AADAO Oversight - Elected Member Updates & Reports
Log of Updates • 06/27/24, Introduction • 07/05/24, Summary Re: “Navigating Growth” Retrospective on 2023 Grants • 07/29/24, Oversight Initiating Investigation re AADAO/Cosmoverse Dispute • 07/30/24, Transparency Report #7 • 07/30/24, Transparency Report #7 TLDR • 08/21/24, Oversight Report re AADAO/Cosmoverse Dispute & Resolutions • 08/30/24, Revised MOU bw AADAO & Cosmoverse • 09/10/24, Oversight Committee Special Report (Re: Misconduct and Mismanagement Involving the GM) • 09/25/24, AADAO Contributors Unanimously Vote to Remove General Manager • 09/25/24, Suggested Changes for AADAO Ops Structure & Governance • 09/29/24, Update re Cosmos SDK Auction Module • 09/30/24, Resource Efficiency Assessment (Explainer) • 10/01/24, Oversight Controller Announces Departure • 10/15/24, Transparency Report #8 • 10/25/24, Notification Re Core Contributors Plan to Increase Monthly Compensation/Base Salaries • 11/14/24, Oversight Response to AADAO ‘Sunset’ Announcement • 11/19/24, AADAO Salary Increases (8 Contributors), Effective 10/31 Payroll • 11/25/24, Open Positions on Oversight Committee • 12/19/24, Updates: Zellic, TR 10, Oversight Recruiting •…
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I am looking forward to your updates.
Updates from Elected Oversight: Team Meetings: 07/04: Team BiWeekly 07/05: Strat/Comm Weekly One-on-one meetings will not be included in updates to maintain focus on community-relevant information . In Conversation : “In conversation” means approaches and solutions are being discussed. Nothing has been finalized as a matter of policy or procedure. But denotes team awareness and expression of priority in addressing an existing or potential issue . Inter-organizational Communication : • Exploring ways for the Grants subDAO to improve coordination/comms with other funding bodies and or funding programs (e.g., ICF, DoraHacks’ Quadratic Funding) • Goal: Prevent duplicate funding or unwarranted supplementary funding • Status: Team is aware; proactive discussions are underway Unsuccessful Grant Applicant Feedback Process : • Focusing on enhancing feedback provided to unsuccessful grant applicants • Any finalized changes will be announced in this month’s Transparency Report I’l be taking the lead in authoring the forthcoming Transparency Report #7 , projected delivery date is the third week of July. Other Yesterday, AADAO published “Navigating Growth: An…
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Cosmos_Nanny:As of June 2024, AADAO will retire the “batch system” for grants. Going forward, grants will be considered and reported on an open application, rolling basis.
Regardless of changes to the application report presented on a rolling basis, we recommend retaining the quarterly report, a practice we presume would be maintained in parallel. These detailed reports enhance our ability to accurately monitor both quarterly and annual spending.
Nevertheless, we are delighted by your evident dedication to your role since your election and eagerly anticipate your future transparency reports.
Thanks for reading,
Govmos.
Hey there,
The Transparency Reports will be maintained in parallel.
The migration to a rolling system do not affect changes to the Transparency Reports, which have been historically published at a frequency rate of every 8 - 10 weeks.
For instance, we are on track to publish Transparency Report #7 next week, Transparency Report #6 was delivered mid-May.
When I say grants are to be considered, approved, and announced on an open and rolling basis, it means just that. It does not imply that other (hitherto) routinized reporting is being absconded with. It just means that as grants are being approved, grantee + funded scope to be announced via AADAO’s primary social socials (mainly Twitter) as they happen.
Every TP will provide summary overview of the most recent /"newer"grants issued (grants that were uncovered in the previous TP).
On a related note, one can access all the TPs and extraordinary reporting, e.g., last year’s “Impact Report” (annual report) and “Navigating Growth: An In-Depth Retrospective on 2023 Grants” from the AADAO GitHub Repo, here.
