It's another great month for the Unlock community as we navigate the treacherous waters of web3! This past month, we've battled technical difficulties with our weekly meeting platform, Huddle, struggled through bizarre time-change complexity as half the world shifts an hour away from everyone else (for whatever strange reason we do that, nobody really seems to know anymore!), and we've finally gotten back on track with reaching quorum consistently for governance!

With that said, let's take a closer look at what's going on inside the DAO:

Governance

Active or Upcoming Proposals for Voting:

• DAO Communications Steward

• Retrofunding Content Contribution February 2026

• DAO Constant Payment Roll March and April

Approved Proposals:

• Unlock Protocol DAO Budget for Q1–Q2 2026

• Payment Roll DAO Constant January & February

• Customization of certification NFTs with EAS #2 - Update and payout

• Treasury Liquidity Management: 3 ETH Transfer to DAO Multisig for USDC Swap

Promotion, Engagement & Contributions

Incented is going live soon!

Stay tuned to Incented for the Unlock campaign to go live as soon as it is funded and preparations are completed.

Unlock Voices launched!

Anupa has organized our new contributor spotlight program, U Makes Us, showcasing the individuals who are leading in the DAO and building on top of Unlock. This program aims to highlight our contributors' projects and provide tangible examples of how others can use Unlock in their own projects. Check Discord for how to connect and participate in this new program. Project submissions are monitored in the showcase channel. Take a look at the first session and mark April 8th for the second one:

Community Activity

Check out Stella's recent blog post to catch up on all the community activity and projects integrating w/ Unlock. There are lots of exciting opportunities to get involved with, so don't hesitate to check them out!

To stay even more connected, we are currently utilizing Google Meet for community calls. Stella has updated the calendar invite and Discord Events to reflect the correct time now that everything's been thoroughly kerfluffled with the unfavorable time adjustment schema we just can't seem to get rid of! So make sure you've adjusted your internal awareness of when and where Unlock events occur, because depending on where you live, they may not be at the same time for you anymore!

We hope to find a permanent, decentralized solution for future community calls, but for now, we will continue to use what is available and reliable.

Current Action Items

Here's how you can get involved and prepare for the discussions coming up:

1. Vote on our onchain proposals via Tally or degov

2. Review the Discord DAO-Forum to add to the discussion on active topics

3. If you are an Unlock Community Member, don't hesitate to post in our showcase channel so we can shed some light on what you are building and how it uses the protocol!

4. Share our social media posts and engage with campaigns across X, Tik Tok, LinkedIn, YouTube, Farcaster—let's amplify our message together!

Thanks for following along, fellow locksmiths, and always remember:

Unlock isn't just a tool for access— it's a protocol for belonging.

Stay classy out there,

Trigs

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This collaboration between Unlock and Metopia begins with a simple belief: learning is work, attention has value, and communities grow faster when that effort is recognized.

It’s not about chasing hype. It’s about rewarding curiosity and effort!

It’s not about speed, but rather about follow-through. And it’s not about extracting value from users. It’s about building something that gives back as people engage. That belief has come alive through the Metopia × Unlock campaign, a two-month learning and exploration journey with a total reward pool of 300,000 UP governance tokens.

What This Campaign Is Really About

At first glance, it appears to be a classic rewards campaign. And yes, there are rewards. But that’s not the whole story.

It’s not “do this task and get paid.” It’s “learn how Unlock works, try it for yourself, and earn as you learn.” It’s not testing how fast you can click through pages. It’s inviting you to understand how onchain memberships, events, and communities actually work in practice.

Unlock brings the tools. Metopia brings a system that tracks real participation. Together, they have created a path where learning leads to proof, and proof leads to rewards.

How It Works

The campaign started on January 30th and will only go on until March 31, 2026. You are free to join at any time, but don't miss out on the chance to learn and earn!

FIRST STEPS

1. The first step is simple. You mint the Unlock Campaign Pass on the official campaign page. This pass unlocks everything else. Without it, you can browse, but you can’t earn.

2. Once you have the pass, the journey unfolds in a very human way. You start with the Unlock Academy. This is a set of six short learning guides that explain Unlock from the ground up. What it is, how it works, why people use it, and how memberships, events, certifications, and the DAO (the protocol's governing body) fit together.

3. Each guide you complete earns you Metopia XP. Finish the full academy, and you can mint the Unlock Scholar Badge. This badge is more than a graphic. It’s a clear signal that you took the time to learn the system from beginning to end.

4. From there, you move into individual quests.

QUESTS THAT MATCH REAL LIFE

The quests are not abstract; rather, they are tied to real behavior. You connect with Unlock by following its channels, joining community calls where discussions actually happen, completing the academy, interacting with Unlock onchain and verifying those actions.

Each quest rewards you instantly with UP and raffle tickets. Nothing is delayed. Nothing is hidden. It’s not about doing everything at once. It’s about choosing how deep you want to go.

DAILY WINS & LONGTERM REWARDS

The campaign offers two ways to win.

1. The first is the Daily Raffle. Every day, one winner takes the full prize pool for that day. The pool starts with 1,000 UP, funded by Unlock and Metopia, and grows as people buy raffle tickets. Each ticket costs 25 UP, and the more tickets you hold, the better your chances.

2. The second is the Grand Raffle at the end of the campaign. This is where long-term participation really matters. Grand Raffle tickets are earned through quests, not purchases. The total prize pool is 150,000 UP, distributed across many winners, so rewards don’t concentrate in just a few wallets.

Every draw is handled through a transparent, verifiable process. There are no hidden decisions, no manual picking, and no shortcuts.

Reputation Matters, But It’s Earned

One of Metopia’s key ideas is reputation. If your Metopia reputation score is 450 or higher, your quest rewards are doubled. That’s a benefit, not a requirement.

You can increase your reputation over time by staying active, completing missions, holding credentials, and participating across supported networks. It’s not something you buy. It’s something you build.

This creates balance. Long-time contributors are recognized, while new participants still have a clear path forward.

Why This Matters On Both Ends

For participants, we believe this is an opportunity to explore Unlock at a steady pace, earn along the way, and build a visible record of learning and contribution.

There’s no pressure to rush. No requirement to already be an expert. No expectation beyond showing up honestly. You can learn, explore, and decide how involved you want to be.

From Unlock’s side, this collaboration goes beyond exposure; it’s just one more way to help people learn how to actually use Unlock in a very interactive way!

It turns education into action. It creates clear signals of engagement that can’t be faked.

Participants don’t just leave with tokens. They leave with understanding, credentials, and a way to participate actively in a decentralized protocol's governance (using the tokens they earned). Many will go on to create events, launch memberships, or take part in governance.

That’s how we believe adoption lasts.

Coming Full Circle

Communities don’t grow because people are told to care. They grow because people are given the space to learn, the tools to act, and the recognition they deserve when they do.

The Metopia × Unlock campaign reflects that belief in a very grounded way. It rewards attention without demanding it. It values effort without dramatizing it. And it creates a clear path from curiosity to contribution.

In the end, that’s what this collaboration is about. Making learning visible. Making participation matter. And building something steady, together.

Until the next key turns!

GozmanGonzalez
Your Storyteller Locksmith

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That's what Unlock Protocol DAO members have been doing quietly, consistently, and across multiple continents. Here's a look at some of the community contributions that have been moving the needle, and why I believe they matter beyond the governance forum or Discord chats.

From Volunteerism to a Real Contributor Economy

For a long time, DAOs operated on goodwill. People contributed because they believed in the mission, but recognition, if not compensation, is needed for sustainability reasons. Unlock DAO officially changed that with the approval of the DAO Rewards System, an onchain framework that recognizes contributors fairly and transparently by granting token ownership to the protocol's governance.

By the way, contributions in Unlock DAO can look very different depending on your skills and future goals. Currently, you can:

• Contribute to the GitHub Repo. We have several bounties up and problems that need fixing, from tiny to medium.

• Contribute to the Marketing & Communication team under the Stewardship of Ceci Sakura. Add ideas and concrete content to our interim Spreadsheet here. Stay tuned for our upcoming collab with Incented by subscribing to this newsletter!

• And lastly: Built with Unlock. What needs to be solved that Unlock can help with? Unlock is open-source, and our docs can help you with your ideas.

The road to the heart of a DAO is versatile, and no one way needs to be yours. Mine has been on every end of this spectrum, and I have enjoyed every instance of it!

Real Projects. Real Adoption.

Let's dive a bit deeper into the last way to contribute to Unlock Protoco DAO: actually building with it, because the best proof of Unlock's value isn't a case study, it's a minted key. Taking action will always outrun talking about it. Let me introduce you to three more recent community builds that stood out to me:

Creative TV: Turning Attention Into a Liquid Asset

G2 Bracy spent years at the top of the music industry watching royalties disappear into a black box. His answer is Creative TV, a vertically integrated media economy on Base where AI eliminates production debt, fans trade creator equity via bonding curves, and revenue settles instantly through onchain vaults. 260 onchain members and verified DeFi loops already live. Five years of solo development. Zero permission asked.

→ Follow Creative TV's build at @creativecrtv

Creative TV

The Way Content Should Be.

https://tv.creativeplatform.xyz

Bloey: From Idea to Shippable UI in One Workspace

Bloey is a single AI-native workspace that takes you from a rough idea to a structured plan to a real, exportable UI without switching tools or writing code. Agents handle the planning, architecture, and styling. You just think, refine, and ship.

→ Try it at bloey.design

TheDesignIconoclast: Upgrading Unlock Certifications

TheDesignIconoclast submitted a PR that integrates the Ethereum Attestation Service (EAS) directly into Unlock's certification flow. The result: memberships will soon carry verifiable onchain attestations. They will be issued automatically, visible in the dashboard, and composable across the broader Ethereum ecosystem. A membership becomes a credential. A credential becomes infrastructure.​

→ Review the PR on GitHub: #16304

Finalizing My Thoughts With This:

Why does this matter?
Each contribution moves a protocol forward without a central authority directing it!

Here's the thing about contributor-led DAOs: they're hard to fake. You can't spin up a community contribution out of nowhere. All examples above exist because individual people decided Unlock Protocol was worth their time and creativity.

