Foundation Org's 2023 Annual Report to Radworks

đź“Ł Updates & Reporting đź’Ş Org Updates
1

As promised in the Foundation Org’s March 2023 proposal and its 2024 annual proposal, this is the Foundation’s annual report to Radworks, outlining its activities funded by its grant from Radworks and a financial summary of how the grant was spent. This content will also be used to prepare the Foundation’s annual report to its Swiss supervisory authority, ESA.

Summary

The Better Internet Foundation (previously “Radicle Foundation”) used CHF 2,007,559 (USDC 2,237,058) of its budgeted (and granted) CHF 3,433,844 (USDC 3,660,993) from the Radworks Treasury for its work from March through December 2023. The remaining CHF 1,426,284.98 (USDC 1,423,935) will be applied towards 2024 spend, as previously estimated in its approved 2024 proposal and budget. Any remaining budget unused in 2024 will be applied towards 2025’s budget (and so on).

The Foundation managed the development of Drips and Radicle until these product and engineering teams became funded by the Radworks Treasury directly, starting mid-May 2023, when they were spun out into their own Orgs with their own budgets.

The Foundation created three (internal) committees in April 2023: Operations, DAO Governance Support (also called “Governance”), and Marketing. These committees were created to give Committee Leads better control over day-to-day spending. These committees also provided support to the new [Radicle and Drips] Orgs.

Highlights from the work by the three Foundation committees in 2023 include:

  • The operational and legal spin out of Radicle and Drips Orgs, including transfer of their contributors and establishment of their entities.
  • Professionalization of Foundation’s operations, including the onboarding of new, specialized contributors, reorganization of work, and a consolidation (and validation) of external partners.
  • Design and execution of the first iteration of Radworks’ organizational model.
  • Completion of the Foundation’s 2022 annual audit and the Foundation’s annual report to ESA.
  • Launch of the Radworks rebrand, including stewarding and adopting Radworks’ new purpose.
  • Support of the Drips Org to launch Drips v2, including long-form pieces such as “Radworks Gives $1M to FOSS Dependencies with Drips.”
  • Creation of dashboards to better track RAD token holders, delegation and participation.
  • Stewardship of Scopelifts proposal to upgrade the Radworks governance contracts.
  • Stewardship of Radworks’ first annual proposal cycle; this process clarifies mandates of each Org - the expectations of which were reiterated in the MoUs (with Radicle and Drips Orgs).

Conclusion

The 2023 funding year consisted of significant change for the Foundation. The year started with all technical and strategic development being overseen by the Foundation Council. By mid-year, the Foundation had completed a massive effort to further decentralize the activity of Radworks with the creation of Radicle and Drips Orgs. The shift also prompted reorganization within the Foundation: the establishment of a committee structure enabled localized leadership over a work domain, with its own budget. The committee structure was also created with the intent to foster work in such a way that would enable spinning out this work into separate Orgs or (generally) funding directly from the Radworks Treasury.

Some of the lessons learned from 2023 (which are expanded on in the Conclusion and Financial Summary section below):

  • Constantly Adapt: The Radworks ecosystem is still maturing and the Foundation needs to keep adapting in order to provide the best support as the ecosystem’s protector, nurturer, and advocate.
  • Seek Community Feedback: The Foundation should proactively seek feedback from the Radworks community so that it can adapt its objectives according to its needs.
  • Move Quickly: The Web3 community changes a lot in 3 months, 6 months, a year. As a foundation supporting an ecosystem of technologies that are seeking product market fit, it needs to be operating with similarly urgent timelines.

For its 2025 Annual Proposal to Radworks, the Foundation will think critically about what work it should continue doing versus what work should be transitioned out of the Foundation and supported directly by the Radworks Treasury. This is a critical step in the decentralization effort of Radworks, and ensures that the (funded) work and required skill sets are well-scoped and prioritized by community vote.

