Governance

Kaia Governance: Taking the First Step to Decentralization

The Kaia Governance Council is a council that has the right to decide various governance matters. To secure its reliability, the early members of the Governance Council have been limited to trusted organizations. This was chosen for the sake of efficiency in the platform's development and stabilization stage. Kaia reached the stage by joining hands with 31 Governance Council Members and a seamless operation of the Kaia Mainnet.

Kaia believes that Kaia governance should lead Kaia’s growth aligned with the transition of our world. One of the key transitions in the world is coming from the growth of the metaverse. The technological advancements are ushering in a more metaversified world. In particular, we are witnessing the growth of the influence of non-traditional entities such as Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs) and builders. As an organization operating on smart contracts without a centralized structure, DAOs will be a core entity in the metaverse. Builders will have more influence by contributing to the operation and growth of the metaverse.

We are reorganizing our governance structure to better accommodate to the changing world. In addition to traditional enterprises, Kaia is opening up the Membership of the Kaia Governance Council to the non-traditional entities mentioned above.

By introducing a stake-based governance model and eliminating the Gini Coefficient from Kaia’s voting mechanism, Kaia enables governance participants who can gather more support from Kaia Communities to shape Kaia in line with their preference. Entities who can make a proper decision in a Metaversified world will have more influence in the Kaia GC. We believe DAOs and builders will lead the scene in the future.

To further enhance participation and representation within the Kaia Governance Council, we are introducing "Public Delegation." This function allows any token holder to delegate their voting power to other voters who will express opinions on their behalf. This mechanism is akin to representative democracy, where elected representatives vote on behalf of their constituents. Users maintain the flexibility to delegate or revoke their delegation at any time, ensuring their voice is heard.

When the level of metaversification crosses the critical threshold, Kaia governance will be fully decentralized with various types of entities. Ultimately, Kaia will evolve into a DAO of DAOs and a platform for DAOs to communicate the voices of Kaia Communities through on-chain mechanisms.

Governance Topics

The main topics that can be decided through the governance structure include the following three areas, and proposals that require additional decision making may be introduced in a regular meeting or temporary meeting for review. The Kaia Governance Council must make decisions that are best for the growth of Kaia.

• Technology
  • Matters related to the technical update of the platform. Here the issues on the blockchain's basic structure (e.g., Account Structure), new features (e.g., L2 solution), or software update schedule are included.
• Economy
  • Issues relating to additional issuance of KAIA and its distribution structure, changes in transaction fees, and Kaia Ecosystem Fund spending approval etc. are included in this category.
• Governing Rule
  • The governance subjects and processes, as well as the rules for the responsibilities and rights of governing bodies, are included in this category.

Governance Process

Kaia principally aims for the governance process to occur within the protocol (on-chain). Through this process, the votes will be recorded on the blockchain, and the results will be carried out following the vote. As the platform grows, more matters will be handled through on-chain governance.

General Governance Process

The initial governance process proceeds in the following order: proposal introduction, statement of opinion submitted by advisors, voting by council members, and various follow-up procedures depending on the result of the vote.

Those who have the right to introduce proposals can make sure each proposal is voted on by introducing it. Once the proposal is introduced, the advisors must conduct expert analysis on the proposal and submit a statement of opinion with their results.

During the initial phase of Kaia governance, the Kaia Governance Council members will have the right to vote on the introduced proposals and will reference the advisors' statements of opinion to vote on what they believe to be the best option. This voting power can be strengthened through Public Delegation, allowing a wider range of token holders to participate in the decision-making process. If the number of votes passes the threshold, the proposal will pass; if not, the proposal will be dismissed. In its initial phase, the voting process may be replaced by a discussion process facilitated by the Kaia foundation. The follow-up measures for an approved proposal will be led by the chairman, and the chairman has the responsibility to carry out all the proposals that have been passed by the council during his or her term.

Governance Roadmap

The bodies participating in governance must act in consideration of Kaia’s long-term benefits rather than just for their personal interests, and they must actively participate in the governance process. Additionally, all participants that contribute to the network as Kaia Governance Council members must secure computing resources that are greater than the platform requirements and stake a set amount KAIA of their own or from third parties. For smooth operations in development and stabilization of the platform, Kaia Foundation will take on many roles in governance related matters in the initial development phase. In the future, however, other bodies will gradually take on greater roles in the decision-making process, and they will have the right to participate independently.

• Development Phase: The initial development phase after the mainnet launch must quickly see parameter adjustments, new feature developments, etc. For this to be possible, many issues will be decided through gathering the opinions of the Kaia Governance Council members, service providers, and community members. To secure initial stabilization, Kaia Foundation will lead the decision-making process. Additionally, all decided matters will be transparently shared with the public.
• Stabilization Phase: The Kaia Governance Council has governing rights on many proposals and this phase will gradually begin starting Jan 2021. For special matters such as those concerning platform development, and matters that directly affect the overall Kaia ecosystem, Kaia foundation may facilitate the discussion and execution.
• Decentralization Phase: Following the stabilization period, a number of non-traditional entities such as DAOs and builders may be brought into the decision-making process for additional opinions. Public Delegation will play a crucial role in this phase, ensuring a broader and more diverse range of stakeholders can contribute to Kaia's governance. Decentralization phase may be gradually achieved through multiple stages with different governing rules and participants.