If you've been building with Unlock Protocol, contributing to the DAO, or even just showing up to weekly calls, this is your ecosystem too. You are one of us, and we are happy and excited to have you and hear from you!

DAO Member Anupa Dasgupta is working on launching a new attempt at doing Community Spotlights. Stay tuned for our announcement so you can apply once she officially launches this new initiative.

Truth be told, us DAO members, we are a weird and quirky mixed bunch of everything that is out there. But what unites us is a strong believe in decentralized and accessible technology that brings people together and grants ownership over these technologies. It is what makes DAOs beautiful and protocols not owned or built in silos, but built by the many.

Stay Unlocked & Be Inspired!

Stella ✨
Proud Unlock Protocol DAO Member

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This moment made me realize something profound: why isn't every membership, subscription, and ticket built like this?

Immediately, I noticed the difference I could no longer ignore. I started thinking about other places where access still feels fragile, temporary, and out of the user's control. I said to myself, this is a huge limitation. Isn't it?

Have You Ever Noticed How Little We Actually Own Online?

In today’s digital world, we subscribe to almost everything: streaming platforms, online courses, newsletters, fitness programs, creator communities, apps, events, and more. Yet despite all these subscriptions, we own absolutely nothing! Our access can be revoked anytime. Our data is controlled by platforms. Our loyalty doesn’t translate to ownership. And creators still struggle to build sustainable direct relationships with their audience.

And the truth is that, this is the unspoken crisis of the current digital membership economy where: Users are renters, not owners, and creators are tenants in platforms they don’t control.

The more time I spent at the event, and the more I paid attention to how Unlock worked, the more I felt like something bigger was happening. Not loudly, not all at once, but quietly. It wasn’t just about using NFTs or new tech. It was about a different way of thinking about access. One where people actually own what they pay for, creators aren’t trapped by platforms, and everything feels more open and transparent.

What Unlock made clear to me is that this shift isn’t just a technical upgrade. It’s a change in mindset away from renting access from platforms, and toward owning it, carrying it with you, and building real communities around it.

Why Traditional Systems Are Frustrating:

After the event, I found myself asking a simple question: why does this stuff always feel so messy? The more I thought about it, the clearer it became that most traditional membership and ticketing systems were built for an older version of the internet. They weren’t made for creators, global communities, or the way we actually show up online today. Because of that, users and creators end up putting up with flaws that really shouldn’t exist. Here are a few I have noticed over time:

1. Creators Don't Own Their Audience
   It always bothered me that creators work so hard to build their communities, yet they don’t really own them. Subscribers are tied to platforms, not to the people running the community. That means a platform shutting down, changing its rules, or even censoring content can instantly wipe out everything a creator has built. Watching this happen is frustrating, and it feels unfair to both the creator and the audience.

2. Users Don't Own Their Memberships
   Most of the time, a ticket or subscription is just temporary permission. You pay, and you get access, but it can be taken away at any moment. Basically, you can get locked out at any time.

3. Middlemen Take Too Much
   It often feels like everyone between the creator and the user is taking a slice. By the time access reaches the person who actually wants it, much of its value has disappeared. It never feels like a win for either side.

4. No Transparency For Anyone
   Most of the time, it's hard to know if what you're paying for is even real. Tickets can be fake, subscriptions confusing, and you're left guessing whether your access will actually work when you need it. You start double-checking emails, logging in and out, and asking yourself, did I even get what I paid for? This is actually frustrating, and it slowly builds this quiet anxiety every time you buy a ticket or sign up for a membership.

At the end of the day, the issue isn't subscriptions themselves. It's the fact that we don’t really own them, and we're rarely sure how much control we actually have. What makes the difference is having a system where creators can run their communities on their own terms, and people can truly own the access they pay for. That's what Unlock Protocol does. It removes the middlemen and the guesswork, giving you clear, verifiable access that's genuinely yours. With Unlock, access stops feeling rented and starts feeling like something you actually own.

The Unlock Advantage and Why All Of This Matters For You

What I discovered when I started using Unlock more fully, after experiencing it at the event, was that it goes far beyond event registration. Unlock can also be used to create access systems, memberships, recurring payments, and attendance credentials.

With Unlock, I began to see how flexible access could really be. The same system can handle memberships that renew automatically, learning spaces where every participant holds a verifiable digital key, and event access that feels intentional rather than improvised. Another thing that stood out to me wasn’t just these features, but how seamlessly everything is connected. It all runs on a shared, open foundation that isn't locked to any one platform.

Why all of this matters is simple. As a creator, you can truly own your audience. You no longer have to worry that what you’ve built could be wiped out overnight; you can finally build with confidence. For users like me, tickets and subscriptions are no longer temporary permissions. You don’t have to live with the fear that your access can be revoked at any moment. And for communities looking to grow without being locked into platforms, what I experienced at the Lagos event wasn’t an exception; it was an invitation to build differently.

I use Unlock every day, and honestly, it makes everything feel simpler. Every membership, every course, every event feels easier and more reliable because of it. If you’ve been wondering what it’s like, I’d say give it a try. You might be surprised by how much it changes your thinking about owning access and being part of a community.

Until next time, stay curious!

Robert ✨
Unlock Protocol DAO Guest Writer

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Welcome to the February edition of the 2026 Unlock DAO newsletter! It's been a wild month, but don't worry if you missed the action. This update covers the DAO's ongoing journey to navigate governance challenges, new tools for community engagement and contribution, and exciting partnerships taking shape. As always, the Unlock community continues to build, experiment, and push forward.

Let's dive in!

Governance

The Quest for Quorum

If you've been following the DAO calls, you've heard the term "quorum" come up more than a few times. Here's the situation: Unlock's governance requires 3 million tokens as a minimum "quorum" to pass proposals, and recent changes to token delegation have made hitting that threshold more challenging. A large number of tokens have been inadvertently delegated to inactive wallets, and previously active voting wallets have reduced their participation. This is everyday business for DAOs!

A key clarification emerged during recent discussions: For and Abstain votes count toward quorum, while Against votes do not. This distinction matters as the DAO explores solutions.

Two paths are currently being evaluated:

1. Multi-delegation from treasury — Danny is working with Julien on a contract that would allow the treasury to delegate voting power to active stewards and/or community leaders. Stella quickly fixed up a leaderboard based on the Tally API to verify voter participation:

   

2. Treasury abstains from voting — The treasury could vote Abstain on proposals to help reach a quorum without influencing the outcome. This approach has been discussed as a way to preserve trust while addressing the participation problem, but it is short-term because it creates security concerns during execution and adds overhead from coordination time.

If neither solution proves sufficient, a future proposal to lower the quorum threshold remains on the table, as do other potential solutions raised by active community members.

The Q1/Q2 2026 Budget Proposal was live on Tally and saw record voter turnout thanks to community mobilization efforts. Progress is being made, but a quorum couldn't be reached! Join the discussion on our Discord.

Promotion, Engagement & Contributions

Metopia

Two platforms are now live to help community members engage with and contribute to Unlock:

Metopia launched as a learn-and-earn platform where users can complete quizzes about Unlock Protocol and earn UP token rewards. It's a straightforward way to onboard newcomers while rewarding existing community members for deepening their knowledge.

Incented

The Incented campaign is moving forward for short-form video content creation, funded by leftover Carrot Castle resources. The structure:

• USDC rewards for content creators

• UP token rewards for voters who curate quality submissions

• Hidden voting to prevent popularity contests

• Carrot/stick mechanism — correct votes are rewarded, incorrect votes face slashing

A.I. virality scoring tools are being discussed to help creators gauge content quality before submission (with a 50% threshold as a benchmark). Office hours have been proposed to support participants through the process. Join the discussion on Discord and share your ideas & feedback!

A potential synergy: Metopia course completion could eventually gate Incented submissions, ensuring contributors have baseline protocol knowledge and brand alignment. This is collaborate2win optionality that DAOs do best!

Partnerships & Collaborations

• CELO x GreenGoods
  A co-marketing campaign is in development with the GreenPill DevGuild team. Their app, GreenGoods, tracks regenerative actions and uses Unlock for certification. More details in the collaboration document.

• Phoenix Gate App
  The Phoenix Gate NFC scanner app for iOS and Android is soon ready for community testing. Stella & Karel created the app together. This completes the mobile tooling needed for the Digital Spender's Club collaboration and burner.pro integration planned for 2026 events.

• Merch Store Proposal
  ALANA has proposed taking over management of Unlock merchandise through an immersive 3D boutique experience (currently ~65-70% complete). The community is invited to review and provide feedback in the merch store forum thread.

Community Spotlights

• Danny — P2E Inferno & Teerex
  P2E Inferno recently integrated CELO and Good Dollar verification and is running gaming tournaments, including Call of Duty Mobile and chess competitions. Teerex, his event ticketing platform built on Unlock, focuses on live event scheduling and is seeking additional community testers to try the platform and provide feedback.

• Disky.eth — FigClank Studio
  FigClank Studio is a Web3 design tool (think Figma alternative) with Farcaster integration. Plans are underway for the Unlock integration, including temporary subscriptions and membership lending features. Alpha testers welcome.

  

• WillT — TreeGens & KF Media
  The TreeGens Ambassador Program has minted 247 keys across 244 unique holders, resulting in 100 Unlock certificates launching on Base. KF Media now has a dedicated marketing team and participated in the CreatorFi Accelerator.

• Thibault — Octant Integration
  Research into Octant's staking and donation model identified opportunities to integrate membership to incentivize staker participation. A proposal has been pitched to the Octant team; response pending.

Current Action Items

Here's how you can get involved and prepare for the discussions coming up:

1. Vote on our onchain proposals via Tally or degov

2. Review the following topics to add to the discussion:

   • DAO Token Delegation discussion

   • Incented campaign design and participation

   • Merch store proposal

   • Trigs' Communications Steward proposal

3. If you are an Unlock Community Member, don't hesitate to post in our spotlight channel so we can shed some light on what you are building on and with the protocol!

