Original author: Spike @ Contributor of PermaDAO
Original editor: Lemon @ Contributor of PermaDAO
Universal Basic Income (UBI) is an economic proposition and social trend of thought that aims to provide certain economic support to every citizen regardless of their employment status. The emergence of this concept can be traced back to early economists and philosophers, who thought deeply about issues of social justice and wealth distribution.
At the end of the 18th century, the philosopher Thomas Paine proposed a similar concept. In his book The Common Good, he advocated ensuring that peoples basic needs are met by providing each citizen with a certain basic income. , thereby achieving social fairness and justice. Advocates for equal distribution of the countrys resources and wealth to every citizen. He believed that people should share the countrys wealth and not just rely on their labor income.
Subsequently, in the 1960s and 1970s, American economists Nils Alstrup Dahl and James Tobin proposed similar concepts respectively. They advocate alleviating poverty and inequality by providing a fixed cash payment to all citizens.
By the beginning of the 20th century, economist Keynes also put forward a similar point of view. He believes that the government should stimulate the economy and promote consumption and investment by providing basic income. Keynes believed that such policies could reduce social and economic fluctuations and maintain social operations in a more robust manner.
Over time, the concept of UBI has gradually attracted the attention of more scholars and social activists. Since World War II, the concept of UBI has gradually received more attention and research. Some countries and regions, such as Finland, Canada, Kenya, etc., have begun to implement some pilot projects to explore the feasibility and effect of UBI.
For example, the construction of the welfare state system in Europe, as well as the minimum living security allowance, unemployment insurance and subsistence allowances in my country, can all be regarded as part of related practices. However, UBI and the welfare system in the usual sense are also slightly different, as will be discussed below. Narrative.
Among them, one of the earliest implementation attempts was the “Mincome” (Manitoba Basic Annual Income Experiment) project in Manitoba, Canada. The project, conducted between 1974 and 1979, was designed to test the effects of giving low-income families a certain basic income subsidy. The findings show that the program does help alleviate poverty and improve social welfare. However, due to changes in government and financial pressures, the project was canceled after a few years.
Another early implementation attempt is the Permanent Fund Dividend program in Alaska, USA. The program, which began in 1982, provides each eligible resident with a certain basic income by allocating a portion of Alaskas oil revenues to residents. The program is still running today, paying hundreds of dollars in dividends to residents each year.
In addition, the sovereign wealth funds of the rich Gulf countries and Norway are also sadly regarded as UBI practices in a broad sense. For example, the Norwegian Sovereign Wealth Fund was established in 1996 and currently has assets of US$1.6 trillion. Based on 2019 prices, the average Each Norwegian can receive a share of US$180,000.
The concept of UBI was truly free from the influence of other factors and was included in serious academic discussions as a separate economic proposition. It was not really included in the discussion until the 1970s, that is, when government policies were really started to be designed according to UBI-related ideas. .
For example, European, American and Third World countries have made attempts, but their overall scale is small and it is difficult to have a lasting impact:
Canada: Canada is one of the first countries in the world to introduce a UBI pilot project. In 2017, Ontario implemented a pilot project called the Basic Income Safety Net to provide 4,000 low-income families with a basic income of up to CAD$1,330 per month.
Finland: Finland conducted a pilot project called the Basic Income Experiment between 2017 and 2018. The project gives 2,000 randomly selected unemployed people a basic income of 560 euros per month, whether or not they find a job. The goal of the pilot project is to test the impact of UBI on employment and welfare systems. However, the project ended in 2018 without a clear conclusion.
Kenya: A project in Kenya called the Basic Income Pilot was launched in 2016 by the non-profit organization GiveDirectly. The project started in 2016 and provided a basic income to some villages in Kenya for two years. The goal of this project is to test the impact of UBI in poor areas and its potential effects on individuals and communities.
United States: The city of Stockton, California launched a pilot project called the Stockton Economic Security Project in 2019 to provide 125 families with a basic income of $500 per month.
At this stage, it is mainly about the exploration of UBI. The large-scale spread of the COVID-19 epidemic will be needed to truly form an effective practice. In this context, the actual quantitative easing by European and American governments and financial sectors has been spawned. Secondly, the impact of AI on human beings Productivity replacement.
The two complement each other. The epidemic has led to a reduction in social financing costs. The living space of a large number of people has been compressed into rooms and communities, and online has become a truly available production and living space. The large-scale development of AI has not only benefited from social financing costs, but also found It has formed a real user group and begun to enter the practical stage.
In March 2020, the Federal Reserve launched an unlimited quantitative easing policy. Subsequently, major economies including the European Central Bank, the Bank of Japan, and the Bank of England chose to create inflation to resist the economic crisis. Huge amounts of liquidity appeared in the market, but at the same time , the asset gap between individuals and enterprises, and between small and micro enterprises and listed companies is also increasing.
Image caption: Trends in Fed policy interest rates before and after the epidemic
Image source: please visitLink
The size of the Federal Reserves assets has also expanded from about $4.2 trillion in March 2020 to about $8.35 trillion in September 2021, an increase of nearly 100%. The consequence is that AI is really burned out under the rising inflation.
