[PROPOSAL] 2025 Budget - Allo

📜 Proposals
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Allo Budget request for 2025: Building The Capital Allocation Network For the Tokenized Internet

We are excited to present our final operational budget to the DAO for the graduation of Allo to Allo.Capital. For some time, the team has recognized that while Gitcoin continues to focus on grants and enterprise initiatives, the Allo team has been dedicated to reimagining capital allocation for the tokenized internet. Traditional funding models are inefficient, opaque, and short‑sighted. In contrast, Allo.Capital is designed to catalyze a regenerative flow of value—ensuring that resources circulate like nutrients in a thriving ecosystem. We think there is lots of upside for Gitcoin in exploring this design space.

Graduating Allo.Capital marks an important milestone: We have matured into a dedicated entity focused on capital allocation innovation. Importantly, this evolution does not mean we are parting ways. Allo and Gitcoin will continue to operate as a binary star system—each shining in its domain while supporting one another. This arrangement allows us to pursue bold, transformative initiatives without diluting the focus of Gitcoin’s broader grants work. Today, more than ever, we must invest in initiatives that build lasting value and resilience for our ecosystem.

This budget request seeks funding to enable the graduation of Allo.Capital and support the new business unit for its initial operational period (12 mos). In return for bootstrapping this critical initiative, we will work with the Gitcoin Foundation to ensure that Gitcoin retains a strategic stake in Allo.Capital—via potential equity ownership, and token allocation (should we launch a token).

TL;DR

  • What?
    • Graduation of Allo.Capital as an independent entity dedicated to building the capital allocation layer of the tokenized internet.
  • Why?
    • Traditional funding models are broken. Allo.Capital will reengineer capital flows—making them transparent, efficient, and regenerative—while allowing Gitcoin to stay focused on grants.
  • Funding Request:
    • We are asking for $2.0M in operational funding for the venture - costs broken down below.
  • What’s in it for Gitcoin?
    • In exchange for bootstrapping Allo.Capital, Gitcoin will retain strategic involvement through potential equity and a token allocation (if/when launched). We are actively working to formalize these arrangements.
  • Beyond Core Team Costs:
    • This $2.0M isn’t solely for minimal contributor compensation—it also funds our treasury initiatives and supports community-led builds to drive ecosystem-wide innovation.

Why Launch Allo.Capital?

Capital allocation directs resources to where they can create lasting, regenerative impact—much like the mycorrhizal networks that support an entire forest. Traditional finance channels funnel capital into short‑term speculation; meanwhile, our approach seeks to reimagine economies as living systems that foster continuous reciprocity and shared stewardship.

Graduating Allo.Capital allows us to build a dedicated team focused solely on:

  • Developing Composable Tools & Education: Offering best‑in‑class developer tools, clear documentation, and rapid prototyping frameworks.
  • Innovating Funding Mechanisms: Experimenting with models—from grants and Quadratic Funding to streaming and AI‑driven approaches—that drive regenerative capital flows.
  • Building a Self‑Sustaining Treasury: Growing the DAO treasury through token swaps, protocol fees, and Revnet‑based revenue flows without relying on inflationary practices.
  • This evolution ensures that Allo’s innovative approach to capital allocation receives the full attention it requires—free from the competing priorities inherent in Gitcoin’s broader grants focus.

What Is Allo?

Allo.Capital isn’t simply a protocol update—it’s a full‑spectrum ecosystem built around three core product philosophies:

  • Intelligence
    • Research & Thought Leadership:
      • We’ll produce original research, publish educational content, and develop AI‑augmented tools to push the frontier of capital allocation - check out the work already done on https://allo.capital/.
  • Software
    • Developer Tools & Rapid Prototyping:
      • Our suite will consist of highly forkable, composable modules (e.g. quickstart guides, integrated SDKs) building on the suite of tools we’ve already created (AlloKit, Protocol 2.0) that reduce friction and accelerate deployment.
  • Fund (Treasury‑Driven):
    • Direct Funding & Ecosystem Support:
      • We’re focusing on building a self‑sustaining DAO treasury through token swaps, protocol fees, and Revnet‑based revenue flows.

What Does Allo.Capital Do?