4. Share our social media posts and engage with campaigns across X, Tik Tok, LinkedIn, YouTube, Farcaster—let's amplify our message together!

Thanks for following along, fellow locksmiths, and always remember:

Unlock isn't just a tool for access— it's a protocol for belonging.

Stay classy out there, Trigs

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1. 1.1 million fans, 150,000 seats, and a system that crumbles underneath the centralized pressure and greed.

In late January, ticket sales for three BTS concerts at Estadio GNP Seguros in Mexico City turned into a stress test for the entire concert ticketing model. Around 1.1 million people reportedly queued online for about 150,000 available tickets, and the shows sold out in under 40 minutes.

Instead of celebration, the aftermath was dominated by reports of system crashes, fans locked out of presales they were eligible for, pricing inconsistencies, and screenshots of physical box‑office lines that contradicted the promised rules. Mexico’s consumer watchdog, Profeco, received thousands of complaints, opened proceedings against Ticketmaster, and announced sanctions against resale platforms for “abusive and unfair practices,” while Mexico's president, Sheinbaum, herself publicly asked South Korea for more BTS dates.

This story is not unique to BTS, but its scale makes the core problem impossible to ignore.

Under The Chaos

To oversee the chaos this has caused, let's first understand who has been in charge of what, so the problem becomes more obvious:

BTS signed an agreement with the local promoter OCESA, and OCESA then hired Ticketmaster Mexico to run the ticket sales infrastructure. That means OCESA is the direct organizer of the shows; Ticketmaster is the ticketing provider, and BTS sits at the top of that chain, with very limited visibility into the technical decisions that shaped ARMY’s experience in Mexico.

The unspoken truth about centralized systems is more painful for users and consumers than ever before: They are opaque and often use extractive mechanisms since no consequences are feared.

When you strip away the headlines from the most recent incident, most of the frustration from Mexican BTS fans came down to three structural issues rather than just a generated excuse that read: “too much demand.”

• Opaque Access Rules
  ARMY members who had paid for memberships and followed every step still saw messages stating that the sale was only for registered fans, and many could not even enter the waiting room.​

• Black-Box Pricing
  Tickets officially ranged from roughly 1,800 to 17,800 pesos, but dynamic pricing and add‑on fees made final costs unpredictable and hard to verify.

• Resale Extraction
  On secondary markets, listings shot up to over 90,000 pesos, turning tickets into a speculative asset where intermediaries captured most of the value.

Technically, these are solvable problems: they are questions of who sets the rules, how those rules are enforced, and who can audit what happened after the fact.

What ARMY Actually Asked For

If you read through fan reports and watch numerous TikTok videos, you can almost treat them as unsolicited product feedback for a better ticketing stack.

Fans were not really asking for much from a consumer point of view. They asked for clear numbers on how many tickets go to fan presales, the general public, sponsors, and partners.​ They asked for a system that allows them to verify the former, more specifically, a queue system that can be checked, not just trusted, so people know they weren’t silently skipped by bots or privileged accounts.​

One of the biggest yet most understandable asks concerns ticket resale and pricing predictability. In secondary markets, listings shot up to over 90,000 pesos, turning tickets into a speculative asset in which intermediaries captured most of the value. In response, Mexican ARMY has not asked for "better" resale. On the contrary, they have repeatedly called for no resale at all for these shows and are demanding that any tickets sold outside official channels be investigated.

Instead of accepting scalping as inevitable, fan unions are pushing Profeco and other authorities to investigate possible internal manipulation during presales that could have favored resellers over the fandom, providing screenshots and technical evidence to back their claims.

These are exactly the kinds of guarantees that centralized Web2 platforms struggle to provide, because so much logic lives in private databases and proprietary queues.

What ARMY Has Already Done

Mexican ARMY has moved far beyond posting complaints. They have:

• Flooded Profeco with more than 4,000–4,700 emails and documents asking for intervention and full transparency from OCESA and Ticketmaster.

• Launched petitions to remove Ticketmaster from concert ticketing in Mexico and to open a broader investigation into how the resale ecosystem is tied to primary sales.

• Organized peaceful marches to Profeco offices to demand answers and concrete sanctions, framing this as a consumer‑rights issue that goes beyond one fandom.

Some groups have gone further, launching highly visible "revenge" campaigns against scalpers, exposing reseller accounts and creatively spamming their contact details, while also filing formal requests for an inter‑agency investigation into the entire ticketing and resale system in Mexico. Check out the latest updates here:

What Protocol‑Based Ticketing Can Offer Fans

For fans, the biggest shift with protocol‑based ticketing is that the rules stop living in a black box and start living in code on a public blockchain that anyone can read. Instead of relying on a single company's queue or database, fans can see how many tickets are available, how they are allocated among ARMY presale, bank presale, and general sale, and what rules apply to transfers.

In a setup utilizing Unlock Protocol, every ticket is an onchain pass with rules that can be locked in from day one:

• fixed presale allocations that are visible onchain (for example, “X% for ARMY Membership, Y% for general sale”)​

• hard per‑person purchase limits enforced by the contract instead of “hoping” Ticketmaster applies them correctly​

• clear, programmable pricing logic so prices cannot quietly jump without everyone being able to audit when and how it happened.​

Crucially, this does not mean fans are forced into resale. If a fandom like ARMY wants zero resale, the contract can simply disable transfers so tickets cannot be resold at all. If a community prefers "strict but allowed" resale later, organizers can add time‑based rules, price caps, or royalties agreed with the fans and the artist.

Because all of this lives on an open protocol, fan communities can run their own checks after a sale: Did ARMY really get the presale share they were promised? How many tickets ended up concentrated in a few wallets? Did prices follow the announced rules? Over time, that kind of transparency gives fandoms leverage to negotiate better deals—and even propose organizing future shows with more direct control over ticketing. In short: the solution already exists!

What's Next?

Mexico’s regulators are already responding with investigations, fines, and promises of clearer guidelines for concerts and festivals, putting OCESA, Ticketmaster, and major resale platforms under the microscope.

A protocol‑based approach offers a path in which the critical rules are moved into the open, using programmable contracts that artists, promoters, regulators, and fans can all see and, over time, help shape.

Tools like Unlock are not a magic wand, but they give organizers the building blocks to make ticketing more transparent, auditable, and aligned with the communities that sustain live music in the first place. After BTS Mexico, it is hard to argue that we do not need that experiment.

Stay Unlocked & Be Inspired!

Stella ✨
Proud Unlock Protocol DAO Member

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Happy New Year! As we kick off 2026, the first newsletter of the year serves double duty:

A look back at everything we accomplished in 2025 and a look at the road ahead.

Our first DAO call of the year was a 2025 Wrapped celebration where community members shared highlights and reflected on the work that brought us to where we are today. It was also a moment of transition, with significant announcements about leadership changes and DAO funding that will shape how we operate going forward.

2025 tested the resilience of the Web3 space, and Unlock Protocol DAO proved it has what it takes to grow in the face of adversity. Dedicated contributors ushered in strategic collaborations, and as a community, we marched forward to new levels of decentralization; we've built something worth being proud of! Now, as we step into 2026, the DAO is poised to take full ownership of its future in new and exciting ways.

Let's dig into what happened and what's next.

Unlock Labs Foundation

• Unlock Labs Funding Update: Julien shared that Unlock Labs has reached the end of its runway and will no longer be able to fund DAO operations beyond January 2026. The protocol itself remains fully decentralized and onchain—it doesn't need Labs to function.

• Foundation Wind-Down: The Unlock Labs Foundation will be dissolved later this year, as it no longer serves a purpose that justifies the operational cost. When this happens, approximately 40% of the token supply currently held by the Foundation will transfer to the DAO treasury, providing long-term resources for community-driven development.

• Decentralization Milestone: These changes represent a significant step toward full decentralization. There's never been a more accessible entry point for new participants to get involved in governance and help shape Unlock's direction.

DAO Operations Updates

• Stella's Transition: After nearly two years of dedicated stewardship, Stella is not renewing her Steward role in order to return focus to her own project, The ALANA Project, as it approaches key stages of growth. She will continue as a community contributor, seeing through the collaborations and integrations she initiated. Under Stella's leadership, the DAO guidelines have been completed to a point that will ensure continued DAO operations without her direct hand.

• Content Contribution System: The Charmverse-based contribution system is evolving to Incented, a platform that will enable more decentralized content curation where the community—not a single reviewer—decides which contributions rise to the top.

• Collaboration Updates: The DAO built meaningful partnerships throughout the year with Hats Community, Carrot Castle, Crypto Sapiens, PizzaDAO, and Burner Pro. These collaborations demonstrated Unlock's utility across diverse use cases and communities.

Marketing Updates

• RUMS Collaboration Momentum: The Rise Up Morning Show partnership continues to deliver. A recent TikTok livestream generated strong engagement, with viewers sending coins that can be used for Unlock TikTok advertising. RUMS headquarters is building a scholarship program using Unlock memberships, demonstrating practical utility for the protocol.

• Channel Growth: YouTube analytics show steady growth, and a comprehensive statistics report across all channels is in development for the next DAO call. Gozman now manages the X (Twitter) account, while Jonathan handles TikTok alongside LinkedIn.

• Celo Campaign: Active conversations with Celo's marketing manager are expected to produce a collaborative campaign in the near future.

• Content Contributors: Four contributors from different communities are now actively creating content, including memes and threads for X and Farcaster. Video content for TikTok and YouTube Shorts remains a gap that Incented will help address.

• Social Media Team: Ceci continues leading marketing efforts, supported by contributors including Louis, Mani, Gozman, and Soho.

Finances & Resources

• ApeBond/ichi Vault Success: The transfer of UP tokens to the ICHI vault will be establishing sustainable DAO-owned liquidity through collaboration, creating an ongoing revenue stream.

• Gitcoin Campaigns: Two successful Gitcoin rounds in 2025 delivered over 10k in funding for the DAO.

• Budget Management: Andreu and the Steward Council refined budgeting processes throughout the year, establishing healthier financial oversight.

• Ninja Promo: The marketing agency partnership contributed significantly to the DAO's marketing capabilities throughout 2025.

