and cryptocurrency), and other financial institutions on matters involving the regulation of markets, as well as related compliance and enforcement matters. He is Co-Chair of the firm’s Global Digital Assets Group.
Stuart D. Levi
Co-Head of Intellectual Property and Technology Group at Skadden
Stuart D. Levi is co-head of Skadden’s Intellectual Property and Technology Group and coordinates the firm’s blockchain, outsourcing, and privacy practices. He has been a recognized leader in the technology transaction field for over 30 years, advising on blockchain and digital asset matters, outsourcing transactions, technology and intellectual property licensing, fintech representations, privacy and cybersecurity, branding and distribution agreements, technology transfers, strategic alliances, and joint ventures.
Tarun Chitra
Founder & CEO at Gauntlet
Tarun Chitra is the Founder & CEO of Gauntlet, with experience in simulation-based R&D at the intersection of high-performance computing and AI, applied to the blockchain ecosystem.
Will Papper
Co-founder at Syndicate Protocol
Will Papper is the Co-founder of Syndicate Protocol.
Event Details
- Date
- May 3, 2022
- Location
- 🇺🇸 Palo Alto, United States
- Pricing
- Free
- Audience
- DAO builders, developers, community members, delegates, advisors, venture capitalists, governance experts, academics, regulators, and policymakers interested in DAO governance.