The AI here refers to OpenAI. As its name suggests, OpenAI was originally a defense move against Googles acquisition of DeepMind. It hopes to use open source to make AI serve mankind. In 2016, it first received an investment of US$120,000 from YC. Before Altman joined and became CEO in 2019, OpenAIs donations and financing were not high. The turning point occurred in July 2019, when Microsoft invested US$1 billion in it for the first time, and then invested again in 2021. Of course, the largest amount will be in 2023. A huge $10 billion investment in January.
It can be understood that OpenAI is becoming increasingly closed and no longer follows open source standards. However, it has truly bet on the right direction of LLM and has become the first general artificial intelligence model (AGI). However, its revenue in 2022 is only US$28 million, and it is still in a state of continuous decline. At a loss.
Another idea of Altman is Worldcoin, which not only creates a personal identity system offline, known as personality certification, but then puts it on the chain to create a UBI economic system that is enjoyed by all and shares profits together. This also combines UBI and blockchain. The chains are officially bound together.
However, it should be noted that Worldcoin cannot completely ensure the security of collected user data. It adopts a distributor model rather than a direct company model. Although it will ensure that the data scanned by Worldcoin hardware will be deleted, this is essentially It is a commitment rather than a technical credibility.
In 2023, hackers stole the login credentials of the Worldcoin operator responsible for registering new users, allowing the hackers to view internal information, not to mention reselling user data for profit. For example, before the Worldcoin mainnet went online, There is a phenomenon where middlemen acquire the data of local people in Cambodia or Africa and then sell it to professional hairdressing studios.
But in any case, the practice of Worldcoin has popularized the concept of UBI on a large scale and is deeply rooted in the hearts of the people. It has at least popularized users at the global level. People can equally participate in the value transfer of the global network. In the human era after the great voyage, this It is still a feat that can be called the first time.
Returning to the recognition of the universality of human values is the greatest value orientation of UBI.
UBI challenges and controversies
UBI (Universal Basic Income), as a social welfare policy, has some potential benefits. First, UBI could provide economic security and alleviate poverty and inequality. By giving everyone a certain basic income, UBI can ensure that everyone has enough to live on, thus reducing poverty in society. In addition, UBI can alleviate income inequality and make society more equitable.
Second, UBI can promote innovation and entrepreneurship. Since everyone has some financial security, they can more freely pursue their dreams and entrepreneurial opportunities without worrying about financial risks. This will stimulate peoples innovation and creativity and promote social progress and development.
Finally, UBI can also simplify the social welfare system and reduce administrative costs. Traditional welfare systems are often cumbersome and complex and require significant administrative resources to manage and distribute. UBI integrates everyone into the same system, simplifying welfare management and reducing administrative costs.
However, UBI, as a brand new social welfare model, although it has many advantages and potential, it also faces some challenges and controversies:
Fiscal feasibility: The implementation of UBI requires significant financial expenditures, including issues of funding sources and allocation. Some people worry that UBI will lead to fiscal deficits and inflation because funds will need to be diverted from other social welfare programs to support UBI.
Motivation to work: Proponents of UBI believe that giving everyone a basic income can improve social equity and people’s quality of life. However, some people worry that UBI will weaken peoples motivation to work, causing more people to rely on welfare and be unwilling to work.
Inequality issues: Implementation of UBI may lead to inequality in wealth and income. Some people worry that UBI will give more income to the rich and relatively little help to the poor. In addition, UBI may not solve other social problems, such as inequalities in education and medical resources.
Social Impact: The implementation of UBI is likely to have far-reaching impacts on society. Some worry that UBI could lead to social unrest and changes in attitudes toward work. In addition, UBI may have unpredictable effects on the labor market and economic structure.
At this point, it can be summarized as follows. The concept and practice of UBI have not really been widely popularized and recognized. Even in developed countries, its practice is based on the social background of the epidemic. Once the epidemic is out of the epidemic, the Federal Reserve resolutely fights against inflation. Restore real socio-economic growth.
However, blockchain is a product that is naturally compatible with UBI. Especially from the perspective of DAO, global collaboration, division of labor matching, smart contracts and voting system management can all play an important role in promoting UBI. Below, PermaDAO is used as an example. For example, try to think about how the future UBI model should work.
The future development direction of UBI
Blockchain technology will change the operating model of UBI.
With the continuous advancement of technologies such as AI, Web3 and DID, UBI will be reshaped from the technical paradigm.
Blockchain technology innovation will change UBIs data collection and analysis methods. Traditional UBI practices mainly rely on centralized institutions, such as governments, enterprises or NGOs, to assign specific tasks. However, blockchain technology can use DID to verify peoples identities and maintain accounts and maintain accounts by recording workload on the chain. Consensus can change the chronic diseases that were unsustainable in the past.
AI will introduce machines into all aspects of human life for the first time. In ALtmans view, one of the important trends is that AI is powerful enough to meet the material needs of all mankind. Therefore, the fundamental problem is not to create more material increments, but to distribute wealth in a gentler way. This is the case with AI. , which is based on algorithms and follows complete rationality, and what humans need is to ensure that their workload is recognized by AI.
