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• News / PodcastMarch 27, 2023

  Overthrowing The Network State: How to Optimize for RealityOverthrowing The Network State: How to Optimize for Reality Overthrowing The Network State: “How to optimize for reality?” with Michael ZarghamWe are thrilled to announce the newest episode of Overthrowing The Network State (OTNS), featuring Michael Zargham, the CEO of Block Science. The Blockchain Socialist, Primavera De Filippi, and their guest continue their efforts to overthrow the ontological framework of network states from the perspective of complex systems engineering.During the discussion, they delve into the concept of how network states don’t optimize for reality and the importance of not confusing the map with the territory. Finally, they explore how an alternative to network states should handle infrastructures and the potential impact that this could have on our society.Michael Zargham brings a wealth of knowledge and experience, making for an insightful and thought-provoking conversation.Stay tuned for more episodes of OTNS!You can find the previous episodes and additional content on The Blockchain Socialist website. [...] Read more...
• News / PodcastMarch 13, 2023

  Overthrowing The Network State: Dictatorship by Tech CEO with Nathan SchneiderOverthrowing The Network State: Dictatorship by Tech CEO with Nathan Schneider Overthrowing The Network State: Dictatorship by Tech CEO with Nathan SchneiderWe are excited to announce the 6th episode of Overthrowing The Network State (OTNS) featuring returning guest Nathan Schneider, who joins The Blockchain Socialist and Primavera de Filippi, to discuss his experience at ETH Denver and the limitations of using tech venture capital as a model for governance.In this episode, they explore new political possibilities and the importance of being intentional in the approach. They dive deep into the issues surrounding the use of venture capital as a governance model and the potential drawbacks that come with it.As part of our ongoing collaboration with The Blockchain Socialist, OTNS aims to critique The Network State by Balaji Srinivasan while highlighting the more significant concepts surrounding how these technologies could subvert state structures.Make sure to tune in for this insightful discussion with Nathan Schneider and stay tuned for more episodes of OTNS. You can find the previous episodes and additional content on The Blockchain Socialist website. [...] Read more...
• News / PodcastMarch 7, 2023

  Overthrowing The Network State: Colonize the Memes, the Narratives, and the LandOverthrowing The Network State: Colonize the Memes, the Narratives, and the Land Overthrowing The Network State: Colonize the Memes, the Narratives, and the LandCheck out the latest episode of Overthrowing the Network State (OTNS)! In this episode, Primavera de Filippi and Morshed Mannan joined The Blockchain Socialist to speak with Raymond Craib, a historian of modern Latin America and author of Adventure Capitalism: A History of Libertarian Exit, from the Era of Decolonization to the Digital Age. They delve into the neocolonialism inherent in network states, previous attempts at utopian libertarian exits, the colonization of history, and the concept of Praxis Society.You can listen to the podcast on the player below, and find all the other episodes on The Blockchain Socialist Website! [...] Read more...
• News / PodcastFebruary 28, 2023

  Overthrowing The Network State: Untangling Balaji’s Helical Theory of HistoryOverthrowing The Network State: Untangling Balaji’s Helical Theory of History Overthrowing The Network State: Untangling Balaji’s Helical Theory of HistoryBe sure not to miss the latest Overthrowing the Network State (OTNS) episode! Technology historian Quinn DuPont joins the Blockchain Socialist and Keslie Nabben to discuss his recent critiques of TNS at the Commons Stack Unconference and his article on A Progressive Web3. Together, they delve into Balaji’s misinterpretations of history and suggest the commons as an alternative framework to what is already occurring in certain aspects of web3. Check out this episode, along with previous ones, by clicking here! [...] Read more...
• NewsFebruary 13, 2023

  Overthrowing The Network State: Survival of the Richest with Douglas RushkoffOverthrowing The Network State: Survival of the Richest with Douglas Rushkoff The third Episode of “Overthrowing the Network State” with Douglas Rushkoff has been published!We are excited to announce that the third episode of the “Overthrowing the Network State” podcast series is out now! In this episode, Primavera De Filippi and The Blockchain Socialist welcome Douglas Rushkoff, a renowned writer, and documentarian who studies human autonomy in the digital age. Rushkoff, named one of the “world’s ten most influential intellectuals” by MIT, joins the conversation to discuss “The Network State” by Balaji Srinivasan.Click here to listen to the podcast!Missed the previous episodes? No problem! You can find them all on The Blockchain Socialist website as well! [...] Read more...
• News / PodcastFebruary 7, 2023