MEMORANDUM RE : Cosmoverse 2024 Grant and Associated Temporary Loan Date : July 29, 2024 I. Background A. In March 2024, AADAO approved a $100,000 grant to support the 2024 Cosmoverse event, following previous grants of $110,000 for Cosmoverse 2023 and $40,000 to StakeCito in 2023. B. AADAO transitioned from deploying grants in $ATOM to $USDC in Feb this year. AADAO asserts that their contributors explicitly communicated to the grantee team that the 2024 Cosmoverse grant would be deployed in Noble USDC. The grantees dispute this claim. II. Initial Grant Disbursement A. On March 20, 2024, AADAO transferred 80,000 $USDC (referenced as A-00022 Milestone Payments in the Grants DAODAO page) to the address cosmos12m4dshpc5qqvrafw46pu6rg4743aswljupx445 , identified by the grantee team as the recipient address. B. A critical misunderstanding occurred, as AADAO assumed this address was fully controlled by the grantee team. However, it was subsequently revealed to be a CEX Kraken address suitable exclusively for $ATOM transactions, rendering the grantee unable to access the $USDC funds. III. Temporary Loan A. To ensure uninterrupted work on the conference, the…
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My sincere apologies.
Transparency Report #7 is awaiting final review for copy pertaining to policies developed by the AADAO Strategy Committee. Once this review is complete, the report will be published. Thank you for your patience.
Hey so where all of this gets wrong is in 1. Background section “B.” no one explained that they will be paying USDC, and to avoid a he said, she said argument. We will be adding you to our 2 year long group chat with the AADAO that we have on Telegram. You can do a simple search in the chat yourself to see that nothing was mentioned to us that we are getting paid in USDC. (just search for the term “USDC”) Also, in the chat you can see that its the same address as the previous year where we also mention its a CEX Kraken address. As well check all emails that were sent to @cosmoverse.org nothing says we are getting paid in noble USDC.
So these are questions i would like addressed,
-Who sent the $80K USDC without a TEST TRANSACTION?
-Show me proof of where you mention you will send noble USDC?
-Show any email that says we are getting paid in noble USDC prior to making the transaction?
on Cosmoverse side:
-we have proof of us mentioning its a KRAKEN address.
-we have proof that we previously received ATOM on that address.
-we have proof that we submitted an AADAO Grant proposal that specifically asked for our ATOM Address.
Thanks for the extra context @Basil_Naser
Please add me to all the relevant historic comms, and I will review.
To be clear, the to be issued incident report will only take into account claims that can be substantiated.
The “Background” is more context for my limited scope of review when I looked at the issue in June.
At that time, I was primarily concerned with the necessity of a temporary loan, and what “temporary” means, given that all loans are “temporary” by their nature.
Transparency Report #7
Published: July 30, 2024
ATOM Accelerator Transparency Report #7 is now on the #Cosmos Hub Forum.
Forgive the length, but many updates in this issue. Highlights include:
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Financial reporting
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AADAO Oversight Election; onboarding details & oversight activities
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Changes to post-application
service, Grants subDAO will now remit scores and notes to ALL rejected applicants. -
Bonus Methodology and KPIs (rubric for distributing performance-based bonuses to individuals and AADAO team)
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Team addition: New Ventures Lead @0xjordy
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Team departure: Oversight Coordinator @damobon
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“Transparency Drive” – publishing key governance docs and policies
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Recent grants (approved since May 15, 2024)
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Details of first venture funding in @elys_network
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Update to AADAO’s loan for 2024 Cosmoverse
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Update re RFP Tokenomics
Read the full report here.
The report is also available on AADAO Medium Blog.
Note: The AADAO Transparency Report is produced by the Oversight Committee and StratComm Committee Members.
Tl;dr Executive Summary of AADAO Transparency Report #7: 1. Financial Reports : • Detailed financial reporting provided for main, operational, and subDAO wallets. • Balance sheets, income statements, and cash flow management reports included for all wallet types. 2. Oversight Committee Election : • Grace Yu elected as community representative through first-ever Cosmos Hub Governance election. • High voter engagement; turnout around 59% for all candidates. • Proposal #920 for Grace received more participation (ATOM deployed in voting) than the ATOM 2.0 proposal ( #82 ), and nearly matched the participation of the ATOM Halving proposal ( #848 ). • Grace won the election with 60,856,064 ATOM , which was 5,439,569 more ATOMs than the runner-up (a 9.8% advantage). • 90% of “No” votes for Grace came from just three validators: Informal, Swiss Staking, and Strangelove. • Election highlighted need for improved voting processes and active supervision during elections. • Grace’s role is 35% Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) with a compensation bracket of $45 to $65 per hour 3. Transparency Initiatives : • Grace built GitHub repository for AADAO information . •…
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RE: AADAO/Cosmoverse 2024
I’ll have an incident report published this Friday.