Technology and Innovation

• FarCon Rome: Interest continues in using Unlock for ticketing infrastructure at the May 2026 Farcaster conference.

• Community One Bot: The Discord support bot saw mixed reception—some find it invaluable for quick answers when no one's online, while others find it intrusive. Overall, it's handling support queries effectively.

• GitHub issue reporting and feature suggestions are live with incentives for contributions to resolve and improve the protocol.

Current Action Items

Here's how you can get involved and prepare for the discussions coming up:

1. Vote on our onchain proposals via Tally or degov

2. Review the following topics to add to the discussion:

   • Merch store proposal —share your feedback in the Discord thread

   • Incented content contribution program design

   • Community feedback on the path forward for 2026

3. If you are an Unlock Community Member, don't hesitate to post in our spotlight channel so we can shed some light on what you are building on and with the protocol!

4. Share our social media posts and engage with campaigns across X, Tik Tok, LinkedIn, YouTube, Farcaster—let's amplify our message together!

Thanks for following along, fellow locksmiths, and always remember:

Unlock isn't just a tool for access— it's a protocol for belonging.

Stay classy out there, Trigs

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How It Started

When I first started looking for access solutions, I ran into the same problem over and over again: too many platforms, each with its own rules and limits, all centralized. These centralized tools force fragmentation: one platform for courses, another for events, another for memberships. Everything is not only fragmented, but also expensive and impractical.

With Unlock, all of that changed for me.

What I discovered is that Unlock is not just a proof-of-attendance or a digital certificate system in the form of NFTs; it is also a complete infrastructure for creating access, memberships, recurring payments, and attendance credentials all in one place. That means with the same tool, I can launch a membership for my community, sell tickets to an in-person event, provide access to an online course, or issue digital keys as certificates of attendance. And all of this without depending on a middleman or a company that might change the rules on me overnight.

How I Use Unlock Now

With Unlock, I manage memberships that renew automatically, run courses where every student has their digital key, issue unique credentials for events we host at Happ3n, and even set up VIP access with no hassle. What’s most surprising is that all of this runs on the same infrastructure, an infrastructure that is open, interoperable, and works across multiple blockchains. In short: a key in Unlock isn’t just a ticket, it’s a digital passport that opens many doors.

One of the things that hooked me the most was how automated everything is and how strong the culture of community support is. For example, through the Unlock Discord bot or simply by asking in the community, someone is always there to help. If a subscription expires, access is automatically revoked. That alone has saved me countless hours of manual work and lets me focus on what truly matters: creating experiences and adding value to my community. The same applies to courses and events: people get access seamlessly, and I don’t have to check lists or manually approve entries.

The power of Unlock lies in the fact that, like all good infrastructure and new technology, it often goes unnoticed.

People who join my courses or attend events don’t think about how it works; they know they have a digital key that opens the door. That invisibility is precisely what makes it so powerful: it doesn’t compete with creators or try to steal the spotlight; it simply enables everything to happen securely, quickly, and without friction.

The Freedom To Build & Create

After all these years of using Unlock's technology, I realize that what Unlock offers me is not only convenience, but also freedom.

Freedom to build without asking permission, to connect with my community directly, to grow at my own pace. The keys and access I generate belong to me and my community. That sovereignty is at the heart of Web3, and Unlock understands it perfectly.

During this time, I’ve seen hackathons, DAOs, festivals, and media outlets adopt it too. Each uses it differently: some for event tickets, others for private memberships, others for newsletters or subscriptions. That’s the beauty of it, you can use it however you want.

It also means that if someone already has an Unlock key, they can use it across different projects and applications. It’s interoperable and runs on multiple blockchains, a massive difference from traditional solutions that always lock you into their walled gardens.

I often describe Unlock as the invisible engine that powers other projects. Unlock doesn’t sell you a finished product; it gives you the foundation to build whatever you want. And that foundation is solid, secure, and scalable.

It doesn’t matter if you’re serving ten people or ten thousand—the infrastructure performs the same. And it does so without friction, without unnecessary steps, and with an experience that feels simple. Creating a "lock" (what they call an access contract) is as easy as filling out a form and clicking "confirm."

Another thing I really value is that you don’t need to be a technical expert to start. Yes, we all know there are smart contracts and complex logic underneath, but the interface makes it intuitive to use. That opens the door for more creators, educators, organizers, and communities to use it without fear of the technical side. At first, I thought it might be complicated, but I quickly realized that Unlock works hard to make the complex invisible and easy.

Looking back, I think about how much more complicated things would have been if I hadn’t found Unlock. Today, I can’t imagine running my community without it. Access, memberships, courses, and events just flow, and participants enjoy a smooth, direct experience. For me, that’s the biggest value: everything feels simple, even though there’s a powerful machine running underneath.

Unlock reminds me every day of Web3’s true promise: to return power to creators and communities, and to do it on open infrastructure that isn’t controlled by a single company setting the rules. That sovereignty is why I keep trusting this tool after nearly two years.

If you’ve never tried Unlock, you might be surprised by everything you can do with just one digital key. And if you’ve heard of it before but thought it was only for access NFTs, I invite you to look deeper: it is infrastructure for growing communities, creating new experiences, and shaping a future where access isn’t fragmented or controlled by someone else.

I use it all the time, and I can assure you that Unlock works brilliantly and powerfully behind every membership, every course, and every event. If you’re ready to explore it for your own project, I recommend giving it a try.

You can start here: https://unlock-protocol.com

Keys that unlock doors to authentic communities

Sohobiit ᵕ̈
Co-Founder of Happ3n XYZ and Cabin Crew Member at Unlock DAO

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DAO Members propose new ideas through proposals and vote on them to help the protocol be future-proof. However, aside from DAO Members, we also have DAO Contributors, Ambassadors, and Stewards. These members have dedicated additional resources and time to the ever-evolving future of Unlock Protocol.

Today, we’re shining the spotlight on one of us, a passionate educator and creative builder in the Unlock community: Will T.

Who is Will T?

A lot of individuals slow down after retirement, but not Will T.

After many years of success in Corporate America and a successful business career, he decided to step away in 2020, just about the time the world seemed to stop. While most people were learning to live under lockdown, Will T was opening a new chapter of his life. Curiosity took him straight into the world of blockchain.

"After retiring, I began to put time into studying the blockchain ecosystem around March 2020," he said.

"Fast-forward to today, I'm an education maxi and founder of KFMEDIA℠, building a model for regenerative learning."

Will's introduction to Unlock DAO had come via perhaps the most natural avenue possible: conversation. During one of the Let's GROW Live sessions, Stella  (Lead Steward for Unlock at the time) dropped in, looking for someone to help onboard and educate individuals about Unlock. Will responded instantly, “Let’s see what this is all about and where I can help.”

The instinct to jump in and contribute is what makes him a valued community member in Unlock.

Will T describes himself as “more of an ambassador,” and that couldn’t be more fitting. Will doesn’t just represent Unlock in words; he means it in action. He shows up, contributes where it matters, and brings others along with him.

He is currently bridging the gap between education and onchain tooling, all while sharing ideas of how learning systems can thrive within decentralized communities. He has a patient, people-centered approach: he builds while teaching and teaches while building.

And that's what makes Will T a reflection of Unlock's spirit: an open door, an outstretched hand, and the honest will to help others grow together with him.

I asked him to describe Unlock in one sentence. He stated without hesitation:

“One-stop-shop for event ticketing, attendee management, subscriptions, memberships, and online certification.”

It felt simple, straightforward, and honest. In those few words, he captured the essence of Unlock's mission: making onchain access painless for creators and their communities.

Will says that his time in the DAO has been practical and personal.

"It's allowed me to understand more about the product suite that we can leverage within my company, and interaction with various community members have allowed me to unlock my creativity."

This is the kind of spark that keeps the Unlock ecosystem alive, builders learning from builders, learners turning into builders, all under one roof.

Here is something not so obvious about Will: he is a home chef and has been perfecting his craft for the last fifteen years.

Whether he's stirring a sauce or developing a learning model, he brings the same patience and precision to the process. Both require balance, timing, and a touch of experimentation, and both end up feeding others in one way or another.

Words for Newcomers

If you’re just stepping into Unlock DAO, Will’s advice is straightforward:

“Find a lane to swim in, apply to a working group, and take action on what you can influence.”

It's practical wisdom from someone who's lived it. Here, progress is not perfection; it's participation.

Get in Touch with Will T

If you’d like to connect, collaborate, or just share ideas about education and onchain communities, you can find Will T here, but most frequently on X:

• X

• Farcaster

• LinkedIn

Until the next key turns!

GozmanGonzalez
Your Storyteller Locksmith

Want to get Spotlighted?

Are you part of the Unlock Protocol DAO, or have you built something with the protocol? We would love to feature you and your project to reach a larger audience! Fill out this form to apply, and you may just be selected. To maintain complete transparency, we only release one spotlight per month.

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Welcome to another exciting update of Unlock activity!

Things keep progressing with global travel, new connections, and new integrations as Unlock continues to position itself as a key player in the move towards decentralized infrastructure. Accomplishing this requires technological innovations as well as social ones, and the Unlock Protocol DAO is meeting both needs as more teams onboard to build on the protocol, as well as more leaders onboard to manage it.

Keep reading to find out all the juicy details and get a sneak peek at what's been going on behind the curtain at Unlock!

Development Updates

• Protocol development maintained steady progress despite team members traveling for DevConnect, with ongoing focus on infrastructure optimization and user experience improvements

• Multiple integration projects advanced, including enhanced data visualization tools and contract naming initiatives designed to make wallet interactions more intuitive

• Technical groundwork continued for upcoming features that will expand Unlock's capabilities in the Web3 membership ecosystem

DAO Operations Updates

DevConnect Buenos Aires: Record Attendance and New Connections
DevConnect Buenos Aires marked Unlock's largest event presence to date, with approximately 15,000 attendees across multiple venues. Launching the first Ethereum World's Fair, the event created an extensive Web3 gathering throughout Argentina. Ceci led volunteer coordination, managing over 200 volunteers across the multi-day event.