Web3 will change UBIs workflow and service model. Traditional UBI practices cannot solve the problem of fund sources and flows, that is, the long-standing phenomenon of transfer payments from developed countries to developing countries. People in developing countries cannot participate in the supply side, but can only serve as passive recipients of donors. Once the funds If the chain breaks, the UBI model will quickly go bankrupt, and Web3 will treat the workload of any group of people equally, no longer distinguishing between region, gender, and race.
Blockchain technology innovation will have a profound impact on the development of UBI. By changing the way data is collected and analyzed, AI will completely revolutionize the relationship between people and material production, which will truly give UBI the possibility of large-scale adoption in practice.
PermaDAO started in the Arweave ecosystem with the purpose of promoting Arweaves data growth and application. However, in long-term practice, it has gradually formed its own internal and external economic circulation system. We have rethought the future goals of PermaDAO, hoping to provide participants with services that are not inferior to Financial incentives to work full-time.
In the current classification of PermaDAO, it can be used as a whole or as the underlying infrastructure of other DAOs. For example, it can be divided into multiple internal guilds such as content guild, development guild and product promotion guild. It can also be used as a DAO as a service. (DAAS) is provided to other organizations, and both parties share data and profits. They can operate separately or promote simultaneously, which is extremely flexible.
Gradually implement the decentralization plan: PermaDAO will adopt the strategy of gradually implementing the on-chain strategy to gradually expand the ecological coverage and incentive amount. This can not only reduce financial pressure, but also promote the continuous innovation of DAO;
Mechanism adjustment and financial reform: The UBI plan implemented by PermaDAO is not achieved overnight. It requires gradual financial adjustment and mechanism reform, such as providing services for other DAOs. The latest case is to cooperate with the cross-chain protocol MAP to build MAPDAO to reduce the potential increase in revenue sources and reallocate financial resources;
Integration of the economic incentive system: In the practice of PermaDAO, multiple proposals have been formed, involving content, product promotion, PR and other aspects. Different from the simple division of roles within the DAO organization, PermaDAO encourages DAO members to establish closer relationships with the outside world. cooperative relationship, and provide appropriate economic incentives, rather than stopping at the internal cycle of the DAO;
User and training system construction: PermaDAOs workload is strictly linked to member contributions, so members need to have a good grasp of the rules. In view of this, PermaDAO has a complete process from user onboard, workload accumulation to incentive distribution, among which onboard and Corresponding tools have been developed for incentive distribution, which can be deployed and migrated with one click, and have the potential to become public goods;
Establishment of monitoring and evaluation mechanism: In order to ensure the effective implementation and operation of the UBI mechanism, PermaDAO has established a monitoring and evaluation mechanism. This will help identify problems in a timely manner and take appropriate measures to ensure the long-term sustainability of UBI. For example, for content text, the correction mechanism will continue to be opened, and incentive and punishment mechanisms will be established to implement a long-term detection system.
In PermaDAOs vision, the ideal future situation is that people can get the same level of economic income in DAO as in traditional positions, but at the same time they can maintain their independence and quit and join at any time.
We can use a case to illustrate PermaDAOs economic incentive distribution model. Alice hopes to contribute to the promotion of Arweave, then Ailce can choose any administrator to complete onboard and register her everPay wallet address.
Later, Alice found that she could take on the task of translating articles for the Translation Association. After successfully receiving the articles, Alice completed her first workload. Bob would review the accuracy and fluency of Alices translation and give corresponding improvement suggestions. Alice then makes changes and Bob reviews until both parties are finished.
Finally, the workload of the article is recorded, and Alice will automatically receive the corresponding incentives after the settlement period.
It can be found that the entire process is completely visible and traceable. It is no longer a black box operation of a centralized organization, but focuses on how to promote the faster and more efficient completion of the corresponding workload.
in conclusion
The development of UBI is fundamentally consistent with the Eastern ideal of world unity and Western utopian thought. After it was incorporated into serious philosophical discussions and then developed into realistic economic propositions, part of its ideas were absorbed into the welfare system. widely recognized.
However, the operating model of UBI itself is difficult to maintain in the long term. The main problem is the source of income. In other words, UBI needs its own hematopoietic ability in order to get rid of the charity of the rich or developed countries and operate independently.
Under the influence of the epidemic, quantitative easing policies in Europe and the United States have stimulated AGIs such as OpenAI. For the first time, the comparison between humans and machines has become inverted. If AI can complete most of human work, then the value of human beings should move towards Where to find it?
Most peoples answer may be hedonism, but it is also possible that in a society with highly developed material production, labor will become peoples first need. Of course, this will require very long-term development to achieve.
Especially in the practice of PermaDAO, although it has not yet been freed from external economic support, its economic potential should not be ignored. Compared with the traditional corporate system, PermaDAO is flatter and more efficient, especially when it begins to export to the outside world. The completed DAO tool itself can also generate ongoing positive externalities as part of the service agreement.
