So, I want to come in and provide everyone with a sense of next steps.
First, we have received some excellent and constructive feedback regarding our proposal. We are currently working on revisions based on this feedback and will submit a new proposal soon that takes into account the conversation and the advice we have received. The time frame for the new proposal is the week of April 24.
Second, I want to say something regarding the state of the community and the level of vitriol, toxicity, and hate our segment of the community (AmpleSense) has received from a small segment of their fellow community members.
1: We the founders of the AmpleSense DAO will not be deterred from developing utilities and pushing forward the Ampleforth ecosystem. We have been at this for more than 2 years, and we don’t plan to stop our efforts anytime soon. In fact, despite the impression some may gather from this thread, there are many, many community members who have reached out to us to indicate how they much they appreciate our efforts, the protocols we have developed and our focus on creating third-party-developed AMPL utilities. It is their support that helps us move ahead in the face of persistent negativity that may have deterred others from building in the AMPL ecosystem (more on this issue below). Thank you to everyone who has provided support and encouragement for our efforts. We know who you are and we appreciate you.
2: The charge that we are “taking away from Ampleforth, conducting vampire attacks or leeching” from the community and protocol is patently and demonstrably false. From the beginning of the AmpleSense DAO effort, we have been in constant communication with the Ampleforth founding team about our products, services, and even the name of the DAO and our governance token, which were created in honor of the Ampleforth team and what they have accomplished. We have been very pleased that the core team has been nothing but welcoming and supportive of our efforts (reference). And, these efforts will continue – despite what it seems like a concerted effort to undermine our segment of the community and cast doubt on our motivations.
3: Some have problems with the mechanics of the Elastic Vault, which are very much in line with the incentive structure and mechanics of AMPL itself. First, the protocol’s mechanics are designed to encourage a stable unit price, as seen below (image from the Redbook).
And a discussion of protocol incentives from the Ampleforth white paper.
The Elastic Vault is designed specifically to respond to protocol incentives – and provide additional incentives to engage with the protocol during periods where market actors have been reluctant: negative rebase and equilibrium. And, it provides additional crytpoeconomic incentives (in the form of the EEFI token), to encourage these behaviors. There is nothing unusual about how the Elastic Vault functions in general (from a traditional perspective in crypto), or in the case of Ampleforth (in terms of the vault responding to and participating in incentives the protocol itself has put in place – i.e., selling additional AMPL supply generated by the rebase. In the case of the Elastic Vault, rather than the proceeds from sales of excess supply going to traders or other entities, individuals who have locked up their AMPL into the Elastic Vault receive the benefit of their rebased AMPL being used to buy and burn EEFI from the market. Again, this is completely in line with AMPL’s mechanics as designed, and an example of how excess supply generated from the rebase is being utilized within a self-contained cryptoeconomic system.. In fact, the Elastic Vault protocol encourages AMPL stability, which is a stated goal in the Ampleforth whitepaper and Redbook (referenced above). More on how this happens can be seen in the Elastic Vault documentation.
To those who believe there should be alternative hedging mechanisms and incentive structures beyond what we have developed: I have only one message: Put the effort in developing your alternative protocols, having them audited and finding a user base. Ampleforth an open source protocol and all development efforts are both welcome and needed. Our approach is not the only one and I look forward to seeing what other members of the community bring forth.
4: I am withdrawing this particular proposal because we plan to revise it and I do not wish this to be the one that is sent to Snapshot for a signalling vote given the edits we are planning on making to the proposal.
I’ll submit a revised proposal sometime next week, which will be developed in consultation with our advisors in the community.
Finally, let me end with these words: “A house divided cannot stand.”
We are a small community of AMPL enthusiasts. We all want the same thing: for AMPL to succeed. We may have different opinions about how best to achieve this goal, but none of us are looking to harm the protocol. Instead, we are looking to create new utilities and drive its adoption widely. Whether that be via SPOT, the Buttonwood protocol, derivatives like EEFI, a rising tide lifts all boats.
I ask those who have nothing but negativity to share, to look beyond themselves. The example you set here has a big impact on whether others will be willing to engage with the Ampleforth community to drive utility for this asset. For other developers and builders … what they have seen over the last few days from some community members in response to our efforts and this proposal, is disturbing to say the least and off-putting in the extreme. I wouldn’t be surprised if some community members looking to develop applications for AMPL are saying “no way” due to what they’ve witnessed in this thread.
As I said in a previous community call: Let’s create an attitude of abundance, open-mindedness and trust, as opposed to distrust, animosity and negativity. We should be here to to lift up each other, not tear each other down.
@Brandon: Note that this proposal, in its current form, is withdrawn pending the submission of a revised proposal (taking into account the constructive feedback we have received) scheduled for sometime during the week of April 24.