In the meantime, in 2024, the Foundation will continue to adapt its objectives, based on the needs of Radworks. Radworks is still an early-stage organization and community, where pivoting and reprioritization should be realized regularly. The Foundation, in its role as “protector” must also reassess the ecosystem’s risks based on changes in the global environment - and adapt its actions accordingly.

The Foundation Org’s 2023 Annual Report to Radworks

Since its initial grant from Radworks in September 2022, the Better Internet Foundation (previously “Radicle Foundation”) has been a key partner to the Radworks ecosystem, and enabler of Radworks’ purpose: to fund new, resilient, permissionless technologies to cultivate internet freedom. As a recipient of Radworks grants, the Foundation is publishing a report on the activities that were enabled by this grant. This Activity Report includes financial reporting, which covers not only how funds were allocated, but additional breakdowns of the Foundation’s spending on and support of Radworks projects, Radicle and Drips.

In September 2022, the Foundation was granted 3M USDC by Radworks to cover all Core Team monthly costs plus intended hires, intended event sponsorships, and a management fee - through February 2023. With these funds, the Foundation continued to engage a committed base of 30-35 contributors who developed Radicle and Drips technologies as well as support the growth and further decentralization of the Radworks network. Furthermore, the Foundation continued to maintain strong relationships with partners that support the Foundation’s operations and overall health.

While there had been clear intentions to to setup a decentralized but cohesive “Core Development” organization that would be funded directly by the Radworks (then referred to as the RadicleDAO) Treasury, it became clear that not only would Radicle and Drips benefit from further independence because of their different user bases, but their technical and operational independence from each other (and from the Foundation) would be critical to their work to find product-market-fit (PMF). So in February 2023, a key decision was made: to spin out Radicle and Drips into their own, separate organizations. The Foundation was positioned to support the technical development of Radicle and Drips until mid-May and, at the same time, support their evolution into successful, independent Orgs (funded by Radworks).

In March 2023, the Foundation was awarded an additional grant by Radworks, to support Radicle and Drips development as described above (until they were setup to receive grants from Radworks themselves) as well as continue work through the remainder of the year via the initiatives of three committees based within the Foundation: Operations, Governance, and Marketing. In short, the work of these committees would be focused on 1. Setting up the new Orgs for operational success and with marketing strategies to support their search for PMF 2. Relaunching RadicleDAO as “Radworks” and defining it in relation to the new Orgs and (of course) 3. Ensuring the Foundation continues to run efficiently and compliantly.

Product and Engineering

The Foundation guided the following technical development work until the Drips Org and the Radicle Org were established in May 2023. Once they became their own Orgs, Radicle and Drips guided and managed the budgets of their own technical development.

Drips

  • Starting in January, Drips dove deeper into exploring tools for their creators, such as “crowdfunding” like experiences (with much more of a focus on FOSS developers and funders); features that target users who are donating funds rather than the users who need funds; and integrations with other projects and products working on supporting public goods, especially open source (e.g. Gitcoin Passport). The team drove user interviews that were used to design and specify some of the social and giving experiences in the Drips web app.
  • In March, Drips v2 was soft launched, while the Drips Team continued to conduct user interviews, which would inform Drips V2 web app (launched later in Q2).
  • Through May (and well into the development of their own entities), the Drips Team researched multi-chain governance options in order to potentially deploy Drips v2 contracts on more EVM networks. It became clear that this is still an unsolved problem for teams that want to operate in a truly trust-minimized environment. The Team decided not to deploy on additional EVM networks at this point in time. Instead they decided to wait and observe how bigger teams are tackling this problem.
  • The Drips Team worked on building two critical experiences for the Drips App that would ultimately be shipped by the Drips Org in July 2023: the “Continuous Dependency Funding” experience and the “Awesome lists” experience within the Drips app.