  Overthrowing The Network State: Forming New Publics and Pluralism with Glen WeylOverthrowing The Network State: Forming New Publics and Pluralism with Glen Weyl Exploring Alternatives: The Second Episode of Overthrowing The Network State is Here!We’re thrilled to announce the release of the second episode of the podcast series “Overthrowing The Network State“. In this episode, Primavera de Filippi and The Blockchain Socialist welcome Glen Weyl, the founder of RadicalxChange and co-author of Vitalik Buterin’s article on Decentralized Society.In the first episode of #OTNS, they introduced Balaji Srinivasan’s book “The Network State” and shared our initial criticisms and alternatives. This time, they delve deeper into the oversimplifications in the book and explore Glen’s alternative vision for a networked society.If you haven’t already, check out the first episode of OTNS. Now, tune in to the second episode of ONTS and discover more about these topics! [...] Read more...
• News / Publications / Reports / researchFebruary 3, 2023

  BlockchainGov Observations on PoH DAO GovernanceBlockchainGov Observations on PoH DAO Governance Jamilya Kamalova, Sofia Cossar, Tara Merk.In early 2021, the first Sybil-resistant registry of humans was launched. The Proof of Humanity (PoH) registry and the PoH DAO is the first decentralized autonomous organization democratically governed running on the Ethereum network. To help us conduct this research, we relied on academic articles from a lot of different disciplines, such as political science, digital ethnography,  democratic theory (especially literature conceptualizing Western liberal democracies to make sense of our empirical observations and findings), but also studies on blockchain systems and blockchain-based governance.The problem of this research is: What governance dynamics led to the Proof of Humanity DAO’s crisis and decision to fork?Our theory was that such a decision came from a persistent governance crisis caused by the absence of strong democratic elements, procedures, regulations, and institutions that could have supported the coexistence of its diverse community rather than leading to its growing and ultimately irreparable division. So we conducted this ethnographic study involving online observation, interviews, events, and institutional analysis. Participants signed community consent forms under BlockchainGov’s research ethics, approved by EUI/CERSA, and agreed to the use and publication of data collected about the PoH DAO community for this research project.Read the paper to discover more about our findings! This document is available in English and Spanish.Ethnographic Research of Proof of Humanity DAO – Full Document of FindingsInvestigación Etnográfica de Proof of Humanity DAO Documento Completo de HallazgosFinally, feel free to express any feedback by filling up this document. [...] Read more...
• News / PodcastJanuary 29, 2023

  Overthrowing The Network State: An Initial Critique and AlternativesOverthrowing The Network State: An Initial Critique and Alternatives The first episode podcast series “Overthrowing The Network State” has finally been released. Hosted by The Blockchain Socialist and Primavera de Filippi, this series takes a deep dive into the world of Balaji Srinivasan’s latest book, “Overthrowing The Network State“. In this first episode, Primavera and The Blockchain Socialist provide a quick overview of Balaji Srinivasan and some of his book’s key concepts while sharing their initial objections and criticisms. This podcast series aims not just to offer critique but also to provide a distinct conceptual framework for understanding why some readers might find the book appealing.Listen to the first episode of « Overthrowing The Network State » by clicking here! [...] Read more...
• News / researchDecember 13, 2022

  Report on blockchain technology & legitimacyReport on blockchain technology & legitimacy Dr. Primavera De Filippi, Dr. Morshed Mannan, Jack Henderson, Tara Merk, Sofia Cossar, Kelsie Nabben This report synthesizes the insights explored within the ERC BlockchainGov reading group on “Legitimacy in Blockchain,” taking place bi-weekly from July 2021 until June 2022. The report investigates the role of legitimacy in blockchain systems from descriptive, conceptual, and normative perspectives. It summarizes the discussions and provides recommendations concerning the role of legitimacy in blockchain systems drawing from the talks held by the reading group. The organizers of the reading group are part of several initiatives, including a five-year-long (2021-2026), EU-funded (ERC grant of €2M) on ‘Blockchain Gov’ at the CNRS (France)/EUI (Italy), a Future Fellowship project funded by the Australian Research Council on ‘Cooperation through Code’ at RMIT (Australia) and the Coalition of Automated Legal Applications (COALA). The “Legitimacy in Blockchain” report is one of a series that includes the “Blockchain Technology, Trust, and Confidence” report (De Filippi et al., 2022) and “Blockchain Technology & Polycentric Governance” report (De Filippi et al., forthcoming). RSC_REPORT_08_12_2Download [...] Read more...
• News / researchDecember 13, 2022