Will share the document here.
AADAO/Cosmos Nanny,
Thank you for being active in providing these updates. Much respect to this team.
Why was this deleted?
Bc the formatting is messed up and it wouldn’t save my changes. I’ll try again later today
Report: AADAO and Cosmoverse 2024 Dispute I. Problem Statement : A dispute arose between the Atom Accelerator DAO (AADAO) and Cosmoverse (grantee) regarding an $80,000 initial payment for a $100,000 approved grant. The transaction coincided with AADAO’s transition from ATOM-based to USDC-based disbursements. The conflict centers on two separate disbursements, each presenting distinct issues: • March 20, 2024: AADAO erroneously sent 80,000 USDC to an incompatible Kraken CEX address (Payment 1) • May 23, 2024: AADAO sent an additional 80,000 USDC as a “temporary loan” to support Cosmoverse’s operations while attempting to recover the first payment (Payment 2) The situation was exacerbated by: • Lack of clear communication between parties • Absence of proper documentation and loan agreements • Cosmoverse’s delayed objection to the loan classification • Disagreements over fault and responsibility for the errors, with AADAO acknowledging procedural shortcomings but Cosmoverse refusing to accept any role, particularly with respect to their decision to use a CEX address The dispute escalated when the community became aware of a “temporary loan” issued to grantees.…
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September 10, 2024
AADAO Oversight Committee Special Report
Notification Regarding Proposed Bonus Methodology, Alleged Misconduct and/or Mismanagement Involving the General Manager (GM), and Governance Concerns
Link: AADAO Oversight Special Report: GM Misconduct/Mismanagement
Table of Contents
I. Executive Summary
II. Background
III. Oversight Decision to Withhold Approval for Proposed Bonus Methodology
IV. Withholding Reasoning
V. 2024 Team Compensation: Salary Base + Retention Bonuses
VI. What Did Cosmos Hub Governance Approve?
VII. Alleged Misconduct and/or Mismanagement Involving the GM
VIII. GM’s Interference with Oversight
IV. GM’s Proposal
X. Conclusion
The full report is available here
G. 🎒🕶️ (@gyunit_) on X
AADAO Structure and Governance: • Core DAO : • No members of the core DAO were elected. • The GM was self-appointed. • The GM hired the contributors. • Oversight : • The Oversight committee has only one elected member, which is my role. • Oversight is independent from the Core DAO. • Two key roles, Oversight Controller and Oversight Coordinator, are hired through a process involving: a) The GM creating a shortlist of candidates b) StratComm selecting from this shortlist c) The selected candidate being ratified by an all-DAO vote, excluding votes from Oversight members Current Issues and Suggested Changes: • Imo the hiring process for Oversight Coordinator and Oversight Controller needs to change. • An offer was made to an Oversight Coordinator candidate on August 30th by Youssef. • Although I respect the candidate, the hiring process should be redone due to recent misconduct/mismanagement of the GM. Aug 30th, is also the same day I remitted an internal incident report documenting potential misconduct/mismanagement of the GM. • Oversight Coordinator and Oversight Controller must involve an open application period, as Oversight serves hub…
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I would support any effort to improve and develop Oversight. I have confidence in your abilities to carry this out.
What would you propose as new process? Oversight hires its members? it would make sense, you usually get selected by a DHR then reselected by your direct manager.
September 29, 2024
RE: Cosmos SDK Auction Module
Approved for $150k
Amount Requested: $180k
$90k disbursed.
I’m looking into who negotiated, and how/why/what justifies cost basis.