The team established connections with multiple projects and enterprises, laying the groundwork for future integrations.

Treasure Corp Treasury Management Partnership
The DAO formalized its collaboration with Treasure Corp, as seen on the LinkedIn announcement. The platform provides enhanced dashboard transparency and group signature functionality for treasury management. This tooling arrives at a pivotal moment as market conditions require budget recalibration.

Burner Pro NFC Scanner Progress
Burner Pro advanced the NFC scanner app for the Digital Spender's Club collaboration. The Android version is functional. The iOS version reached 98% completion before encountering additional Apple NFC gating requirements. Once complete, this tool will enable Digital Spender's Club to run multiple events with Unlock-powered memberships on Burner Pro cards throughout 2026.

Holiday Karaoke Community Event
Planning has solidified for the Holiday Karaoke event, designed as a focused alternative to last year's full advent calendar. Jose Cabrera will provide musical accompaniment. Participants are encouraged to prepare YouTube links for their song selections, with options for solo or group performances.

Governance Updates

• Community Dashboard: Implementation delayed but development continues, with a refined scope and timeline

• P2E Inferno: Approved through governance, with the first deliverable now live

• EAS Integration: Project approved and progress started, but requires a new proposal for actual funding allocation due to technical oversight on the original proposal

Marketing Updates

Metopia Collaboration Launched
The Metopia partnership officially launched, with the platform ready for content population and quest development. The first quiz went live November 20th, marking the beginning of structured community engagement through the platform.

Merchandise Strategy and Sustainable Design
The DAO launched a thoughtful merchandise approach centered on quality and longevity. Stella designed limited-edition items, including a t-shirt featuring "Locksmith DNA" - an informational graphic telling the community's story through structured design and muted colors.

The merch will be available exclusively through pre-order, with production beginning only after 30 units are committed. This approach prioritizes conscious production over excess inventory, reflecting Unlock's values around sustainability and intentional community building.

Treasure Corp Collaboration Campaign
Following the treasury management partnership, a collaborative marketing campaign with Treasure Corp is beginning, showcasing the integration and its benefits for DAO treasury operations.

Finances & Resources

Gitcoin Funding
The DAO participated in a Gitcoin funding round, securing resources for continued open-source development. The team identified opportunities for improvement in future rounds including earlier coordination between operations and finance teams, more cohesive strategies, and enhanced 1:1 outreach.

Q1 and Q2 2026 Budget Preparation
Financial planning for the first half of 2026 was completed, incorporating lessons from November's market volatility and security incident for a member of the community. The updated budgets reflect more conservative projections while maintaining support for critical development and community initiatives.

Technology and Innovation

Event Ticketing Platform MVP
Danni released an event ticketing platform MVP built on Unlock Protocol, designed to rival Eventbrite and Luma with Web3-native features. The platform showcases practical applications of Unlock's membership capabilities with clean design aesthetics.

Contract Naming Initiative
The DAO is exploring participation in Enscribe's ENS naming program for smart contracts. This initiative would make Unlock contracts more recognizable and less intimidating in wallet signature requests. The program offers a pool of 10,000 ENS tokens for participating projects, with potential rewards split between DAO treasury and contributing developers.

EAS Integration Progress
theDesignIconoclast is progressing the first step for Ethereum Attestation Service (EAS) integration project, after successful initial funding via Giveth Campaign, adding attestation capabilities to the protocol. While the project received governance approval, a new proposal is required to allocate actual financing due to a technical oversight in the proposal. The project has an expanded scope, and details can be found on the Discord Forum post.

Current Action Items

Here's how you can get involved and prepare for the discussions coming up:

1. Vote on our onchain proposals via Tally or degov

2. Review the following topics to add to the discussion:

   • Community dashboard implementation timeline and features (link TBD)

   • Time zone accommodation proposals for DAO call scheduling

   • EAS Integration with Unlock

   • P2E Inferno

3. Participate in the Metopia platform quizzes and quests as they launch

4. If you are an Unlock Community Member, don't hesitate to post in our spotlight channel so we can shed some light on what you are building on and with the protocol!

5. Share our social media posts and engage with campaigns across X, Tik Tok, LinkedIn, YouTube, Farcaster—let's amplify our message together!

Thanks for following along, fellow locksmiths, and always remember:

Unlock isn't just a tool for access— it's a protocol for belonging.

Stay classy out there,
Trigs

Join Us:

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"The first time I used Unlock Protocol, it clicked for me. I wasn’t just buying access to something, I was holding a key. A real, onchain key that couldn’t be taken away by a platform or hidden behind a fine print."

It felt different. Safer. Fairer. And it made me realize that the way we’ve been doing memberships online all these years, with passwords, credit cards, and middlemen, is long overdue for change.

That change is onchain memberships. And no one is building them better than Unlock.

Memberships That Actually Belong to You

Most of us have experienced the frustration of traditional memberships:

• Forget your password and you’re locked out.

• Your card expires, and access is suddenly gone.

• A platform shuts down, and your subscription disappears with it.

All of that happens because the membership isn’t really yours. It’s tied to a company’s server. They decide the rules, and you just rent space.

Unlock flips this old narrative. With Unlock, your membership is an NFT key that "lives" in your wallet. You hold it. You control it. You can even take it with you if you move to a new platform.

It’s like the difference between renting an apartment and owning a home. Renting gives you access, but the landlord makes the rules. Ownership gives you security and freedom.

How Unlock Makes It Simple

When people hear “onchain,” they sometimes imagine it’s complicated or technical. But Unlock has worked hard to make it simple.

Here’s what happens when a creator, developer, community organizer or anyone else uses Unlock:

1. They create a "lock" (deploy a code-free smart contract) that defines the membership terms and functions.

2. They issue keys, or their community can mint NFT passes directly from the contract (lock).

3. The key is minted either to the user's wallet or to their email, but it can also be airdropped to either by the lock creator (and any additional lock managers that can be set).

That’s it. Once the key is in your wallet, you’re in—no middleman, no endless sign-ups, no passwords to reset.

And because it’s programmable, those keys can do more than just “open the door.” They can also:

• Unlock private Discord and Telegram channels.

• Give discounts on future purchases.

• Double or be an event ticket, certification, recurring subscription, product, and more.

• Serve as your identity across different platforms.

Unlock makes what used to feel like a boring subscription into something alive, portable, and customizable.

Communities Built to Last

One of the most powerful things about Unlock is how it strengthens communities.

• A writer who uses Unlock can keep their readers even if they leave Substack or Medium. Readers carry their keys with them.

• A musician can sell concert tickets directly to fans, without ticket scalpers or service fees.

• A DAO can use a single key for both membership verification and voting rights, all in one system.

In every case, the community becomes more resilient because it isn’t tied to a single platform. The keys stay with the people, not the companies.

This matters. Platforms come and go. Servers crash. Rules change. But an onchain membership issued through Unlock doesn’t vanish. It belongs to the member as long as they hold the key.

Why It’s the Future

We live in a world where identity and belonging are increasingly digital. People join communities online the way they used to join local clubs or associations.

But the tools we’ve had so far have been inadequate. They’ve treated memberships like recurring payments, not like relationships.

Unlock says:

• Memberships should be portable.

• Members should own their access.

• Communities should not be at the mercy of centralized platforms.

And once you see that, it’s hard to unsee it. Why would anyone go back to the old way once they’ve experienced the freedom of holding their own key?

Unlock in Action

What I love most is that Unlock isn’t just an idea, it’s already being used every day.

• Event Ticketing
  Organizers are selling tickets on-chain through Unlock’s EVENTS tool, proving that ticketing doesn’t need middlemen.

• Communities:
  Unlock communities to use keys for governance, rewarding contributors, and managing access to calls or forums.

• Creators:
  Writers, artists, and educators issue memberships that travel with their audiences, free from platform lock-in.

Each use case shows the same thing: when people hold the keys, the community becomes stronger.

Looking Ahead

We’re still early, but the direction is clear. In the same way email became the universal tool for communication, onchain memberships are becoming the universal tool for access and belonging.

Unlock isn’t just about building infrastructure; it’s about shaping the culture around it. A culture where members don’t just pay, they participate. Where access isn’t rented, it’s owned, where communities are free to grow without fear of being shut down.

That’s why onchain memberships aren’t just the future. They’re the fair, sustainable, people-powered future we’ve been waiting for.

And with Unlock, that future is already here.

Until the next key turns!

GozmanGonzalez
Your Storyteller Locksmith

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Teaser: Rise Up Livestream → Real Life Adventure

If you caught our segment on the Rise Up Morning Show with Evan Mann, you’ve already seen that we’re kicking off new marketing initiatives and opening the doors to more outward-facing magic. Now, it’s time to make that energy real at Devconnect, November 17–22 at La Rural, Buenos Aires. Mark your calendars—starting Saturday the 15th, our community quests are LIVE and you’ll find the three of us everywhere, especially at the sub0 event this Saturday.​​

Merch Quests: Four Ways to Win

Starting November 15th, 2025

In celebration of our upcoming Unlock DAO Merch Store opening at the beginning of December, we decided to gift away some of it during Devconnect through a playful questline. Here’s your exclusive roadmap to prepare, claim sweet merchandise, and shine as a true Unlock DAO community-creator. Every quest also introduces you to the heart of Unlock: memberships, subscriptions, event ticketing, certifications, and more.

We created four quests for you, which will go live only on the 15th, and when you meet us in person. The quests are easy, but the wins are super neat:

1. Become An Unlock Member
   Join our Discord and mint the free Unlock DAO Culture Guide as well as our Telegram channel to get yourself involved in the wider Unlock Community.

   

2. Unlock Webinar - Use Cases
   Want to learn how to use Unlock for yourself and your projects, easily and code-free, or via the Locksmith API? RSVP to our next online exclusive webinar and share the event on X or Farcaster while tagging us.

   

3. Celebrate Your Quest Success
   We are so proud of your questing success! Let's celebrate it with a picture post on X, Farcaster, or TikTok, stirring up some FOMO about the upcoming Merch Store by Unlock Protocol DAO.