  Blockchain Technology, Trust & ConfidenceBlockchain Technology, Trust & Confidence Primavera de Filippi, Morshed Mannan, Wessel Reijers, Paula Berman, Jack Henderson Reinterpreting Trust in a Trustless system?   ABSTRACT This report provides an in-depth analysis of the theoretical foundations of the concepts of trust and confidence and their correlation to the notions of risk, agency and legitimacy. These theoretical underpinnings are thereafter applied to permissionless blockchains, in order to identify how the foundational nature of the technology lends itself to bridging traditional paradigms in generating greater trust and confidence amongst users. We first review the literature which distinguishes the concept of trustfrom confidence before turning to major scholarly contributions on interpersonal trust, system trust and trust in technology. This literature has been examined through the lens of a multi-disciplinary readinggroup, which subsequently brings to bear practical and philosophical considerations in the use of blockchain technology in the modern world. The report concludes by providing the key areas in which trust can be reinforced, identifies the limitations of traditional factors as a measure for building trust with a decentralised and pseudonymous environment and clearly defines the differing levels of trust and confidence which are required within an on-chain and off-chain governance structure and its nexus to engendering legitimacy. HIIG_DP_2022-3_DE-FILIPPI-etal-1Download     [...] Read more...
• Events / News / PressAugust 14, 2022

  The first issue of the Blockchaingov Newsletter is out!We are excited to announce that the 1 st issue of the newsletter is out!Check this out if you’re interested in our recent research in the field of blockchain! Newly published papers, events, conferences and so much more! We believe in the power of #community and that knowledge should be shared and multiplied. This newsletter aims to provide updates on the projects, conferences, and events that our team members take part in. We are excited to share this first newsletter issue that we plan to publish each month. We are open to collaborations, and feedback and we are also hiring! Hope you like the material we prepared for you! Click here to read the first issue of the Blockchaingov news!  You can click on the button bellow to subscribe to the newsletter! Subscribe to BlockchainGov News! Facebook Twitter LinkedIn [...] Read more...
• Articles / Books / News / Publications / ReportsAugust 6, 2022

  New Academic Papers Alert!New Academic Papers Alert ! De Filippi, P, Mannan, M. presentation of “The BlockchainGov Report on Trust and Confidence in Blockchain Technology”, in the framework of the EUI Tech Cluster research seminar series. European University Institute. 18 May 2022. Florence. Italy     Our team is involved in a variety of research projects, focus groups and initiatives that aim to explore challenges of the blockchain technology. Here are some of the recently published selected papers authored by our members, advisors and affiliates:   1. De Filippi, P., Poux, P., Deffains, B. (2022) “MEV ou la tragédie des blockchains en tant que communs, in Terminal. (forthcoming) 2. Rennie, E., Zargham, M., Tan, J., Miller, L., Abbott, J., Nabben, K., De Filippi, P. (2022) “Towards a participatory digital ethnography of blockchain governance.” 3. Reijers, W., Orgad, L., De Filippi, P. (2022) “The Rise of Cybernetic Citizenship” in Citizenship Studies, Special Issue on “Digital Citizenship in the Post-Pandemic Urban Realm. 4. De Filippi, P., Mannan, M., Reijers, W. (2022) “The Alegality of Blockchain Technology”, in Policy & Society, special issue: “The Policy Dilemmas of Blockchain”. 5. De Filippi, P., Leiter, A. (2021) “Blockchain in Outer Space” in American Journal of International Law (AJIL) Unbound, special issue: “The Global Governance Implications of Blockchain”   [...] Read more...
• Blog posts / PublicationsDecember 6, 2021

  1st Meeting of ERC BlockchainGov Project1st Meeting of ERC BlockchainGov Project After introductions, the agenda included sessions on Legitimacy, Outreach & Policy, OpEds, a potential documentary, PhD Consultancy, and multiple sessions on theory concerning the following topics: Blockchain, Coercion & Legitimacy: Dyzenhaus, David. 1997. “Legality and Legitimacy: Refractions from Weimar” Decentralized/Polycentric governance: Aligica, Paul D., and Vlad Tarko. 2012. “Polycentricity: From Polanyi to Ostrom, and Beyond.” Blockchain and Commons-based governance: Grisel, Florian. 2021. “How Migrations Affect Private Orders: Norms and Practices in the Fishery of Marseille“ Constitutional guarantees in blockchain tech: Suzor, Nicolas. 2018. “Digital Constitutionalism: Using the Rule of Law to Evaluate the Legitimacy of Governance by Platforms.” Stay tuned to learn more about our new scholars! From left to right: Primavera De Filippi, Morshed Mannan, Tara Merk, Philemon Poux, Vashti Maharaj (virtual), Sofia Cossar (virtual), Jamilya Kamalova (virtual), Nathan Vandy, Yann Aouidef, Simona Ramos, Wessel Reijers. [...] Read more...
• Conference Presentations / EventsDecember 6, 2021

