Out of Control: DAOs, AI, and the Question of Autonomy

Abstract As we look to the future, how might decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) evolve? And where, beyond corporate law, might we find guidance for the legal questions those evolved DAOs pose? DAOs are, and will increasingly become, instrumentalities of artificial intelligence (AI). DAOs are connected with AI in at least three ways: They are tools for decentralized governance of AI data and models; AI may be used to automate the management and operations of DAOs; and DAOs themselves may function as a form of AI. As such, DAOs inherit the major regulatory and ethical challenges that AI poses, most notably with regard to autonomy. Thus, to consider the future questions DAOs pose and how to address them, we must look to the raging debates over AI regulation, and connect them to the more established themes of corporate law.