We are an ecosystem that empowers our community to innovate in capital allocation. Our work includes:

Engaging the Community

We actively collaborate with builders, researchers, and community members to design and test new on‑chain funding mechanisms that move beyond traditional grants.

Experimentation & Iteration

Our initiatives include prototyping novel mechanisms—such as deepfunding and AI‑driven allocation—that ensure capital flows are transparent, efficient, and regenerative.

Building a Sustainable Ecosystem

Through strategic token swaps, protocol fees, and Revnet-based revenue models, we aim to create a self‑sustaining treasury that funds continuous innovation.

Business Model & Organizational Structure

Hybrid DAO + VC Studio Model:

  • Allo.Capital’s design combines the best of decentralized governance with a venture studio approach:
    • DAO Treasury:
      • Manages early‑stage funding, research, builds and contributor rewards.
    • (Future Consideration) Professional Investment Arm:
      • While we’re not raising an external LP fund at this time, our long‑term structure contemplates a professional arm to manage growth‑stage investments.
    • Revenue Generation:
      • Our treasury will grow through a mix of token swaps from incubated projects, protocol fees, and Revnet fee capture—ensuring a self‑sustaining funding model that aligns incentives across the ecosystem.

Budget Request & Financial Roadmap

Total Funding Request for Operational Execution: $2.0M

Budget Breakdown

Category Description Approximate Allocation
Contributor Rewards Compensation for full‑time and part‑time team members (engineering, product, community engagement, operations) ~$1.0M
Contracting Fees for expert contractors (DevOps, DevRel, design, marketing) to support rapid development and outreach and community builds ~$400K
Operational Expenses (OpEx) Costs for software subscriptions, gas fees, audits, travel, and professional development ~$100K
Research and Development Investment in original research, AI tools, and innovative R&D initiatives that push the boundaries of capital allocation technology ~$200K
Marketing and Community Outreach Initiatives to expand the Allo brand, drive community engagement, sponsor hackathons, and forge strategic partnerships ~$100K
Treasury & Community Builds Funding Dedicated funds to seed the DAO treasury and support community-led experiments and pilot projects in capital allocation innovation ~$200K
Total $2.0M (subject to final adjustments based on market conditions and community feedback) $2.0M

** Note: The GTC amount requested and reserves will be updated based on market conditions when this proposal moves to Tally, using the lower of the current price or the 20-day moving average. These figures are subject to adjustment based on community feedback and evolving priorities - and work being completed regarding the DAO Design Competition we’ve launched. *

Roadmap & Key Initiatives for 2025

High‑Level Initiatives:

  • Systematic Exploration of Capital Allocation:
    • Develop a spectrum of funding mechanisms—from traditional grants to innovative AI‑driven models.
  • Product & Ecosystem Expansion:
    • Launch composable, developer‑friendly modules (e.g., AlloKit, EasyRetroPGF, Cookie Jar) that enable rapid prototyping and seamless integration.
  • Building a Self‑Sustaining Treasury:
    • Focus on initiatives that drive token swaps, protocol fee generation, and Revnet‑based revenue flows to organically grow the DAO treasury.
  • Enhanced Developer Experience:
    • Roll out comprehensive documentation, quickstart guides, and dedicated support channels to nurture a vibrant, innovative community.

Milestones and Deliverables

Below is an example milestone table (final sequencing and numbers are under evaluation)

Initiative/Project Outcome Milestone/Deliverable
Mechanism Adoption Increase community engagement in capital allocation experiments Grow active proposals from X to Y; onboard Z new community partners
Mechanism Growth Expand the range of deployed allocation mechanisms Launch at least 3 new on‑chain funding experiments (e.g., deepfunding, streaming) per quarter
Sustainability Build treasury resilience and fund community builds Increase treasury inflows via token swaps/protocol fees by N%; seed pilot community projects

Graduating Allo.Capital as an independent entity isn’t merely a structural change—it’s a bold reimagining of how capital is allocated in the tokenized internet. Our integrated approach—anchored in Intelligence, Software, and a Treasury‑Driven Funding model—will create a regenerative ecosystem that rewards builders, drives innovation, and ensures long‑term sustainability. And as a binary star system, Gitcoin and Allo.Capital will continue to support and amplify each other’s success.

