but also Stan should weigh in with what sort of support I3 can offer new DAC devs
It is our duty, nay, our glorious mission, to support DAC developers every way we can to grow the industry and produce value for holders of any of the BitShares family of DACs.
What BitShares can do to help will vary with what a developer needs and our available funding reserves - which get replenished every time a new DAC is launched that honors AGS-donated PTS. So, if reserves are fully committed a some point in time, just wait till the next successful DAC launch generates the resources to start whatever next project is at the top of the queue.
Then work to get your project to the top of that queue.
Bring us your business plan and win the hearts and minds of our community and you could win our support in incubating your new company. What’s that include? Well, there are many things BitShares
could provide depending upon the nature of the help your new startup may need. For example:
- A stipend/grant to work on your idea full time for a period long enough to get it up and running.
- Legal help to set up your company in its chosen favorable jurisdiction.
- Fully equipped office space in our incubator at the Virginia Tech Corporate Research Center.
- Forum and web site support while you build you own base of supporters.
- Crypto-savvy legal, accounting, financial and tax support.
- Use of our trusted escrow services while you are building your own reputation.
- Consulting with Dan “bytemaster” Larimer and our team of innovators.
- Help with finding opportunities to speak at a major conference.
- Promotional support integrated with our own global marketing campaign.
Here are some of the evaluation criteria that might apply. What others have we missed?
Business model. How does your DAC make money for its shareholders?
Technical approach. What are the underlying technologies you will use?
Regulatory environment. Have you selected a favorable legal jurisdiction?
Team Qualifications. Does your proposed company have what it takes to succeed?
Diversity. Does your company bring participation from other regions of the globe.
Popularity. How much donation-backed grass-roots support do you have?
Here's how to get started:
- Start a discussion thread in our forum where you explain your idea to everyone.
- Commit to honor the BitShares Social Consensus as your first posting there.
- Explain your qualifications, resources and the kind of start-up help you are seeking.
- Attend a Mumble session with bytemaster to discuss your ideas.
Then work to build support for your project as the next one BitShares chooses to sponsor. Delegates will play a key role in this activity, since some of them may choose to use their "smart spigots" to contribute to your grass-roots funding war chest. Supporting popular developers is a great way for BitShares Delegates to stay elected. (And it helps to decentralize funding decisions throughout the BitShares community.)
BitShares is also ready to partner with third party developers who may not need any of the above, but still want to work with this community. FreeTrade's Lotto Shares DAC is such an example. He has honored the BitShares Social Consensus and asked for no assistance. But we are happy to assist any way that we can. For example, we have reached out to discuss a joint marketing promotion with him if and when he thinks the time is right.
So, you see, there is a full spectrum of ways to use the BitShares community as a launch platform for your new DACs. There will be times, like May-June 2014, when we must focus all our energies on getting a specific product launched. There will be other times, like March-April 2014, when BitShares will focus more energies on launching new products (and new developers!)
So the key is to get your idea to be well-known and well-loved before the next round of resources become available as the current round is launched.
Remember, the
primary purpose of BitShares is to build a decentralized community of developers who will then build and release and operate and support all kinds of insanely great DACs. BitShares doesn't build DACs, it builds
DAC developers and the
tools and resources they need to be successful.