S.1 Ep.4 Beyond the Private Key: from Dark DAOs to Liquefaction with James Austgen & Dani Vilardell

In this episode, together with James and Dani we dive deep into the revolutionary concept of "liquefaction" and its profound implications for Web3 identity, governance, and ownership. We explore how this groundbreaking research challenges fundamental assumptions about blockchain addresses, private keys, and digital identity, while examining the emergence of Dark DAOs as anonymous voting cartels that could reshape decentralized governance forever. James Austgen is a PhD student at Cornell Tech and is advised by Professor Ari Juels. His research interests include blockchains, privacy, next-generation wallets, and TEEs. Dani Vilardell is a second year PhD student at Cornell Tech and is advised by Professor Ari Juels. With a background in mathematics and electrical engineering, his interests include Zero Knowledge Proofs, Blockchains and Privacy. James and Dani are researchers working on liquefaction, which enables the transfer of assets or privileges that are meant to be nontransferable/illiquid. Their work exposes critical vulnerabilities in current Web3 systems, from locked token mechanisms to NFT exclusivity, while also revealing new possibilities for privacy-preserving applications and cross-chain interoperability. In this episode, James and Dani share invaluable insights from their cutting-edge research on liquefaction, shedding light on vote buying, identity theft risks, and the transformative potential of programmable private key sharing. Learn about complete knowledge proofs, trusted execution environments, the ethics of identity rental, and the future of governance in a post-liquefaction world. Don't miss this comprehensive discussion that bridges cryptography, governance theory, and the evolving landscape of digital ownership. Some of the work we mention in the episode: - Austgen, J., Fàbrega, A., Allen, S., Babel, K., Kelkar, M., & Juels, A. (2023, November 1). DAO decentralization: Voting-bloc entropy, bribery, and dark DAOs (v1.0) [Preprint]. arXiv. https://arxiv.org/pdf/2311.03530 - Austgen, J., Fàbrega, A., Kelkar, M., Vilardell, D., Allen, S., Babel, K., Yu, J., & Juels, A. (2024). *Liquefaction: Privately Liquefying Blockchain Assets*. Cornell Tech. Available via: https://arxiv.org/pdf/2412.02634 - Take my Ape experiment : https://takemyape.com/ 

  Chapter Timestamps 00:00 - Intro & Teaser 02:55 - Welcome and Setup: Web3 Fragility & Liquefaction 04:46 - How Liquefaction Enhances Private Coordination 06:26 - Redefining Ownership Assumptions in Web3 08:00 - Lock Tokens & Undermining Incentives 09:59 - Dark DAOs and Vote Selling Risks 12:10 - State of Decentralization in DAOs 13:55 - Dark DAOs as Decentralized Cartels 15:17 - Identity Theft via Liquefaction 16:56 - "Take My Ape" Experiment Explained 19:39 - Renting Reputations & Board Ape Access 22:00 - Complete Knowledge as a Defensive Mechanism 24:55 - Technical Breakdown: Why TEE > MPC 27:07 - Ethical Questions of Open Sourcing Dark DAOs 28:10 - Constructive Use Cases: Treasury, Auctions, Bridges 30:15 - Overlay Smart Contracts and Interoperability 32:00 - Reputation Rental Marketplaces 34:12 - Per-Asset Policies & Selective Liquefaction 36:00 - Asset Sharing & Community Coordination 37:45 - Rethinking Governance Models 39:10 - Governance Marketplaces & Vote Monetization 41:00 - AI Delegates in DAOs: Risks and Coordination 43:00 - Ethics of Renting Identity & Credential Markets 45:00 - Final Thoughts: Future of Governance 46:50 - Quiz: One-word Governance Futures Listen to this episode on all platforms: Apple : https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/gov-futures-trailer/id1823028614?i=1000714675608 Spotify : https://open.spotify.com/show/6QRkrWmq21Z66jRJtN2UIu Follow us on X: https://x.com/gov_futures