Please describe your proposed solution.

We will develop DAOGEN Master, an AI assistant to drive education and adoption of DAO technology, using the Summon Platform for the initial prototype.

Key Features:

• Interacts with users through unique avatar identities to provide personalized learning
• Utilizes conversation memories (LangChain), vector memories, knowledge graphs, and entity memories to adapt content
• Trained on expert DAO curriculum and generates dynamic new choose-your-own-adventure content to drive DAO voting interactions
• Covers guides on wallets, governance actions, DAO concepts, completing DAO tasks
• Users earn Squircle, in-game crypto, for completing quests
• Measures progress through usage, completion, surveys, assessments
• Refines quests and content based on metrics to optimize learning

Development Approach:

• Leverages team's experience building conversational AI and blockchain systems
• Addresses technical challenges in integrating AI memory technologies and game mechanics
• Conducts extensive testing to evaluate and iterate on learning outcomes

Impact:

• Provides a unique on-ramp to experiential DAO learning through gamification

How does your proposed solution address the challenge and what benefits will this bring to the Cardano ecosystem?

This proposal directly addresses the Catalyst challenge of building tools and platforms for DAO creation and management on Cardano. The DAOGEN Master AI assistant specifically targets the aims of providing superior DAO education experiences compared to other platforms.

By leveraging AI, gaming, and blockchain technology, DAOGEN Master will provide an interactive portal for hands-on learning about core DAO concepts. This will benefit the Cardano ecosystem by:

• Driving adoption and usage of Cardano-based DAO platforms like the Summon Platform. We estimate onboarding at least 500 new active Summon Platform users within 6 months of launch.
• Educating developers on integrating AI assistants with Cardano DAO infrastructure to create more intelligent, user-friendly experiences. We project sharing documentation and learnings with at least 100 developers.
• Encouraging collaboration between gaming, education, and blockchain experts to enrich the Cardano ecosystem. We aim to actively partner with 5-10 projects in these spaces.
• Showcasing Cardano's capabilities for immersive gaming experiences and real-world AI assistants, beyond just financial applications.
• Providing an easy entry point for non-blockchain experts to learn DAO concepts by doing, increasing overall understanding and adoption.

In summary, DAOGEN Master will bring new users, developers, partners, and real-world use cases to the Cardano ecosystem - establishing it as a premier hub for AI, gaming, education, and blockchain convergence.

How do you intend to measure the success of your project?

DAOGEN Master's success will be measured both quantitatively and qualitatively along key metrics:

• User adoption: We will track the number of new users onboarded onto Summon Platform after launch, with a goal of 500+ in the first 6 months.
• Engagement: We will measure active usage, quest completion rates, and progression along learning journeys for each user avatar.
• Learning outcomes: Users will complete assessments before and after quests to quantify knowledge gained about DAO concepts.
• User feedback: Surveys will gather qualitative data on users' perceived value, enjoyment, and areas for improvement.
• Developer adoption: We will monitor the number of projects that integrate our documentation and AI assistant learnings into their own DAO platforms.

These metrics will validate DAOGEN Master's real-world utility for driving adoption of Cardano for DAO infrastructure in both the short and long term. The targets are realistic based on comparable benchmarks from other blockchain edtech gaming platforms.

Broader ecosystem benefits include increased developer mindshare, new partnerships, and showcasing Cardano's capabilities - ultimately contributing to an enriched, collaborative community.

Please describe your plans to share the outputs and results of your project?

DAOGEN has already begun sharing outputs and tutorials from early development of the DAOGEN AI assistants:

• The beginnings of our open source code for the AI agent framework is available at <https://github.com/djsquircle>, allowing developers to build on top of our work.
• Developer tutorials have been published, like this post on using LangChain: <https://djsquircle.substack.com/p/langchain-101-a-daogen-chronicles>. These will continue as the project progresses.
• Project updates and demos are shared via DJ Squircle's outreach on LinkedIn and Twitter, generating interest in the DAOGEN platform.

With this proposal, we will further disseminate:

• Comprehensive documentation on the DAOGEN Master architecture, code, and integration.
• Our trained models and datasets under open licenses at Hugging Face.
• User testing results and impact measurement findings.
• Conference talks and demos to the Cardano community.

DAOGEN is committed to openness. By sharing outputs at each stage, we will empower the community to advance AI-driven DAO experiences on Cardano.

What is your capability to deliver your project with high levels of trust and accountability?

DAOGEN is led by Tony Rose, an experienced product executive with over 20 years driving innovation in emerging technology sectors. As former Head of Product for Atala PRISM at IOHK, Tony built and led the team that delivered a leading decentralized identity platform used by major enterprises.

He also founded Proof Market, navigating the startup journey to build digital trust applications like MedCreds. These ventures provided hands-on experience with blockchain technology and verifiable credentials critical for the proposed DAOGEN project.

Tony will lead product strategy for DAOGEN Master, drawing from his expertise in conversational AI, decentralized technology, and blockchain to guide development.

What are the main goals for the project and how will you validate if your approach is feasible?

Goals:

1. Develop and deploy the DAOGEN Master AI assistant capable of generating personalized quests and educational content for DAO learning.
2. Onboard 500 new active users onto the Summon Platform within 6 months post-launch to drive adoption of Cardano for DAOs.
3. Share comprehensive documentation, tutorials, and trained models with the community to enable further development.
4. Gather user feedback indicating at least 80% find the AI assistant improves understanding of DAO concepts.

