[SCP-70] Infrastructure Budget Proposal Addendum (Ideation)

Proposal Discussion
1

Objective:

Extend funding for the relationship with TaxiStake, such that the Shapeshift DAO may continue to independently operate its own infrastructure via the TaxiStake relationship so long as both parties see fit.

Abstract:

Currently, the Shapeshift DAO leverages a cloud provider account supplied by TaxiStake in order to operate the primary instance of Unchained, which is the blockchain indexing platform used to power the Shapeshift v2 web application. Since February 24, 2022, the Taxistake Unchained instance has served 99% of all Production Unchained traffic (these endpoints are occasionally cut back and forth between the Fox Foundation-controlled Unchained instance when it is prudent to avoid disruption to service, i.e. major maintenance operations to one cluster or the other). The terms of the first iteration of the infrastructure budget proposal, passed earlier this year, are expiring, and a new arrangement needs to be established with some adjustments provided by the wisdom that experience has provided over the last few months. Perhaps most significantly, a scalable, more flexible reimbursement model needs to be implemented in order to allow both parties to respond organically to increases in cost as additional blockchain integrations are added over time.

Specification:

The tenets of the original governance proposal are outlined here:

discourse-post-upload20231125-65354-zsozg2.png[SCP-43] Infrastructure Budget Proposal [Official Ideation Thread]

Objective The Shapeshift DAO needs to be empowered to run its own software infrastructure independent of legacy, centralized Shapeshift or any duly appointed custodians thereof. The goal of this proposal is to enumerate the reasons why, and the resources required to make it a reality. Abstract Currently, the Shapeshift DAO depends on infrastructure provided by Shapeshift AG in order to bootstrap hardware for its next-generation defi software platform to operate. If the DAO is to become indepe…

  1. This proposal is simply a continuation of the original arrangement, with the following adjustments:

    The reimbursement currency will continue to be issued in stable coins, but is not limited to DAI. At this time, USDC is favored.

  2. The reimbursement channel will executed via Colony, and not a Sablier stream. This enables the Engineering Workstream leader to approve and adjust reimbursements on a monthly basis as appropriate, and for the payments to be more easily and transparently allocated to the Engineering Workstream’s operating budget. This arrangement is more flexible than Sablier, and provides additional transparency and oversight by the Engineering Workstream leader, as well as being a piece of native tooling already used by the DAO to orchestrate DAO member payment services internally.
  3. The monthly budget for infrastructure is increased to a minimum of $2000 USD, and the maximum determined by a schedule aligning with the expansion of blockchain integrations as per the product roadmap:
  4. Q2 2022: $3000/month (Cosmos, BTC)
  5. Q3 2022: $3500/month (UTXOs)
  6. Q4 2022: $4000/month (XRP)
  7. The Infrastructure budget will merge with the Engineering Workstream budget, and become subject to the same approval and renewal cycle as its parent. It will be subject to the same estimation, adjustment, and allocation processes on an annual basis alongside the Engineering Workstream budget.

Motivation/Benefits:

Very early in its life, the DAO has achieved true decentralization of its back-end infrastructure. This arrangement enables the DAO to operate independently of any centralized third parties.

Additionally, the DAO is empowered to leverage both its own infrastructure, and that provided by the Fox Foundation, in order to avoid disruption to service during maintenance operations to Unchained endpoints.

Drawbracks:

None, other than what was outlined in the original proposal. Rather than being dependent on Shapeshift AG, the DAO depends on a healthy relationship with TaxiStake, and for TaxiStake to also have a healthy relationship with the regulatory and legislative entities in which it operates.

Vote:

  • If you for “For” this proposal, you are endorsing the following points:

    TaxiStake continues to thoroughly fulfill its obligation to the DAO in supplying cloud provider services,

  • The maximum budget for this relationship should be increased over time in order to accommodate additional features and cryptocurrencies being added to the Web v2 platform in the upcoming business year,
  • The vector for reimbursement in this relationship shall be moved to Colony,
  • TaxiStake and the Engineering Workstream leader will have the authority to continue, renew, and adjust the arrangement in perpetuity.

If you vote “Against”, you are indicating that you do not want the DAO to be able to run its own infrastructure, or perhaps just not via the existing relationship with TaxiStake.

2

In my opinion,its an important extension of funding for the relationship between the Shapeshift DAO and TaxiStake. It aims to allow the DAO to independently operate its own infrastructure, powered by TaxiStake’s cloud provider services. The proposed adjustments, such as implementing a more flexible reimbursement model and using Colony as the reimbursement channel, demonstrate a forward-thinking approach. The benefits of this arrangement are significant. By achieving decentralization of the back-end infrastructure, the DAO gains autonomy, reducing reliance on centralized third parties. Furthermore, the ability to seamlessly switch between the DAO’s infrastructure and that provided by the Fox Foundation during maintenance operations ensures minimal disruption to Unchained endpoints. Hope to see more progress on this area. COMP and Maker are leading.