   

4. Show Us Your Ambassador Potential
   Craft an X thread, TikTok video, or something of similar quality that promotes the upcoming Unlock DAO Merch Store, Unlock Use Cases, or the Unlock DAO community.

   

You dig the merch? It's coming soon. So don't fret if you don't get to meet us, or if we have already run out of supplies.

How And Where To Find Us

All three of us will be roaming around Devconnect all week—don’t be shy! If you spot one of us (decked out in our Locksmith shirts or "What's UP?" bucket hats) and want to chat, quest, and snag some merch, come say hello. We want to meet YOU, hear your story, and make some new content together at Devconnect and beyond.​​

The events below will be some staples where you can find at least one of us guaranteed:

• Saturday, 15th of November: sub0 symbiosis — Polkadot flagship conference

• Sunday, 16th of November: SheFi Summit Buenos Aires

• Monday, 17th of November: La Rural - Purple Discussion Corner (1 PM to 2 PM)

• Wednesday, 19th of November: Funding the Commons: Buenos Aires 2025

• Thursday, 20th of November: Schelling Point

• Friday, 21st of November: ArbiPanadas

Your Next Steps

• Prepare For The Quest
  Subscribe to our newsletter here, and follow Unlock Protocol DAO on X and TikTok for daily updates, links, and behind-the-scenes fun.​

• Tag Your Journey
  Want us to amplify your posts, tag us! We are here to help push the community!

See you at Devconnect!

Stay Unlocked!

Your Steward for Operations & Coordination,
Stella

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Wait, who's sending this newsletter?

If you're wondering what is going on, there's a new voice in the Unlock community! I'm Trigs, and you may or may not have noticed me starting to elbow my way in around here. I started making waves in the Unlock community with my proposal draft for the Governance & Membership Steward role. If you're new to DAOs, sometimes these things take time, but as I onboard myself into the community, I have been taking on new responsibilities. Hosting the weekly DAO call and drafting this newsletter are my first steps into DAO contributorship, after cutting my teeth helping design the ambassador program. It has been an absolute pleasure getting to know the community and injecting myself into the leadership panel!

As we migrate through these changes, the DAO labors on with steady progress across multiple fronts; we tackled payment accessibility in South America, prepared for Devconnect, and advanced several community initiatives. Here's what happened across our weekly calls this month:

Development Updates

• The launchpad now features improved navigation between events and collections, addressing a frequently requested UI enhancement

• Julien has integrated AI tools into the development workflow, accelerating PR reviews and clearing backlogs more efficiently

• Ongoing cleanup of GitHub repositories and database migrations, particularly important for the upcoming Scout Game collaboration

• Plans underway to streamline treasury management by consolidating fees from all chains back to Base

DAO Operations Updates

• Metopia proposal approved:
  We've successfully passed through governance, enabling the next phase of community engagement features

• Discord reorganization complete:
  Migrated from Charmverse to dedicated working group channels with pinned resources and transparent task boards in Discord

• Ambassador program refinements:
  Progressing from broad concept to digestible framework through collaborative efforts between Trigs and Anupa

• Community Dashboard proposal:
  Malika and Louis are closing in on the development phase and the new dashboard is nearly ready for first looks.

• EAS integration:
  theDesignIconoclast's EAS attestation service integration proposal expected on-chain soon, following successful funding.

Marketing Updates

• RUMS appearance:
  First live appearance on Rise Up Morning Show generated positive feedback and shows potential for long-term collaboration with them, looking to utilize Unlock for their community

  

• Devconnect preparations:
  Guerrilla marketing strategy established with quests and limited-edition merchandise for attendee engagement

• Metopia partnership progress:
  Advanced calendar integrations and coordinated quiz/quest development for enhanced user interaction

• FarCon Rome interest:
  Initial discussions for ticketing infrastructure for the May 2026 Farcaster conference in Rome

• Merchandise production:
  30 units each of bucket hats, t-shirts, socks, patches, buttons, and special pins were completed for Devconnect distribution

  

Finances & Resources

• ApeBond campaign iteration:
  With the vaults successfully providing a funding stream for the DAO, the proposal text for the next extension has been completed. We are awaiting onchain submission for next phase of liquidity building.

• Giveth verification achieved:
  Successfully verified as a public good, and our project donors are now eligible for GiveBacks

• Gitcoin round completed:
  Gitcoin rounds closed, and we secured around 4k in funding thanks to our amazing community.

• Base Batches participation:
  Multiple community teams submitted hackathon entries, with three projects utilizing Unlock Protocol contracts.

Technology and Innovation

• Scout Game progress:
  The bug-bounty initiative is progressing toward active testing — coordination continues with DAO contributors to align it with Unlock’s QA and reward flows before wider rollout.

• Advent Calendar revised:
  In a move to make December an inclusive community experience, last year's Advent Calendar plan was updated to a Metopia/Scout Game hybrid event with community rewards for year-end engagement across the entire DAO

Current Action Items

Here’s how you can get involved and prepare for the discussions coming up:

1. Vote on our onchain proposals via Tally or degov.

2. Review the following topics to add to the discussion:
   - P2E Inferno Grant Proposal
   - Find ways to contribute in Discord via working groups

3. Get $UP token and become an active contributor via the ApeBond campaign here.

4. If you are an Unlock Community Member, don't hesitate to fill out our spotlight form here so we can shed some light on what you are building on and with the protocol.

5. Share our social media posts and engage with campaigns across X, LinkedIn, Farcaster, YouTube, and TikTok—let's amplify our message together!

Thanks for following along, fellow locksmiths, and always remember:

Unlock isn’t just a tool for access — it’s a protocol for belonging.

Stay classy out there,
Trigs

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Why Human Passport

The internet was built for connection, but automated accounts and sybil attacks have eroded trust. Hacks and exploits of an AI nature have soared 1025% this year (according to Hacken), yet roughly 34% of Web3 projects deploy now AI components that widen the potential attack surface.

With the Human Passport in Unlock Protocol, you can guarantee that whoever buys your membership, reserves a free ticket to your event, or subscribes to your product is a real human, not a bot-driven wallet. The beautiful part, though, is that that type of authenticity doesn't come at the price of surveillance or personal data collection, and therefore is extremely end-user-friendly.

“Together, we’re not just building for humans — we’re building with them.”

Proof-of-humanity is the foundation of credible decentralized ecosystems. Human Passport provides a solution through aggregated verification called Stamps — credentials that represent verifiable human activity patterns, such as KYC attestations, biometric proofs, Web3 activity, and social connections. These build a Unique Humanity Score that protocols such as Unlock can use to assess the trustworthiness of an address while protecting user privacy using zero-knowledge methods.​

The Unlock Human Passport Hook

How it works? Well, it's easier than you'd think.

• Create your lock (smart contract) with Unlock Protocol or navigate to an already existing one in your dashboard.

• On the Unlock lock dashboard, head to the Settings menu in the upper right corner

• In the side menu, choose the "Advanced" tab and add the Passport Hook from the drop-down list.

• Don't forget to set a reasonable score and deploy the change onchain by signing a transaction. The Human Passport team suggests a score of 20.

Now, every time someone wants to access or purchase your membership, product, or event ticket, they will need to prove their personhood has been validated through the Human Passport (verification is done via the Passport app). This makes tracking your stats more reliable and, most of all, guarantees that whatever you put out there with Unlock is actually used and appreciated by fellow humans.

Join Our Livestream with Daniel Brunsdon

Daniel Brunsdon is the Lead for Growth and Product at human.tech. Before Daniel joined the Gitcoin Passport and eventually the human.tech crew, he worked at Twitter, where he had a front-row seat to a network of bots impersonating people's identities, resulting in fake engagement and false analytics. This often leaves communities and projects with empty shells of numbers that should see a return but won't.

After joining Gitcoin, his sole focus became solving the hardest challenge in digital systems, such as verifying real people without surveillance or exclusion. At human.tech, Daniel is driving the adoption of important tools, just like the Human Passport, to create a positive impact on humans through advanced technology.

Daniel will be with us on a Livestream on the 30th of October at 2 PM EST. He will showcase firsthand how the Human Passport hook works and how you can implement it with a few clicks into your event, membership, subscription program, or certifications with Unlock. Get notified below.

Stay Unlocked!

Your Steward for Operations & Coordination,
Stella

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Today, it is my pleasure to introduce you to Thibaut Segura, aka TheDesignIconoclast, one of our newest members who joined us with a mission.

Who is TheDesignIconoclast?

One day, about four weeks ago, a new member showed up in the Unlock Discord and introduced himself as TheDesignIconoclast. Naturally, as a designer myself, I got curious, and upon my invitation, he joined our weekly DAO debate. In case you didn't know, it is not rare for new people to show up in the Unlock Discord or even at the DAO Calls, but what stands out are people who come with a plan. Precisely that was the case with TheDesignIconoclast, aka Thibaut Segura.

With a strong background in design and user-centric development work for the past 15 years, he has put his primary focus on user adoption. Now that he has joined the world of Web3 development equipped with the right tech skills (Solidity + React), he is set on creating a positive and long-lasting impact. Looking for projects with real-life impact is what drew him to Unlock Protocol and made him join a DAO Call a few weeks ago, suggesting a new integration that will specifically make certifications with Unlock even more attractive to users.

Segura is clearly a new wave of cross-disciplinary builders combining design, technical execution, and decentralized identity principles to create user-centric blockchain products. In my personal opinion, exactly what this space needs right now.

The Project Idea

While Thibaut was looking for aligned protocols that thought about real-life use cases, he came across Unlock. He was positively surprised that we were not the next tech project trying to optimize latency or TPS (transactions per second). Apparently, he connected immediately with what the protocol provides and what Julien, Clément, Txbi, and CCarfi had been putting so much attention towards over the years: A simple UI, the avoidance of jargon, and most of all, tying the tech with real-life problem solving. Or to quote his own words:

"Unlock is the kind of project you want to see succeed because it can quietly change a whole industry, for the better."