Radicle

  • The Radicle Team was heads down in Q1, working hard to prepare for the launch of Radicle Heartwood - which took place in April. This launch, which included a new website and brand, also enabled the Radicle Team to transition their Heartwood development from Github to Radicle on May 1. Furthermore, the Team streamlined the Radicle installation process with native binaries and an install script. The Radicle Team, at time of launch or shortly after, made progress in the following objective areas:
    • Getting closer to GitHub core feature parity by enabling better patch support and stabilizing code hosting & browsing. Some work was also done on inline comments, the issues TUI, and the Radicle CI.
    • Stabilizing the technology stack, specifically the networking protocol where a multiplexing protocol was put in production. Meanwhile, it had been months that replication worked without hiccups and the writing of new replication code (to give more control) was underway.
    • Relaunching (social-)media presence, by launching a new website and Twitter presence, with product updates being posted every few weeks.

Operations, Governance, and Marketing

During Q1 and Q2, Operations, Governance, and Marketing Committees completed the work as described in the Foundation Org proposal passed in March:

  • From March through June, the Operations Team created and executed a plan for the infrastructure of the Drips and Radicle Orgs - as well as the process required for spinning out these product and engineering teams. This work included:

    • Drafting and standardization of Contributor Agreements
    • Migration of approximately 15 contributors
    • Entity creation, fulfilling necessary registrations for successfully receiving grant funds from Radworks
    • Drafting and executing agreements with critical service providers
    • Drafting and executing framework agreements between new Orgs and Foundation, agreeing to an open licensing strategy
    • Setting up operations to support new Org entities
    • Setting up capabilities for monthly Org financial reporting

  • The Operations Team also successfully led and completed the Foundation’s 2022 annual audit and the Foundation’s annual report to ESA, Switzerland’s foundation supervisory authority.

  • The Governance Team designed the first iteration of Radworks’ organizational model - and proceeded to facilitate Radworks’ first monthly voting cycle in April to coordinate the establishment of the new Radicle and Drips Orgs via the proposal process. The Team also shipped a big update to the governance off-chain governance processes, making it easier for Radworks’ members to follow governance proposals, participate in governance, and understand the DAO’s ecosystem model.

  • Together, starting at the end of Q1 and through to the beginning of Q3, the Marketing and Governance Teams worked on the Radworks (formally “RadicleDAO”) brand evolution, which would more clearly delineate the separation of the Foundation from the product Orgs (Radicle and Drips) while giving more purpose to the DAO itself.

    • The Marketing Team worked on a new brand hierarchy and ecosystem approach, including the positioning and core messaging, as well as guiding strategies for Drips and Radicle Orgs. The Team formulated a new brand and messaging framework for the DAO based on its formalized purpose, vision, and mission. The Team setup marketing distribution channels to reflect the ecosystem evolution and continued to coordinate in-person and online events and sponsorships for Radworks and the (new) Orgs.
    • The Governance Team helped steward a DAO-wide purpose statement and developed a ratification and co-signing mechanism for community members to show support. The Team developed and improved governance documentation and resources to support the DAO’s evolution, including the creation of DAO-wide community and governance documentation (including, what we are, what drives us, our history/timeline, how governance works/what it is used for). Furthermore, the Team coordinated the reorganization of the Discord and Discourse to reflect the needs of the evolving community.
    • The Radworks rebrand was launched in July 2023 - and also included the website, documentation, and the coordination of RAD token description updates with partners (including exchanges).

Starting in Q3, the Foundation nearly exclusively provided operational and marketing support to Radworks and the new Orgs (to the extent such service was in line with the Foundation purpose).

Operations Committee

  • Foundation Health
    • Consolidated the Foundation’s accounting and bookkeeping internally, bringing down costs and further streamlining relationships with financial service providers (including with accountant, banks, custody, payments, onboarding to Skyline Digital’s new platform etc.).
    • Created regular (monthly) expense reports to support the work of the Council and Committee Leads - as well as a budget template to make for easier reporting (for the Foundation and Orgs) going forward.
    • Conducted a team offsite in September 2023 to discuss its work priorities and get acquainted with each other’s skill-sets - and how they could best be applied to the Foundation’s needs.
  • Org Support
    • Further streamlined the accounting processes and software, insurances, Skyline Digital accounts, and operational processes at the new Orgs.
    • Reported to Orgs about their use of Foundation “services” (Ops and Marketing) by Orgs.
    • Drafted and finalized Drips Disclaimer and Data & Privacy Policy pages.
  • Radworks Support
    • Created regular (monthly) reports to bring transparency (for Org Leads + general community) on use of Radworks funds by Orgs, including better analytics.
    • Reviewed language of the Radworks launch material.

