How to create a DAO

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In this tutorial we will create a DAO smart contract. A DAO (Decentralized Autonomous Organization) is a type of organization that operates based on rules encoded in a smart contract on the blockchain. Unlike traditional organizations that have a centralized governing structure, a DAO is decentralized and governed by its members, who hold tokens or voting rights in the organization.

The rules encoded in a DAO’s smart contract determine how it operates, including how decisions are made, how funds are raised and allocated, and how members are rewarded for their contributions. The smart contract also serves as a ledger of all transactions and activities within the DAO.

Since DAOs are decentralized, they operate without a central authority or management, and all decisions are made by members through a voting process. This enables more transparency and trust in the decision-making process, and reduces the risk of corruption and manipulation by a small group of people.

DAOs have become increasingly popular in the blockchain and cryptocurrency space, where they are used to manage decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols, decentralized marketplaces, and other decentralized applications (DApps).

It’s worth noting that there are different types of smart contracts that can be used to create a DAO, and the specific type and implementation may vary depending on the blockchain platform being used and the specific use case of the DAO.

What is an ERC-4337 contract used for?

An ERC-4337 contract is a type of smart contract that allows for the creation and management of a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO). The participants in a DAO can vote on proposals, create new proposals, and make decisions on behalf of the organization. The ERC-4337 standard is designed to provide a common set of rules and interfaces for creating DAOs, which can be used across different Ethereum-based blockchains.

How to create a DAO using an ERC-4337

Creating an ERC-4337 smart contract involves several steps. We will cover each of these steps in detail and provide a documented code sample.

Define the DAO structure

The first step in creating an ERC-4337 smart contract is to define the structure of the DAO. This includes the roles and responsibilities of the various participants, such as members, proposers, and voters. The DAO structure should also include the rules for voting and decision-making.

Here is an example of a DAO structure:

struct Proposal {
    string description;
    uint voteCount;
    bool executed;
}

struct Member {
    address memberAddress;
    uint memberSince;
}

address[] public members;
mapping(address => Member) public memberInfo;
mapping(address => mapping(uint => bool)) public votes;
Proposal[] public proposals;

Try it in Remix

In this example, the DAO includes a Proposal struct that contains a description of the proposal, the number of votes it has received, and whether it has been executed. It also includes a Member struct that contains the member’s address and the date they joined the DAO. The DAO also has an array of members and a mapping that keeps track of each member’s information.

Step 2: Define the functions

The next step is to define the functions that will be used to interact with the DAO. This includes functions for adding and removing members, creating and voting on proposals, and executing proposals.

Here is an example of some of the functions that could be included in an ERC-4337 smart contract:

function addMember(address _member) public {
    require(memberInfo[_member].memberAddress == address(0), "Member already exists");
    memberInfo[_member] = Member({
        memberAddress: _member,
        memberSince: block.timestamp
    });
    members.push(_member);
}

function removeMember(address _member) public {
    require(memberInfo[_member].memberAddress != address(0), "Member does not exist");
    memberInfo[_member] = Member({
        memberAddress: address(0),
        memberSince: 0
    });
    for (uint i = 0; i < members.length; i++) {
        if (members[i] == _member) {
            members[i] = members[members.length - 1];
            members.pop();
            break;
        }
    }
}

function createProposal(string memory _description) public {
    proposals.push(Proposal({
        description: _description,
        voteCount: 0,
        executed: false
    }));
}

function vote(uint _proposalId) public {
    require(memberInfo[msg.sender].memberAddress != address(0), "Only members can vote");
    require(votes[msg.sender][_proposalId] == false, "You have already voted for this proposal");
    votes[msg.sender][_proposalId] = true;
    proposals[_proposal

Try it in Remix

A complete DAO contract

This contract includes the Proposal and Member structs, as well as the array of members, mapping of member information, mapping of votes, and array of proposals.