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Learn More

Voting Options:

  • Yes: Allocate the full $2.0M to Allo.Capital for operational execution.
  • No: Do not fund this launch.
  • Abstain.
5 Likes
2

Welp, today is the day.

A few months ago, the temp checks were positive.

A few weeks ago, we announced Allo Capital to overwhelmingly positive sentiment.

But now that there is a budget attached, I am curious to see if stewards are more critical.

Here’s what I think of Allo.capital’s current course and speed.

Spinout Precedents

We have had other spinouts. Spinout precedents:

  1. KERNEL is one from 2021-22..
    • KERNEL used $500k in Gitcoin capital. We negotiated a token veto right and a handshake on 24% of a KERNEL token going to Gitcoin, as well as information rights. It is unclear exactly what course they are on and if they will ever launch a token or return financial value back to Gitcoin.
  2. Publicworks.fm (formerly pgDAO) is another from 2023.
    • Publicworks.fm spent somewhere between $400k and $1.4m of Gitcoin capital, depending on how you count. We are still hoping to paper their spinout terms 2 years later, and in the meantime, Gitcoin legally owns 100% of the IP. As a final destination, I think that 10% of the carry, and information rights, for Fund 1 and all future Funds is fair for that amount of startup capital. (a negotiation position about org-to-org economics, not a gtc representation)
  3. The Passport.xyz Spinout is the most recent.
    • It had more generous economics (nearly $3m in spinout capital when you include forward 12 months of revenues) and had a good outcome (which will be announced soon on2/10). Passport is by far our most forthright and successful spinout. So kudos to that team!

You can read more about these subDAOs and how their utility may flow back to GTC here.

I support Allo.capital spinout

I am in support of this proposal because I think it solves for some of our core challenges that Gitcoin has been facing circa late 2024.

Especially I think that systematically going multi-mechanism is going to create much more adoption, which will lead to more revenue/profit for the organization (and resources back to the gitcoin treasury, which gtc governs but has no economic claim on).

While informally I support this proposal, formally, I will be abstaining from voting. This is because I am part of the Allo capital team and abstaining from voting where there are conflicts of interest is a best practice in the governance manual.

How I think about the risk/reward of Allo.Capital

From 2017 to 2021, I was the CEO of a team that launched Gitcoin and brought Gitcoin Grants from 0 to 1.. we went from nothing to a household name worth $1billion FDV. In 2022, I passed the torch to a new generation of leaders.

Note worthy: we spent about as much $$$ on Gitcoin from 2017 to 2021 as Allo.Capital will have in seed funding in 2025. (though a dollar is admittedly worth about less these days due to inflation :P).

I would be honoured if the tokenholders of Gitcoin would grant me license to launch this subDAO, which could flow financial value back to the gitcoin treasury if successful (an organizational aspiration, not a promise, and not a gtc economic right). While I can’t promise anything, our aspiration is to return more value back to Gitcoin than we take! Just like passport did.

Resources for Further Diligence

Here are some links for anyone doing diligence on Allo.Capital who wants to see what we’ve been up to

  1. https://allo.capital/
  2. https://research.allo.capital/
  3. Allo.capital telegram
  4. Allo books

clarification (added 2026-08-04): this post was exploratory thinking shared for community debate, not an offer or a promise. gtc is a governance token with no economic rights, as it has been since launch in may 2021. finances discussed on the gov forum are those of gitcoin’s organizational entities. references to carry, spinout economics, and ‘value back to gitcoin’ describe negotiated organizational arrangements between entities; they are aspirations, not commitments, and confer nothing on gtc holders. dyor.

Disclaimer: This post is for informative purposes only and is not financial advice. This post reflects my personal views, not a decision or commitment by Gitcoin governance. Forward-looking items in it are targets, not commitments. The information in these posts is subject to change as we continue learning. This post may contain estimates, may contain errors, and is provided on a best-effort basis. DYOR, do not make any financial decisions based on these posts.

6 Likes
3

I am supportive of this budget request. Let me share the following in addition:

  1. As a steward, I feel that I have been consulted throughout the process and had various chances to speak with team members and have my specific questions about the split and what comes next answered.