Marketing Committee

  • Org Support
    • Supported the Drips Org to launch Drips v2.
  • Radworks Support
    • Further defined the Radworks marketing strategy, including key perceptions, key values, goals, and key activities.
    • Formulated the brand and messaging framework for Radworks based on the formalized purpose.

Governance Committee worked on initiatives to improve risk assessment and accountability in a (more) decentralized Radworks ecosystem, including:

  • Worked with Org leads (alongside the Apiary team) to further define their longer-term relationship with Radworks, in the form of MoUs (which were then launched in Q4).
  • Conducted runway analysis based on spend to better identify treasury management and diversification needs.
  • Created dashboards to better track token holders, delegation & participation.
  • Kicked off the conversation around upgrading governance contracts to a well-maintained governance system.
  • Started to draft the emergency response plan to potential governance attacks.
  • Revised Org Proposal templates, in anticipation of the 2024 funding cycle.

In Q4, all Committees focused on finalizing their proposals and budgets that would be part of the Foundation Org’s 2024 proposal to Radworks.

The committees continued to make progress on their own objectives:

Operations Committee

  • Foundation Health: In addition to making sure the Foundation was run smoothly and healthy, the Ops Team:
    • Streamlined operations and compliance further by documenting [Committee and Foundation-wide] processes, preparing monthly internal reports, engaging new financial partners, rolling out security protocols.
    • Supported Committees with budget creation.
    • Started the Foundation’s annual audit.
  • Org Support
    • Ensured that the [Radicle and Drips] Org operations are up and running, including their relationship with the accountant so that the Orgs will no longer require support from the Foundation in 2024 (besides the Radworks Financial Monthly Reporting, which will continue to be completed by the Team through Q2).
    • Supported Radicle Org and Drips Org in drafting their budgets for their 2024 Radworks proposals.
  • Radworks Support
    • Completed monthly Radworks Financial Report continued to enhance accountability within the ecosystem.
    • Reviewed website and documentation language for Drips.
    • Moved forward Radworks and Drips trademark applications.

Marketing Committee

  • Org Support
    • Supported Drips Org with product marketing, including Radworks/Drips case study; Octant case study; interviews/videos with Drips users (Ric Moo from Ethers.js and Luca from Open Zeppelin).
  • Radworks Support
    • Experimented with more, new types of blog content, including “A Radworks Inquiry: Towards Internet Freedom”, “Radworks Gives $1M to FOSS Dependencies with Drips” and “Octant Teams Up with Drips to Fund its Dependencies.”
    • Organized and networked at industry events in support of Drips and Radworks (including those at Berlin Blockchain Week, Funding the Commons Taipei & Taipei Blockchain Week).

Governance Committee

  • Wrapped up the completion of MoUs, one with Radicle and one with Drips.
  • Facilitated the annual proposal cycle.
  • Collected feedback from contributors and proposal authors on the Org proposal process and started planning improvements.
  • Collected feedback regarding how Radworks resources are utilized to identify lingering pain points in the governance experience.
  • Facilitated creation of Scopelift’s proposal for the governance contract upgrade.

Conclusion and Financial Summary

The Better Internet Foundation (previously “Radicle Foundation”) used CHF 2,007,559 (USDC 2,237,058) of its budgeted (and granted) CHF 3,433,844 (USDC 3,660,993) from the Radworks Treasury for its work from March through December 2023. The spend figure includes CHF 22,000 for Income Tax Expenditure. This means that the Foundation was CHF 1,426,284.98 (USDC 1,423,935) under budget. This amount will be applied towards its 2024 spend, as previously estimated in its approved 2024 proposal and budget. Any remaining budget unused in 2024 will be applied towards 2025’s budget (and so on).

