DAO

A DAO, or decentralized autonomous organization, is a group that coordinates decisions and resources through blockchain-based rules rather than a traditional management structure. In many DAOs, members use governance tokens to propose changes, vote on decisions, and manage a shared treasury. Smart contracts can help enforce certain actions automatically, such as releasing funds after a vote passes, but people still create proposals, debate options, and participate in governance.

DAOs matter because they offer a way for online communities, protocols, and investment groups to make decisions transparently and across borders. They are commonly used to govern decentralized finance protocols, fund public goods, manage NFT projects, or coordinate contributor work. For example, a lending protocol might use a DAO to let token holders vote on fee changes or which assets to support. Compared with a company board meeting, a DAO vote is often visible on-chain and open to a wider set of participants, though voter apathy, token concentration, and unclear legal status can still be challenges.