At the same time, he saw an opportunity to improve the protocol even further by tackling the Certification flow. Currently, the certifier (e.g., a university) cannot make the certificate specific to the student (e.g., have their name, age, grades, thesis, etc., show up). 

This is where he formed the connection and how the Ethereum Attestation Service (also an open-source protocol) could become part of the current certification flow at Unlock and allow certifiers to create attestations that are additionally verifiable on-chain.

This would make for a truly enhanced certification flow, providing the certifier with two options:

• Basic: Pure NFT with only the certifier information

• Premium: Attestation, containing student-specific data. Easy to share and easy to verify.

With his previous work in Web3, Thibaut had a chance to work with the Ethereum Attestation Service (EAS) for tenant reliability verification. For this specific project, each on-time rent payment generates an onchain attestation, creating a privacy-preserving and portable record of trust between tenants and landlords. This project illustrates his capability to create a handy integration for Unlock Protocol with EAS.

Support the Idea via Giveth

If you believe, as I do, that this idea is brilliant and will level up your and all of our users' experience with Unlock, please ensure to support the project via the current Giveth round (until the 28th of October). Any support matters, monetary or by sharing this article on socials and tagging Unlock as well as Thibaut:

Get in Touch with TheDesignIconoclast

I believe this is not the last we hear from Thibaut. He is driven, organized, and comes with a needed mix of skills in Web3! If you want to keep tabs on his story, feel free to connect and follow him through his favorite channels:

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Stay Unlocked!

Your Steward for Operations & Coordination,
Stella

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Unlock DAO enters October with an energized pulse where creators, builders, and community organizers are abuzz with new experiments and collaborative initiatives. As headlines swirl about potential shakeups in the creator economy, our commitment to decentralized creativity and open collaboration grows even stronger.

In a landscape shifting beneath the feet of platforms and audiences alike, our DAO continues to put creators first, prioritizing transparency and the open internet. October carries out many of these promises, with our Scout Game x Ethereum Bolivia collaboration, the support of the Latina Blockchain Hackathon organized by HiWomenBiz, and our marketing initiative with the Rise Up Morning Show.

But for now, let me summarize for you what has been on our minds over the past month:

Core Team Updates

Julien provided us with the Core Team Updates of last month:

• Julien acknowledged a busy period; several planned initiatives remain in progress, particularly around fee collection mechanisms and ongoing investor conversations related to token distributions. The team is committed to continually refining and improving the protocol.

Operations and Coordination

• ScoutGame x Ethereum Bolivia x Unlock
  Collaborations on internal GitHub labeling and bounty allocation are nearly finalized, with discussions focused on fair prize amounts and budget allocation for the three initial bounty tiers.

• Chain Conversations
  Kara and I continue our conversations with chains on active integrations and marketing collaborations. Currently, Starknet, Stellar, Rari Chain, and Unichain have our focus when it comes to novel integrations, while Scroll and CELO are on our agenda for a revival initiative. GozmanGonzales might be able to help us with the chain reactivation regarding Scroll.

• Moving Collaborative Working
  Decision made to move some operational tools and internal documentation from the Charmverse platform to pinned messages in Discord and Google Drive, with a focus on maintaining accessibility for all working group members and providing financial relief.

• Latina Blockchain Hackathon by HiWomenBiz
  This week, the Latina Blockchain Hackathon is in full swing, with one introductory presentation I gave yesterday and more technical workshops that Danni will be conducting today and tomorrow for the young, mostly female hackers. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact Lilipop.eth directly.

  

Finances & Resources

• Financial Reporting & Projections
  Andreu is developing a dashboard to consolidate and clarify revenue sources, including the 1% protocol fee and Unlock Prime subscriptions, to improve tracking and transparency. In the future, it will include sales of merchandise and more.

• Gitcoin Grants Application
  I will be applying this week for the Gitcoin Grants round with a focus on Infrastructure, and I encouraged our latest community member, TheDesignIconoclast, to do the same for his idea to integrate EAS into Unlock Protocol.

• Cross-Community Liquidity Pools
  Discussions took place regarding potential liquidity pools with external tokens, with next steps involving a lightweight proposal forum thread and further research by Jilt.

Member Relations & Governance

• Ambassador Program WIP
  Thanks to DAO member Anupa, we are making steady progress on the final version of the ambassador program. This and the following week will be all about organizing the data. On that note, we now have Unlock Protocol screen backgrounds. Download here.

• Our Community Dashboard
  The dashboard design is almost concluded, and we will be able to revise it next week together with its leading developers, Malika and Louis. Check the current status out here.

• Community Spotlight | Danny Thomx
  A written community spotlight about our Steward for Technology & Innovation was also published last month. If you didn't already get a chance, check it out and follow Danny and his amazing projects via socials!

• Community Spotlight | snax.eth from PizzaDAO
  Unlock DAO Member WillT had the pleasure of interviewing snax.eth, the co-founder of PizzaDAO in our most recent community spotlight livestream. He spills tea on humble beginnings and more experimental use cases built on Unlock Protocol. Check out the livestream recording here.

• Crypto Cultura x Unlock
  Our latest use case has been inspired by Crypto Cultura, a Web3 centric art festival held in Lima, Peru. Organizers include Cryptoamigos and Art3 Hub. Ivanna, part of their team approached us and we created an event that serves simultanously as an ongoing financial support campaign so the project can evolve over time and with the help of their community. Check it out here.

  

Marketing & Communications

• Social Media Growth Report
  Ceci showed the current status of our Google Analytics dashboard to showcase overall traction to the protocol and its website has increased over the past few months. We also added this very Paragraph page to the GA Dashboard and keep evolving our analytics measures.

• Rise Up Morning Show
  The proposal to collaborate for three months with the Rise Up Morning Show has been approved by the DAO. Next steps are being organized with the team of RUMS. Stay tuned for more updates in the Marketing & Communications working group channel on the Unlock Discord.

Technology & Innovation

• Review of Stereum Pay Integrations
  Danny had a meeting together with fellow stewards with the founder of Stereum Pay, a Bolivian start-up that offers QR code enabled payments that include also native fiat payments. More info to be expected in the coming weeks.

This Week's Action Items

Here’s how you can get involved this week and prepare for the discussions coming up next week:

1. Vote on our onchain proposals via Tally or degov.

2. Review the following topics to add to the discussion call next week:
   - Onchain Creator Rally
   - Download Unlock Screen Background
   - Become a Social Media Content Contributor

3. Get $UP token and become an active contributor via the ApeBond campaign here.

4. If you are an Unlock Community Member, don't hesitate to fill out our spotlight form here so we can shed some light on what you are building on and with the protocol.

5. Share our social media posts and engage with campaigns across X, LinkedIn, Farcaster, YouTube, and TikTok—let's amplify our message together!

Make some noise out there—let’s make sure the world hears about what we’re building with Unlock Protocol! Every post, share, and community conversation brings new creators into our decentralized ecosystem and strengthens our collective vision.

Because Unlock is free and open source, everything we build directly benefits you, the user. Unlock empowers us as individuals to take control, create, and connect without barriers. Your voice shapes the future of open access—let’s show everyone what Unlock can do for all of us.

Stay Unlocked!

Sincerely,
Stella ✨

Your Steward for Operations & Coordination

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But the web is changing. With the arrival of Web3 and tools like Unlock Protocol, access is no longer just a permission; it is transformed into an asset that you can own. Suddenly, your membership, your ticket to an event, or your entry into a community is no longer subject to third-party databases. They become digital keys (the name for NFTs in Locksmith lingo) directly and exclusively connected to your wallet that represent something tangible, verifiable, and, above all, they are yours.

From Platforms to Empowered Creators

This shift impacts not only users but also creators. Previously, relying on centralized platforms meant giving up control over pricing, data, and rules for interacting with your audience. Now, with access as property, creators can define who enters, how they enter, and what they get, without intermediaries. Each key can be time-limited, revocable, exchangeable, or collectible, opening up a range of possibilities for designing unique and economically sustainable experiences.

The transition from login to ownership also redefines the relationship between identity and access. A digital key can unlock multiple experiences, including a private channel, an in-person event, exclusive content, or even voting rights within a community. This makes each user the owner of their participation, not just a passing member of a centralized system.

In other words, the internet is no longer a place where you ask permission to enter, but a space where you have a tangible asset that represents your access and participation. Passwords still exist, but their role is no longer central: what matters now is what you have and what you can do with it.

The future of digital access is here, and it's not just about using a platform: it's about owning your experience. Every login we replace with ownership brings us closer to a fairer, more transparent, and more decentralized web. When access becomes ownership, it's no longer temporary: it starts belonging to you.

Web2 vs Web3: The Key Differences

The difference between ownership in Web3 and the traditional Web2 model lies in who controls the data, access, and digital assets. Here's how it works:

1. Control of Assets and Data
   Web2: Everything you do is controlled by the centralized platform: your subscriptions, your purchases, your data, and your history. The platform can change them, revoke access, or even close your account, and you have little recourse. The user rents access, but never owns it.
   Web3: Digital assets, such as NFTs, tokens, or access keys, live on the blockchain and in your personal wallet. You are the true owner: no one can delete or revoke your ownership without your consent, and you can transfer, resell, or use it as you wish.

2. Access and Membership
   Web2: A membership is temporary and depends on the platform's payment system and rules. If you stop paying or the platform changes its terms, you lose access immediately.
   Web3: A membership is represented by a digital asset. For example, an NFT that grants access to an event or community. That key can be temporary or permanent, but it remains your property as long as you have it in your wallet.

3. Interoperability
   Web2: Each platform operates in isolation. Your Spotify login doesn't work on Netflix or Discord; you can't carry your history or memberships from one site to another.
   Web3: The same asset can unlock access in multiple places: communities, events, apps, or even DAO voting. Your key is your identity and permission, not the platform.

4. Verifiable Ownership
   Web2: “Owning” something online is often more symbolic than real. Buying an online course or game depends on the platform's existence and its maintenance of your account.
   Web3: Ownership is verified on the blockchain. Your NFT or token is a real asset that anyone can verify as being yours, without the need for intermediaries.

