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Crowdfunding platform Kickstarter plans to move to a "more open, collaborative, and decentralized future" as it announces integration of its main service with blockchain technology. Once the protocol is ready, the platform will switch its existing website on top of the Celo blockchain platform.
Kickstarter Switching to Celo Blockchain Platform
Kickstarter is building a crowdfunding platform on the Celo blockchain by developing an open-source protocol to create a decentralized version of its platform’s core functionality, the company said in a blog post on Wednesday.
The crowdfunding platform will reportedly transition its website on the blockchain platform next year, with the project announcing it would release a white paper “in the coming weeks.” The transition should be seamless, without affecting how users interact with the site, Kickstarter noted.
“We are entering a significant moment for alternative governance models, and we think there's an important opportunity to advance these efforts using the blockchain,” said CEO Aziz Hasan and co-founder Perry Chen in an interview.
Kickstarter said it chose Celo because of its carbon negative, Proof-of-Stake blockchain focused on minimizing environmental impact and capable of processing 7 million transactions per ton of CO2 emitted.
Kickstarter will also build a governance lab that will help direct the development of the protocol and provide independent governance for its new protocol. This will be separate from both the existing Kickstarter and its newly formed company in an effort to bring some decentralization elements. While this will involve voting rights, the crowdfunding platform did not clarify whether they would create a governance token for this purpose.
Blockchain-Based Alternative Governance Models
The crowdfunding platform noted the growth of alternative governance models and believes there is an “important opportunity to advance these efforts using the blockchain.”
Developed in 2019, Kickstarter has handled more than $6 billion of pledges for 200,000 projects and is one of the largest creator funding platforms along with Patreon and GoFundMe. At the time, the company’s closest blockchain competitors are Coil and Gitcoin, as well as specific crowdfunding DAOs such as ConstitutionDAO.