Separately, I’ll be asking StratComm to fund an Oversight led initiative for a Grants Working Group
The objective of the GWG: recruit qualified community members to helpexecute a simplified price/performance audit on all grants (active, complete, discontinued).
Review the scope, delivery, and efficiency of resource allocation.
There was an internal “retro” done by AADAO in July.
But it was too superficial.
The purpose of the GWG audit isn’t to produce an 'I could have done this for…x" sort of document. That would be non productive.
If you can be helpful in developing an eval criteria for this possible initiative, or would like to be involved, pls reach out: [email protected]
I’m more interested in the cost efficiency side of the grants program.
Clarification I’d like to clarify the scope of the proposed/potential audit. While I appreciate enthusiasm and ideas for future improvements, the proposed simplified audit is strictly limited to a resource efficiency assessment . Specifically : • Examine grantees’ budgets and cost breakdowns • For example, wrt to the auction module, evaluate the justification for the $150,000 allocation. • Assess any premium labor costs and their rationale. • Review pricing structures (hourly rates vs. flat fees) and their appropriateness. • Identify any additional costs (e.g., auditing fees, GTM fees) included in the approved grant amounts. Please note that this audit is not intended to recommend process improvements or alternative methodologies at the present time. The focus is strictly on: • Actual expenditures • Reasoning behind costs • Negotiation processes • Justification of expenses The primary objective is to determine whether AADAO has overpaid or underpaid based on market standards and provided services . We will not be exploring potential efficiency gains or suggesting operational changes at this time. Such considerations are valuable for future…
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October 01, 2024
Announcement
AADAO’s Financial Controller has announced her departure. She is committed to remaining in her position until a suitable replacement is found, ensuring a smooth transition of responsibilities.
The Controller and I are collaborating with StratComm to revise the hiring process for two key positions: Oversight Coordinator and Oversight Controller.
We recognize that the previous hiring approach for these roles was significantly and inappropriately influenced by GM preferences. Both Oversight and StratComm are in agreement that filling these vacancies should begin with an open and transparent application process.
We plan to share more detailed information about the revised hiring process for Oversight roles EoW.
ATOM ACCELERATOR DAO (AADAO) TRANSPARENCY REPORT #8 Report Date: October 15, 2024 Table of Contents Summary • Financial Reports • Balance Sheet - Main and Strategy Wallets • Balance Sheet - Operational Wallets • Income Statement - Primary Wallets (Main & Operational) • Income Statement - DAODAO Main Wallets • Income Statement - DAODAO Operational Wallets • Cash Flow Management Report - Strategy Wallets • Cash Flow Management Report - Main Wallets • Cash Flow Management Report - Operational Wallets • Oversight Oversight Committee Actions • AADAO/Cosmoverse Dispute • Performance-Based Bonus Methodology • Incident Report: Testimony of the Financial Controller Regarding Possible Misconduct Involving the GM • Oversight Committee Special Report • Ongoing Investigation • Cost-Efficiency Audit of All Grants • Veto Policy Oversight Committee Governance • Mandate & Independence • Removal Process for Elected Member to Oversight • Other Process Improvements Oversight Committee Updates • Team Changes: Removals, Additions, Departures • Temporary Increase in Oversight Committee Working Hours (FTE) • Revised Hiring Process for…
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Thank you, @Cosmos_Nanny, for your continued work with these updates and reports. Wishing all is well.