Monthly spend at the Foundation, against the budgeted amount, is illustrated in this chart:

Of the CHF 2,007,599 spent from March through December 2023, the following graphs illustrate the percentage breakdown of funds used towards Drips development vs. Radicle development vs. Ops Committee vs. Marketing Committee vs. Governance Committee. Note: Drips and Radicle were only supported from March through mid-May, while Ops, Marketing, and Governance were supported from March through December.

NOTE: Expenditure in “Ops” comprises of costs relating to the overall Foundation administration, including auditor and accountancy fees, bank, gas and fiat conversion fees, software subscriptions and Council remuneration; as well as the Ops Committee costs of contributor fees and legal costs.

Of the total CHF 2,007,559 spent from March through December 2023, 4% was used by the Operations and Marketing Committees in direct support of the new Radicle and Drips Orgs.

The 2023 funding year consisted of significant change for the Foundation. The year started with all technical and strategic development being overseen by the Foundation Council. By mid-year, the Foundation had completed a massive effort to further decentralize the activity of Radworks with the creation of Radicle and Drips Orgs. The shift also prompted reorganization within the Foundation: the establishment of a committee structure enabled localized leadership over a work domain, with its own budget. The committee structure was also created with the intent to foster work in such a way that would enable spinning out this work into separate Orgs or (generally) direct funding from the Radworks Treasury.

The following are some of the Foundation’s learnings from 2023 that will be applied towards planning and execution in 2024 and beyond:

  • Constantly Adapt: The Radworks ecosystem is still maturing and the Foundation needs to keep adapting in order to provide the best support as the ecosystem’s protector, nurturer, and advocate. So while the Foundation will continue to put forward an annual proposal based on its current understanding of the community’s needs, it may need to adapt its objectives throughout the year. Today, we are trying to understand the best way for the Foundation Council to communicate these changes to the community.
  • Seek Community Feedback: The Foundation should proactively seek feedback from the Radworks community so that it can adapt its objectives according to its needs. Specifically, it makes sense to work directly with Org Leads to understand their pain points and ensure any measures the Foundation takes are addressing actual problems and accurately protecting the interests (or mitigating risks) of Radworks technologies. Of course, the prioritization of problems to focus on should reflect the Foundation’s (current) roles: protector, nurturer, and advocate. The Governance Team initiated a feedback process in December and (with the Strategy Team) has been engaging members of the community this year - one on one, via forum discussions, and via hosting live discussions. The Operations Team will continue its direct conversations with Org Leads and contributors to ensure any infrastructural support at the Orgs is supporting their organization. The Foundation Council will use its Council Meetings and Committee Reviews to regularly ask participants about how their prioritization is informed by conversations with community members.
  • Move Quickly: The Web3 community changes a lot in 3 months, 6 months, a year. As a foundation supporting an ecosystem of technologies that are seeking product market fit, it needs to be operating with similarly urgent timelines. We need to be looking outward to identify signals and observe evolving best practices in the space as well as recognize new products that solve our existing (technical and organizational) problems. In turn, these observations should regularly inform our prioritization, timeline, and decision-making. The Foundation Council will use its quarterly Committee Review Sessions and Council Meetings to evaluate timelines and urgency.

For its 2025 Annual Proposal to Radworks, the Foundation will think critically about what work it should continue doing versus what work should be transitioned and supported directly by the Radworks Treasury. This is a critical step in continuing the decentralization effort of Radworks, and ensures that the (funded) work and required skill sets are well-scoped and prioritized by community vote.

In the meantime, in 2024, the Foundation will continue to adapt its objectives based on the needs of Radworks. Radworks is still an early-stage organization and community, where pivoting and reprioritization should be realized regularly. The Foundation, in its role as “protector,” must also reassess the risks based on changes in the global environment - and adapt its actions accordingly.

4 Likes