By 2100, one-fifth of the global population is predicted to be aged between 65 years or older. To solve this profound problem of the socio-economic strain on societies due to aging, Tyler Golato and Paul Kohlhaas, co-founders of Molecule, created VitaDAO. This Berlin-based company aims to fund research in longevity science to extend humans’ lifespan through a decentralized governance model.
The pillars of VitaDAO’s thought are researching, financing, and transparently commercializing longevity therapeutics. It is a web3-based decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) that establishes direct contact with individuals or other organizations invested in researching or developing longevity products. To govern, curate, and monetize the intellectual property (IP) rights and data assets, the company utilizes Non-fungible Tokens (NFTs) such as EIP-721 and EIP-1155. The company operates with its clients or members through a smart contract on the Ethereum blockchain.
https://twitter.com/vita_dao/status/1436431698548432901?s=20
The architecture of the VitaDAO vision
The company believes that the future of the biopharma industry will be “transparent, collaborative, and open source.” The present model of the biopharma industry prevents the public and patients from having any ownership in the industry. The industry contains all the IP rights, research data, and domain-specific know-how. With a decentralized approach, VitaDAO wants to break the chain and bring every involved party to the foreground.
The company wants to become an open global cooperative that anyone can join. This reminds me of a decentralized business model on which the India Coffee House chain operates. As a retort to the racial discrimination policies during the time of British India, an idea of an “India Coffee House” was brewing in Madras and Calcutta. The chain’s first outlet was opened in 1977 in Mumbai. This is a special coffee chain because it is run by 13 Indian societies and is known as a workers cooperative.
A worker’s cooperative is more like a theory than a model. Here, the employees own, curate, and govern the company and its branches. With NFTs, DAOs, financial engineering tools such as algorithmic automated market makers (AMMs), VitaDAO wants to extend the dialogue on longevity globally.
Community, tokens, and commercialization
The core principle of this company is to form a global community that uses VITA tokens to become a part of the commercial process. You could be anyone and buy VITA tokens of the company, and in turn, you will be required to contribute in terms of work, funds, other resources such as data and IP. VITA is the company’s native currency, and it allows you to curate and govern the assets and research of VitaDAO. You can also become a part of their Discord community and get involved in the discussions.
The company will own the data assets, IP rights, and research outputs from the R&D teams it is funding. They have also kept room for people to become working group members. You can apply to join as a working group member, which would be based on your experience and expertise. In cases where a working group member is being paid, the payment will be made via VITA tokens, ETH, cash, or other investment schemes.
Networking
All the networks that the company starts connecting to will work based on their smart contract. The smart contract allows the company to own IPs such as patents, R&D data assets, and treasury funds, including unissued VITA tokens. They also plan to grow a portfolio of IP and data assets, which will be made available or monetized via the marketplace.
The rest of the communities get to guide the decision-making process. The funding provided by VitaDAO to projects or research proposals will reduce the funding decision time and bring researchers together on one platform.
YouTube: Welcome to VitaDAO | Longevity meets Blockchain
Photo credits: The feature image has been taken by Matteo Vistocco. The infographic has been created by the author for TechAcute.
Sources: Molecule / Sridevi Nambiar (Culture Trip)