AADAO Core Contributors’ Monthly Base Salary/Compensation Update October 25, 2024 Dear Cosmos Hub Community, Writing to inform you that AADAO core contributors are effecting changes to contributors’ monthly salary/compensation structure. These changes are made to simplify their total compensation model by removing bonuses (team performance-based, individual performance-based, retention-based) to fixed USDC salaries. Due to the departure of the General Manager, contributors have also taken on additional responsibilties. The changes to monthly base salary affects eight contributors. Overview of Changes • Total base salary adjustment: +$15,640 • Previous monthly base: $49,860 (8 contributors) • New monthly base: $65,500 (8 contributors) Funding Sources for Monthly Salary/Compensation Increases • Internal Reallocation • Former GM’s (Youssef Amrani) monthly base salary of $14,500 • Redistributing funds from a vacant position (previously Youssef’s role) • This covers 92.7% of increases for 8 contributors • ATOM Bonus Pool : $5,350 • Converting approximately 1,205 ATOM from the existing bonus pool (at current price of $4.44) • This represents…
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Oversight Response to AADAO “Sunset” Announcement
AADAO Salary Increases For eight contributors Effective 10/31 Payroll In early October, AADAO contributors initiated salary adjustments citing expanded responsibilities following the GM’s departure. Old Salaries Screenshot 2024-11-19 at 2.58.03 PM 1088×548 65.1 KB The potential funding sources for these increases consisted of the former GM’s unallocated monthly salary of $14,500, with additional consideration given to utilizing up to 1.2% of the bonus $ATOM allocation. While Oversight agreed with the plan to adjust salaries in principle, the proposed increases exceeded the established compensation brackets established and ratified via proposal 865 (see below). Screenshot 2024-11-21 at 3.20.42 AM 2096×436 108 KB Oversight insisted that the increases must maintain alignment with the approved compensation framework to ensure compliance with existing governance approved pay parameters. Screenshot 2024-10-25 at 6.34.40 PM 2588×884 257 KB The core team and oversight agreed that a specific exemption for the Operations Associate position was warranted, as the established hourly rate range of $15-20 was both inadequate and overly restrictive. On November…
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Open Positions
AADAO Oversight is a three member committee, and we are seeking to fill two temporary roles (mandate ends Feb 2025):
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Financial Controller
AADAO Financial Controller at Atom Accelerator DAO -
Oversight Committee Member (unelected)
AADAO Oversight Committee Member at Atom Accelerator DAO
Roles are 20-35% FTE.
Please consider applying if you have governance and accounting experience.
December 19, 2024 Updates Security Audits - Zellic Summary : AADAO has authorized a $440,000 grant to Zellic for a comprehensive two-year auditing engagement. This represents the organization’s largest grant to date. Background & Rationale : The current audit procurement process, requiring is inefficient and cost-intensive. The grants team consulted oversight prior to initializing the RFP process – oversight was supportive of a consolidated approach that mitigates friction and inefficiencies. Scope of Work : The 24-month service agreement encompasses: • Comprehensive security audits of Gaia updates and new features • Strategic review of critical dependencies, including: • CosmWasm • Cosmos SDK • Comet BFT This grant remediates previous ad hoc governance proposal system with a structured, long-term security audit framework, ensuring consistent oversight of critical infrastructure components. Transparency Report #10 To be delivered Wednesday, January 8th, 2025 Oversight Committee Recruitment Status Summary : The candidate evaluation process for two roles— Oversight Committee Member (unelected) and Financial Controller —was finalized on…
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Oversight Update January 31, 2025 Subject: Financial Controller Update, Responsible Wind-Down, and Impact Report Hi everyone, Mark Dencker and I interviewed multiple candidates to support oversight functions as Pati transitions out and AADAO winds down . Following our evaluations, we recommended two candidates to StratComm for consideration. After review, StratComm voted to move forward with one candidate: • Matt Brown (a former oversight candidate) has been selected as the new temporary AADAO Financial Controller . • He has formally accepted the offer this week. Regarding the second candidate : • He performed exceptionally well in both the interview and written assessment . • He is a lawyer with significant DAO experience , specializing in Guernsey jurisdiction . • I am still exploring ways AADAO can leverage his expertise , particularly regarding legal structuring and contributor liability minimization . Key Concern: DAO Legal & Liability Risks As AADAO winds down, ensuring compliance and operational integrity remains a priority. Unfortunately, the StratComm members do not appear to share this view. • A critical issue is that no formal…
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Oversight Update
February 26, 2025
Hi all, heads up: I’m overpaid 10% FTE this month (35% FTE rather than 25% FTE). The payment proposal has already been executed via daodao.
We will adjust my compensation next month to account for the overpayment this month.
Apologies for the error.
As you know, we recently onboarded a new Financial Controller, Matt Brown.
There was miscommunication/lack of communication before finalizing the payment proposal.
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The ninth and final Transparency Report is available here.