Validation Approach:

• Usage data will track number of new Summon users to measure goal #2.
• Code repositories, published documentation, and workshops will validate goal #3.
• User surveys will quantify subjective opinions on learning improvement for goal #4.
• Regular demos will collect qualitative feedback on assistant utility.
• Assessments will evaluate DAO knowledge before and after use.
• Focus groups will provide insights on user experience.

This combination of quantitative and qualitative validation will ensure we achieve key success metrics across adoption, dissemination, and education goals. The project plan outlines development milestones for the conversational AI and integration.

Please provide a detailed breakdown of your project’s milestones and each of the main tasks or activities to reach the milestone plus the expected timeline for the delivery.

Milestone 1: Integrate and Customize LLM (Months 1-2, Cost: $15,000)

• Evaluate leading open source LLMs
• Fine-tune model on DAO content, creating Vector Databases, and Knowledge Graphs
• Integrate with open source orchestration layers (LangChain)
• Build basic Slack integration and DevOps pipeline

Milestone 2: Develop Initial Conversational Flow (Months 3-5, Cost: $15,000)

• Design core dialogues and narratives
• Incorporate educational content
• Develop fictional persona for assistant
• Get feedback through Slack bot

Milestone 3: Connect DAO Interactions (Months 6-8, Cost: $20,000)

• Integrate Cardano wallet transactions as LLM functions
• Incorporate basic governance actions, variations on voting as part of the game-play

Milestone 4: Gather User Feedback (Months 9-12, Cost: $10,000)

• Expand dialogues based on usage
• Share learnings publicly

Total: $60,000 USD / 207,325 ADA

Please describe the deliverables, outputs and intended outcomes of each milestone.

Milestone 1

• Deliverables: Basic Slack bot with LLM integration
• Outputs: Documentation of model selection, fine-tuning, orchestration
• Outcomes: Foundation for conversational AI assistant
• Measures: Bot functional, can respond to simple queries

Milestone 2

• Deliverables: Slack bot with dialogues and narratives
• Outputs: Dialogue frameworks, persona background content
• Outcomes: Engaging fictional character and interactions
• Measures: % of questions bot can respond to appropriately

Milestone 3

• Deliverables: Integrations with wallets, governance actions
• Outputs: Code for transactions, voting, proposals
• Outcomes: Bot enables core DAO interactions
• Measures: Successful completion of integrated tasks

Milestone 4

• Deliverables: Expanded dialogues, public learnings
• Outputs: Usage data analysis, limitations report
• Outcomes: Improved responses, informed community
• Measures: Usage growth, feedback sentiment

The goal of each milestone is to build towards an AI assistant that provides value as a DAO learning tool. Progress indicators focus on functionality, engagement, and information sharing.

Please provide a detailed budget breakdown of the proposed work and resources.

Milestone 1 - $15,000

• LLM evaluation and selection: $5,000
• Fine tuning and integration: $5,000
• Slack bot development: $3,000
• Cloud hosting & software infrastructure services: $2,000

Milestone 2 - $15,000

• Dialogue framework design: $5,000
• Persona content creation: $3,000
• Bot enhancement: $5,000
• Cloud hosting & software infrastructure services: $2,000

Milestone 3 - $20,000

• Wallet integration: $5,000
• Governance action integration: $5,000
• Testing and auditing: $5,000
• Cloud hosting & software infrastructure services: $3,000
• Marketing: $2,000

Milestone 4 - $10,000

• Dialogue expansion: $3,000
• Data analysis: $2,000
• Community sharing: $2,000
• Cloud hosting & software infrastructure services: $2,000
• Marketing: $1,000

Total: $60,000 USD / 207,325 ADA

Who is in the project team and what are their roles?

Tony Rose - Product Lead, Interim Lead Developer

20+ years experience building and launching technology products. Led team that built Atala PRISM at IOHK. Strong track record delivering complex projects. Will handle all aspects of product, development, QA, and communication.

Lead Developer - To Be Hired

Will bring on a lead developer with expertise in conversational AI and blockchain integration once initial product foundations are built.

Tony has engaged leading members of the Cardano developer community to ensure alignment and support. He will leverage the community for additional testing and feedback.

With Tony leading product and development, supplemented by a technical lead hire, the core team will have the skills needed to successfully execute the project.

How does the cost of the project represent value for money for the Cardano ecosystem?

Here are some ways this project represents strong value for money for the Cardano ecosystem:

• The $60k budget is reasonable for an early stage experimentation project to build a foundation and gather initial user feedback. Similar scope AI and blockchain MVPs often raise $100k-$300k.
• We are maximizing use of existing open source technologies like LLMs and orchestration to keep custom development costs low.
• The Slack integration avoids the need for expensive UI/UX design upfront.
• Tony is taking on multiple leadership roles (product, dev, QA) to keep team size and costs contained.
• The focus on experimentation and sharing learnings will inform many other DAO education projects on Cardano.
• Delivering an engaging onboarding experience even with limited functionality could drive platform adoption and growth.
• If successful, the assistant can later evolve into a self-sustaining model requiring little ongoing funding.

Overall, for a modest budget we are taking an efficient approach to validate capabilities and share knowledge with the Cardano community - representing strong potential ROI.