2024-09-10 RegenLearnings.xyz

In this lively meeting, we delved into the mechanics of the Retro Public Goods Funding (PGF) process, the advantages of Pairwise Voting, and an exciting presentation by Open Software Observer (OSO), among other important updates.

Key Points:

Pairwise Voting

Kiran from Crypto EconLab kicked things off by reviewing the Retro PGF process, which involves multiple steps: project application, evaluation by badge holders, and fund distribution based on global rankings. However, some limitations with the Quorum and Threshold Voting methods were highlighted, leading to the discussion of a more efficient alternative:

• Pairwise Voting Overview. This new mechanism allows badge holders to evaluate two projects at a time, making the ranking process more dynamic and scalable. Simulation results showed that Pairwise Voting is less affected by badge holder "laziness" and potential conflicts of interest compared to the traditional methods.
• Future iterations will explore further optimizations, including integrations with systems like Thrive Coin and Filecoin, while incorporating impact attestations and hybrid voting models in upcoming rounds.

You can check it out here: Pairwise Voting (opens in a new tab)

• Code Repository: https://github.com/CELtd/voting_mechanism_design (opens in a new tab) Kiran is happy to collaborate with you all more going forward on this, you can contact him on: kiran@cel.build Telegram: @mtnkrazy https://www.cryptoeconlab.xyz/ (opens in a new tab)

OSO Presentation:

Carl Cervone featured a presentation from Open Software Observer (OSO), an open-source platform dedicated to tracking public goods funding and developer activity. OSO's key features include:

• Access to project data, GitHub stats, and on-chain activity.
• A comprehensive API and tools like BigQuery to explore datasets.
• OSO’s goal is to show how grant systems can lead to ecosystem growth, embodying the mantra “grants = growth”. They also use real-time data to analyze contributor activity and provide dashboards to help projects track their progress.

Carl shared that is looking for a more steady contribution flow, now it only appears big peaks right before RetroPGF window. So here are upcoming contribution opportunities:

• 4337 data&standards group
• Cartographers' Syndicate (Arbitrum ecosystem - Thrive)
• OSS-funding
• Connecting new datasets
• SUNNY Awards
• ValueVerse - health metrics for token projects on th Superchain
• Search for Advanced Metrics
• Data Challenges
• kaggle competitions
• byte explorers
• Devcon hackathon with Fundind the Commons

You can check out Carl's presentation here (opens in a new tab)

MACI Presentation (Minimal Anti-Collusion Infrastructure):

Joel Miller and Umar Khan delivered a brief but insightful presentation on MACI, focusing on its significance for preserving the integrity of public goods funding. Key takeaways included:

• MACI’s core function is to prevent collusion and vote-buying in decentralized voting systems, making it ideal for public goods funding mechanisms.
• The infrastructure works by encrypting votes and only allowing valid votes to be revealed and counted, ensuring voter privacy and vote integrity.
• Joel and Umar emphasized the role of zk-SNARKs (Zero-Knowledge Succinct Non-Interactive Arguments of Knowledge) in ensuring that even the system administrators cannot tamper with the results.
• MACI is highly compatible with Pairwise Voting and similar methods, providing an extra layer of protection against manipulation, making it crucial for future improvements in voting protocols.

You can check it out here: MACI (opens in a new tab) Here is Joel & Umar's presentacion (opens in a new tab) They are asking for new ideas to identify collusion, you can email to: joel@gitcoin.co

Unlock Protocol:

The use of NFT ticketing via Unlock Protocol was highlighted, with Cecilia providing an example by creating tickets for this call, showcasing the ease of distributing NFTs for event access. For future calls it will be implemented, so everyone will be able to RSVP their ticket for the call and enjoy with an NFT, as for this call we'll airdrop the NFT to all the attendees' emails.

This meeting demonstrated a commitment to refining voting mechanisms and leveraging technology to ensure fair and effective public goods funding.