  2. In terms of the budget itself, while this may appear to some as a large amount, I have always been supportive of giving teams ample runway to get going and buffer to weather any short- to medium-term adverse market conditions, should they appear. Launching a new protocol is not cheap, and this amount seems very much on par with what I’ve seen in other ecosystems

  3. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, I see this as positive sum and accretive for the Gitcoin ecosystem. Other posts have outlined the synergies of this split, so I won’t revisit them here.

godspeed and good luck!

6 Likes
4

Reimagining capital allocation for the internet is an ambitious goal we should pursue.

@ccerv1 makes excellent points about the importance of adequate runway and the positive-sum nature of this evolution.

A few aspects particularly stand out:

  • The binary star system approach makes sense - allowing Allo to focus on capital allocation innovation while maintaining strategic alignment with Gitcoin through equity/token arrangements.
  • The three-pillar model (Intelligence, Software, Fund) provides a good framework. The emphasis on composable tools and developer experience shows strong product thinking.

For this to succeed, I believe two elements will be critical:

  • Clear revenue milestones and timelines. As we build, having specific targets for protocol fees and token swap volumes will help us measure progress and adjust course as needed.
  • Focused execution on our most promising opportunities. The mission is ambitious - that’s good! But ruthless prioritization within our three pillars will be key to delivering tangible value quickly.

This feels like the right moment to give Allo.Capital the focus and resources needed to pursue this vision while maintaining strong alignment with Gitcoin.

2 Likes
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I support this request to create the necessary runway for Allo Capital to launch, scale and thrive. I strongly believe that Allo Capital’s success will be a huge driver in Gitcoin growth and create a flywheel between the two, driving funds to the most important needs within communities.

Some short thoughts and questions:

  • Allo Capital success will be driven by the community and enabling them to build with autonomy, clear direction, a strong financial support. Too many time has Moloch driven great builders to burnout, jadedness and an exit from the space.

  • Understanding what allocation mechanisms are needed across the DAO space for community and project managers can be a great starting point for Allo capital and ensure it’s building the right. tools. Currently all the mechanisms have been covered and compiled with books now it time to ask DAO to pick their favorites like a brochure or going to the ice cream shop. :yum:

  • I feel Allo Capital adopting a Trojan horse mentality in building tools for traditional capital allocators and creating fee mechanisms to then funnel into public goods and regenerative communities will be a core aspect fueling growth.

  • Curious to understand why the Treasury & Community Builds Funding are grouped together, they seem to me like separate categories.

All in all, excited to be apart of the future of Allo Capital and see its positive effects on the regen space!

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Shoutout @owocki for the meme

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Excited to see Allo expand; I support this!

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I am supportive of this budget request and look forward to working with the new Allo.capital team. I am supportive of @owocki and @deltajuliet 's leadership of Allo. It’s an exciting new design space and I hope that this spinout + funding sets it up well to seize the opportunities ahead.

2 Likes
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I’m supportive of this proposal!

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I am excited to see where Allo 2.2 goes, and interested to see if the thesis works on the sustainable ecosystem. We have been exploring and pining that outcome for a while :slight_smile:

This has my vote.

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Thanks for your support!

FYI We are still defining what Allo Protocol 2.2 looks like… and our strategy may not hinge on Allo Protocol as much as it did in the past. We are pivoting Allo from a protocol-first strategy to a category first strategy. Another way to put it: Allo.Capital is a superset of Allo Protocol. Allo.Capital will (if successful) have a fund, research, and technology pillar… and Allo Protocol will be on component of the technology pillar (along with AlloKit, AlloIRL, AlloOS, and a handful of other tools)..

Happy to walk you through more the strategy (and for everyone else checkout https://research.allo.capital which is everything were up to!)

Disclaimer: This post is for informative purposes only and is not financial advice. This post reflects my personal views, not a decision or commitment by Gitcoin governance. Forward-looking items in it are targets, not commitments. The information in these posts is subject to change as we continue learning. This post may contain estimates, may contain errors, and is provided on a best-effort basis. DYOR, do not make any financial decisions based on these posts.

1 Like