  How to Govern Decentralized Digital Public Goods? Blockchains Between Innovation and RegulationHow to Govern Decentralized Digital Public Goods? Blockchains Between Innovation and Regulation De Filippi, P. “How to govern decentralized digital public goods? Blockchains between innovation and regulation” panel presentation at the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) 2021, organised by the United Nations. 6 December 2021 (online). [...] Read more...
• Conference Organizations / EventsDecember 2, 2021

  European Crypto-Initiative (EUCI) WorkshopCo-organiser of the first European Crypto-Initiative (EUCI) Workshop, organised in collaboration with COALA and the BlockchainGov project of the European Research Council (ERC). December 2-3, Citizen Corner Brussels, Belgium. [...] Read more...
• Conference Organizations / EventsDecember 2, 2021

  1st Meeting of ERC BlockchainGov ProjectOrganiser of the 1st Meeting of European Research Council BlockchainGov Project, December 4-5, 2021, CERSA – Paris, France  [...] Read more...
• Conference Organizations / EventsNovember 30, 2021

  Cryptogovernance WorkshopCo-organiser of the Cryptogovernance Workshop, organized by Wharton’s Blockchain & Digital Asset Project at University of Pennsylvania. 30 November 2021 (online) [...] Read more...
• Misc / TeachingNovember 28, 2021

  Smart Contracts & Legal ContractsDe Filippi, P., Guest Lecture: “Smart Contracts & Legal Contracts” at Fordham Law School (1 hour) as part of the “Securities” course, run by Donna Redel. [...] Read more...
• Misc / TeachingNovember 28, 2021

  The Economic Impact of BlockchainDe Filippi, P., Module 3: Deep Dive Blockchain – Unit 0: The Economic Impact of Blockchain at DT2 Invest Massive Open Online Course (MOOC). Online course sponsored by the European Commission, developed by France Digitale. [...] Read more...
• Misc / TeachingNovember 28, 2021

  Role of Platform Cooperatives at the Base of the PyramidMannan, M., Guest Lecture: “Role of Platform Cooperatives at the Base of the Pyramid” for the Online Course “Platform Cooperatives Now!” at The New School, New York City & Mondragon University, Spain (1 hour) [...] Read more...
• Events / Focus GroupsNovember 28, 2021

  Platform Cooperative Working GroupDe Filippi, P., Mannan, M., “Platform Cooperative Working Group” at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University [...] Read more...
• Events / Focus GroupsNovember 28, 2021

  Technological Change & SocietyDe Filippi, P., Mannan, M., Research cluster on “Technological Change & Society” (EUI) [...] Read more...
• Events / Focus GroupsNovember 28, 2021

  Alternative Data Futures: Cooperative Principles, Data Trusts, and the Digital EconomyDe Filippi, P., Mannan, M., Research sprint on “Alternative Data Futures: Cooperative Principles, Data Trusts, and the Digital Economy” at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society (October-December 2021) [...] Read more...
• Conference Presentations / EventsNovember 18, 2021

  Blockchain & the LawDe Filippi, P. “Blockchain & the Law”, presentation at the EUIPO Observatory “Impact of Technology” expert group workshop. 18 November 2021 (online) [...] Read more...
• Conference Presentations / EventsNovember 17, 2021

  Distributed Autonomous Organizations and CooperativesDe Filippi, P. “Distributed Autonomous Organizations and Cooperatives” presentation at the conference #TheNewCommonSense: Forging the Cooperative Digital Economy, organised by the Platform Cooperativism consortium. 17 November 2021 (online). [...] Read more...
• Conference Presentations / EventsNovember 16, 2021

  Personhood, Blockchain & LegitimacyDe Filippi, P. “Personhood, Blockchain & Legitimacy” panel presentation for the RadicalXchange TV series. 16 November 2021 (online) [...] Read more...
• Interviews / MiscNovember 15, 2021

  The Ethics of Social Credit SystemsPodcast appearance on Philosophical Disquisitions – The Ethics of Social Credit Systems (26/02/2021) [...] Read more...
• Interviews / MiscNovember 15, 2021

  Blockchain et Organizzazioni decentralizzatePodcast appearance on Idee SottoSopra — Blockchain et Organizzazioni decentralizzate (18/04/2021) [...] Read more...
• Interviews / MiscNovember 15, 2021

  Art Crytpo : la porte est ouverte, elle ne va pas se refermerInterview for an article on “Art Crytpo : la porte est ouverte, elle ne va pas se refermer” in the online media Libération (22/03/2021) [...] Read more...
• Interviews / MiscNovember 15, 2021

  Pourquoi les NFT envahissent le monde de l’artInterview for an article on “Pourquoi les NFT envahissent le monde de l’art” in Beaux Arts Magazine (19/04/2021) [...] Read more...