A discussion with Nadia Asparouhova on public goods and peer production, exploring the history of philanthropy and different approaches to funding models. Insights into wealth booms in tech and crypto, the dynamics of peer production, and the role of intrinsic vs extrinsic rewards. The evolving landscape of public goods provisioning, innovative philanthropic funding models, and the intersection of open source communities and crypto. Exploring the research methodology and tools for thought in the realm of public goods and peer production.
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insights INSIGHT
Top-Down Cultural Production
Nadia Asparouhova is interested in the top-down cultural production shaped by private individuals.
She sees philanthropy as risk capital for public goods, similar to venture capital for private goods.
insights INSIGHT
Wealth Booms and Philanthropy
Wealth booms decouple individuals from needing to generate money, allowing them to explore positive world impacts.
This can lead to exploring philanthropy, regardless of profit potential.
insights INSIGHT
Tech Wealth's Unique Focus
Tech wealth is unique due to its focus on young founders and meritocracy.
This belief suggests that finding top talent and focusing them on problems can disrupt established industries.
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Nadia Asparouhova is an independent researcher. She previously wrote about her research on open-source communities in "Working in Public", and more recently, has been researching the history of and approaches to philanthropy - which she defines with this phrase “if venture capital is risk capital for private goods, philanthropy is risk capital for public goods”.
In this conversation, we talked about public goods from this broader perspective. We talked about how previous generations have thought about this question, and how the tech ecosystem outside of crypto are grappling with this today. We talked about the second-order effects of wealth booms which have happened in both tech and crypto, how peer production happens, and the role that intrinsic versus extrinsic rewards might play in the development of crypto protocols.
Timestamps: (00:00:00) - intro (00:02:01) - working as an independent researcher (00:06:09) - understanding wealth booms in tech and crypto (00:13:01) - the unique perspectives of each successive community (00:25:46) - the right (and wrong) question to ask (00:34:41) - the landscape of public goods provisioning (00:39:22) - innovative philanthropic funding models (00:45:35) - the first wave of open source communities and crypto (00:54:42) - different classes of stakeholders (01:05:00) - research methodology and tools for thought
Into the Bytecode: - Sina Habibian on X: https://twitter.com/sinahab - Sina Habibian on Farcaster - https://warpcast.com/sinahab - Into the Bytecode: https://intothebytecode.com
Disclaimer: this podcast is for informational purposes only. It is not financial advice or a recommendation to buy or sell securities. The host and guests may hold positions in the projects discussed.
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