 pragma solidity ^0.8.0;

contract DAO {

    struct Proposal {
        string description;
        uint voteCount;
        bool executed;
    }

    struct Member {
        address memberAddress;
        uint memberSince;
        uint tokenBalance;
    }

    address[] public members;
    mapping(address => Member) public memberInfo;
    mapping(address => mapping(uint => bool)) public votes;
    Proposal[] public proposals;

    uint public totalSupply;
    mapping(address => uint) public balances;

    event ProposalCreated(uint indexed proposalId, string description);
    event VoteCast(address indexed voter, uint indexed proposalId, uint tokenAmount);

    function addMember(address _member) public {
        require(memberInfo[_member].memberAddress == address(0), "Member already exists");
        memberInfo[_member] = Member({
            memberAddress: _member,
            memberSince: block.timestamp,
            tokenBalance: 100
        });
        members.push(_member);
        balances[_member] = 100;
        totalSupply += 100;
    }

    function removeMember(address _member) public {
        require(memberInfo[_member].memberAddress != address(0), "Member does not exist");
        memberInfo[_member] = Member({
            memberAddress: address(0),
            memberSince: 0,
            tokenBalance: 0
        });
        for (uint i = 0; i < members.length; i++) {
            if (members[i] == _member) {
                members[i] = members[members.length - 1];
                members.pop();
                break;
            }
        }
        balances[_member] = 0;
        totalSupply -= 100;
    }

    function createProposal(string memory _description) public {
        proposals.push(Proposal({
            description: _description,
            voteCount: 0,
            executed: false
        }));
        emit ProposalCreated(proposals.length - 1, _description);
    }

    function vote(uint _proposalId, uint _tokenAmount) public {
        require(memberInfo[msg.sender].memberAddress != address(0), "Only members can vote");
        require(balances[msg.sender] >= _tokenAmount, "Not enough tokens to vote");
        require(votes[msg.sender][_proposalId] == false, "You have already voted for this proposal");
        votes[msg.sender][_proposalId] = true;
        memberInfo[msg.sender].tokenBalance -= _tokenAmount;
        proposals[_proposalId].voteCount += _tokenAmount;
        emit VoteCast(msg.sender, _proposalId, _tokenAmount);
    }

    function executeProposal(uint _proposalId) public {
        require(proposals[_proposalId].executed == false, "Proposal has already been executed");
        require(proposals[_proposalId].voteCount > totalSupply / 2, "Proposal has not been approved by majority vote");
        proposals[_proposalId].executed = true;
        // execute proposal here
    }

}

Try it in Remix

The addMember and removeMember functions allow members to be added and removed from the DAO. The Member struct includes a tokenBalance field, which is initialized to 100 when a new member is added. The totalSupply variable and balances mapping are also added to keep track of the total supply of tokens and the balance of each member.

The createProposal function allows members to create a new proposal with a description. It also emits a ProposalCreated event with the proposal ID and description.

The vote function allows members to vote on a proposal by ID. The vote function takes a tokenAmount parameter, which represents the number of tokens the member wants to use to vote. It also emits a VoteCast event with the voter’s address and the proposal ID.

The executeProposal function allows a proposal to be executed if it has received a majority vote. It checks that the proposal has not already been executed and that it has been approved by a majority of the members. If these conditions are met, the proposal’s executed flag is set to true and the proposal can be executed.

Resources

Blockchain Networks

Below is a list of EVM compatible Mainnet and Testnet blockchain networks. Each link contains network configuration, links to multiple faucets for test ETH and tokens, bridge details, and technical resources for each blockchain. Basically everything you need to test and deploy smart contracts or decentralized applications on each chain. For a list of popular Ethereum forums and chat applications click here.

Ethereum test network configuration and test ETH faucet information
Optimistic Ethereum Mainnet and Testnet configuration, bridge details, etc.
Polygon network Mainnet and Testnet configuration, faucets for test MATIC tokens, bridge details, etc.
Binance Smart Chain Mainnet and Testnet configuration, faucets for test BNB tokens, bridge details, etc.
Fanton networt Mainnet and Testnet configuration, faucets for test FTM tokens, bridge details, etc.
Kucoin Chain Mainnet and Testnet configuration, faucets for test KCS tokens, bridge details, etc.

Web3 Software Libraries

You can use the following libraries to interact with an EVM compatible blockchain.

Ledger Nano X - The secure hardware wallet