Carmelo Ippolito, a top researcher in decentralized finance (DeFi), is fueling dynamic conversations on the intersection of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs). His vision is driving the future development of these trailblazing technologies. His work is focused on realizing the promise of composable intelligence. He imagines a future where AI agents and human voters pool their resources and expertise in these DAO-governed systems. As a developer of the incentive structures of OlympusDAO, Ippolito is a member of the Forbes Council. His ideas resonate now more than ever in this new age of governance and socioeconomic upheaval.
Integrating AI into DAO Frameworks
As a research scientist at Tally, Ippolito’s research and practice centers on creating frameworks that would enable AI agents to operate within DAOs. Additionally, these AI models can propose treasury management strategies, like automated selling and buying of the treasury’s underlying assets, to be examined and ratified by human voters. This collaborative vision aims to merge the data processing power of AI with the mindful oversight and values-based discretion of human decision-makers.
Ippolito’s prototypes address AI as an implementation tool, and show us how AI can complement and augment current governance structures. By applying AI to some of the more advanced tasks involved with treasury management, DAOs can make the most of their resources while effectively informing their decision-making journey. This integration raises significant questions regarding the future of work. Beyond that, it points out the shifts between human and machine roles inside new decentralized organizations.
According to his research, this third generation of governance will be characterized by a complementarity between human and artificial forms of intelligence. This new approach stands to make our organizations more efficient, transparent, and adaptable.
The Promise of Decentralized Intelligence
Ippolito believes that the future of intelligence will not be served by centralized systems but rather, composable, decentralized networks. Most importantly, he argued that DAOs are the best structure for aligning intelligence with incentives and agency with transparency. This alignment between government and private interests is key in making sure AI is developed and deployed responsibly and with public accountability.
AI doesn’t just need more power; it needs better structure. DAOs offer a way to align intelligence with incentive, agency with transparency. - Carmelo Ippolito
Ippolito’s vision underscores how collaborative, coordinated governance will be essential for integrating AI development and usage within DAOs. Through better alignment of incentives and increased transparency, DAOs can make significant use of AI while working to reduce associated risks. This approach could lead to a new era of decentralized intelligence, where AI agents work collaboratively with humans to achieve common goals.
Ippolito's Vision for the Future
Carmelo Ippolito’s practice is not merely academic, but deeply rooted in practical applications and real-world implementations. His contributions to OlympusDAO and his ongoing research at Prometheus Labs demonstrate his commitment to building and testing these new governance models. Further information about his work can be found on his personal website (https://www.carmeloippolito.com/) and Wikipedia page (https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carmelo%5BIppolito).
Ippolito views AI/DAOs convergence as a huge opportunity. He hopes it will help inspire the development of organizations that are more resilient, efficient, and equitable. His work goes against the grain of many long-held notions within the governance community. It does provide us a preview into a future where distributed intelligence impacts the design of our economies and societies.
