Exploring the Potential of Decentralized Autonomous Organizations for Facilitating Trustless Governance and Ownership

Abstract

This thesis examines how blockchain-based decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) can be used to govern an industry-wide blockchain solution through the establishment of trustless governance and ownership. Industries are exploring new technologies such as blockchain in an endeavor to meet requirements for transparency and traceability of their business from consumers and legislators; however, the exploration is complex to navigate. The fashion- and textile industry is one of those industries that harbor great aspirations for blockchain. The inherent complexity of blockchain and the industry itself has encouraged it to turn to industry-wide solutions. However, this entails unseen collaboration among industry actors adding to the complexity of an already challenging task. The blockchain-based DAO is a promising contender to this challenge, providing new means of decentralized and transparent governance.
Currently, there is a scarcity of literature available, and the novelty of the subject leaves few practical experiences to draw from. We address this gap by incorporating established theories and empirical data from industry actors and subject matter experts, using a design science research methodology to construct an industry-DAO core design framework. Our framework comprises seven design categories imperative for an industry-DAO. The fashion- and textile industry can leverage these design categories to establish trustless governance and ownership of an industry-wide solution. While these design categories are not exhaustive, we assert that they serve as an excellent basis for the industry to build upon. More so, we speculate that an industry-DAO is not limited to a single blockchain solution but is a promising catalyst for a collaborative Web3 ecosystem.