5. Benefit for Creators and Users
   Web2: Creators depend on intermediaries, who keep a percentage and decide the rules. Users only participate under those rules.
   Web3: Creators have full control over pricing, duration, profits, and resales. Users acquire something that is theirs and has value, creating a fairer and more transparent ecosystem.

Why Ownership Matters

From my perspective, the shift from login to ownership is ultimately not just a technical change; it's a responsibility that leaves a lasting mark and impact, followed by a complete transformation of how we interact with the internet and the communities we care about. While Web 2 taught us to rely on centralized platforms — where our access and data are borrowed and ephemeral — Web3 offers us something completely different: real, verifiable, and transferable ownership of what we acquire or earn online.

This model changes the dynamic for everyone: users cease to be simple consumers of content and become owners of their participation and benefits, and creators regain control over their projects, income, and community. A digital key is no longer just a temporary permit; it's an asset that reflects identity, engagement, and a sense of belonging.

When we understand this, it becomes clear that actual value isn't in a password or just another login: it's in giving audiences something they can truly own, keep, and display. Because when access becomes ownership, the digital experience ceases to be temporary and becomes meaningful, lasting, and yours.

Keys that unlock doors to authentic communities

Sohobiit ᵕ̈
Co-Founder of Happ3n XYZ and Cabin Crew Member at Unlock DAO

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Who is Danny?

Danny Thomx is a Web3 innovator, developer, and community builder driving the adoption of decentralized technologies across Africa. As the founder of P2E INFERNO and ETH Rwanda, Danny has designed gamified onboarding programs, hackathons, and educational initiatives that have introduced hundreds of people to Ethereum and its broader ecosystem.

His creations include the DG Token Vendor, which is an NFT-gated, gamified DeFi exchange where traders progress through stages, unlock perks, and earn rewards. The aforementioned P2E INFERNO App is a play-to-earn education platform that blends quests, XP, and blockchain certifications powered by Unlock Protocol. Recently, he also built a groundbreaking token splitter integrating Unlock, enabling seamless and fast token/ETH distribution to multiple wallets. Try it out for yourself here.

Danny's work bridges technical prowess with human-centered design, making blockchain tools accessible to both developers and non-technical users. With a track record of leading high-impact Ethereum events, fostering cross-border collaborations, and building scalable smart contract solutions, he embodies the values of innovation, inclusion, and empowerment in the decentralized space. Whether coding, teaching, or organizing, Danny is committed to expanding the possibilities of Ethereum for creators, communities, and enterprises alike.

Get in Touch with Danny

We believe Danny is a person you may want to get in touch with. Here are some of his social media links to connect with and follow. You will definitely find him to be active via the Unlock Protocol DAO Discord.

• P2E Inferno Website

• GitHub

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Your Steward for Operations & Coordination,
Stella

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But here's the truth: it's not that complicated once you see the story behind it. This is my attempt to explain the shift from UDT to UP in plain, human words and, more importantly, to show you how you can step into Unlock's governance without feeling lost.

The Old Token: UDT and Its Limitations

For years, UDT (Unlock Discount Token) was the governance token of Unlock DAO. It gave holders a voice in shaping the future of the protocol, such as funding initiatives, adjusting functions in the technology, and supporting builders.

But UDT lived on Ethereum mainnet, which, as many of us know, can be expensive and sometimes intimidating for newcomers. Every time you tried to vote or delegate, you'd pay relatively high gas fees. This resulted in low participation, despite a high willingness to contribute.

Think of UDT as the first set of keys to a brand-new house. They worked fine for opening the door, but they weren't designed for long-term use.

Why the Move to Base?

In 2024, Unlock community made a bold move: migrate governance from Ethereum to Base, a faster and cheaper layer-2 blockchain. This wasn't just about saving a few dollars on gas fees. It was about opening the doors wider so more people could join the conversation without being held back by cost.

And along with that move came a new token: $UP.

The name feels fitting, doesn't it? $UP is about moving forward, leveling up, and providing the community with a governance tool that matches the protocol's vision of openness and inclusivity.

What Is UP?

$UP is the governance token for Unlock Protocol DAO. If you held UDT, you could swap it for UP at a 1:1000 ratio. This means every UDT turned into a thousand UP tokens. The swap was done to keep the numbers practical and to start fresh with a new identity on Base.

So now, UP is the key to Unlock's governance. It doesn't matter if you've been here for years or just discovered the community; if you have UP, you have a voice!

Governance Made Simple

Okay, but how does governance actually work in Unlock DAO? Let's strip away the intimidating layers.

1. Delegation
   When you hold UP, you can now vote directly on proposals. But first, you need to delegate your token to either yourself or another person you trust within the Unlock Protocol DAO community. For this purpose, you can use either Tally or degov.

2. Proposal Discussion
   Most ideas start on the Discord Forum. It’s like the brainstorming room where community members float concepts and get early feedback.

3. Proposal Voting
   Finally, proposals that pass move to our onchain voting system on Base. This is where the binding vote happens.

4. Voting Power
   Each UP token equals one vote. Voting can be done either directly via the block explorer on Base or via degov/Tally. A proposal needs a 3-million-vote UP token quorum to pass. That means governance works best when people actually participate, not just watch from the sidelines.

Why This Matters for You

You might be wondering, "I'm just one person. Does my vote really matter?"

Here's the thing: DAOs live and die by the people who show up. Even small contributions, asking good questions in a forum thread, delegating your tokens, or writing up a clear explanation for others, add real value.

When I first joined, I felt like a tiny fish in a big pond. But then I realized the DAO isn't some faceless machine. It's people or the Locksmiths, as we like to call ourselves, who care enough to shape the protocol together. Every vote adds weight to that collective voice.

The Human Side of Governance

What I love about the shift to UP is that it lowered the barrier to entry. Before, governance felt like something reserved for the few who were willing to spend gas fees on Ethereum. Now, it feels more like a community town hall, where anyone can grab a chair and speak up.

And honestly, that's what drew me deeper into Unlock. Governance isn't just about rules and contracts. It's about people deciding together: Where should treasury funds go? What features should we prioritize? How do we make this protocol sustainable long-term?

How to Get Started

Don't worry, getting involved is actually way easier than it sounds. Here's the path most Locksmiths take when they're just starting out:

1. Step inside the Discord
   Click here and join the Unlock server. You'll land in the lobby where all new members arrive.

2. Unlock the Discord with a free membership NFT
   In the #lobby channel, you'll see an option to claim your free membership pass. Enter the command "/unlock," hit enter, and click the link. This brings you directly to an Unlock-powered checkout. Connect your wallet or add your email to receive the NFT. Make sure to click "Back to Discord" on the last page of the checkout.

3. Say hello
   Head over to the #introductions channel and drop a quick message using the template.

4. Explore the space
   Check the #official-links, check out every channel, and get a feel for how the community works. It's a friendly space, and nobody expects you to have all the answers on day one. Feel free to ask any question on the 🇺🇸—general-chat-english or 🇪🇸—general-chat-spanish.

5. Join a weekly call every Tuesday
   This is where the magic really happens. Hearing people's voices, listening to their questions, and maybe even asking one of your own makes governance feel a lot less abstract and a lot more real.

By the end of these steps, you won't feel like an outsider anymore. You'll be a Locksmith with your own key, part of the conversation, and ready to help shape what comes next.

Looking Ahead

The transition from UDT to UP wasn't just a token swap. It was a signal: Unlock DAO is serious about growing participation and making governance accessible. We've moved from a heavy, costly system to one that's lighter, faster, and more inviting. That's not the end of the story, it's just the start of a new chapter.

So if you've been sitting on the sidelines, this is your moment. Grab your UP, join the locksmith community, and help us decide what gets built, funded, and celebrated next. Because governance isn't about tokens, it's about people. And in Unlock, people like you truly make the difference.

Until the next key turns!

GozmanGonzalez
Your Storyteller Locksmith

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Happy September, everyone, and hopefully, calm, relaxing summer holidays for most of you! At Unlock Protocol DAO, we are gearing up for a dynamic and exciting second half of 2025 and the next phase of DAO operations. After figuring out our organizational structure over the past year, we are now focusing our united forces on bringing revenue to the DAO.

The truth is that open-source and free technology still has costs and requires ongoing maintenance. To ensure that we are setting our eyes on a diverse set of strategies that we are currently lining up within the steward council.

But for now, let me summarize for you what has been on our minds over the past month:

Core Team Updates

Julien provided us with the Core Team Updates of last month:

• After the holidays, Clement and Julien had a brief sync call to discuss the first steps for the updated fee mechanics. More news will follow soon!

• Additionally, Coinage will use Unlock for its upcoming advertisement functionality on its websites. This might be one of the most innovative use cases of Unlock Protocol yet.

Operations and Coordination

• An Almost Complete Steward Council
  With four out of five stewards, the council is almost complete, and our next level of social decentralization has been achieved. blahkheart was voted into the position of Steward for Technology & Innovation, while I am currently holding the position of Steward for Operations & Coordination. Let's move beyond and get our last steward on board to distribute leadership even further.

• Scout Game Preparations with Ethereum Bolivia
  For our upcoming collaboration, Julien has cleaned up the GitHub and added several bounties. At the same time, we have been collecting your ideas actively. If you haven't already, please add your request to this form and get a cute NFT as a reward. It is quick to do, and you won't even need to look at the GitHub repository.

• Extended Partnerships with Si<3>
  Thanks to DAO Member Kara Howard, we have been introduced to several potential partners. We will share further news once one of these potentials comes through. Keep your fingers crossed!

• Organizational Tree via Hats Protocol
  Are you part of our community? That's awesome, because you will finally have a transparent way to show it with our Hats Protocol organizational tree, which was deployed a bit over a week ago. Make sure to be in the first cohort to receive your official DAO Role NFT by entering the required information in this form. Promise, it is super quick, and you will get a pretty NFT designed by POW.

  

Finances & Resources

• Treasurecorp
  Andreu will meet with Sarah Sawyer from Treasurecorp (contact made through DAO Member and founder of Si<3>, Kara Howard) to understand how we can utilize it to enhance our treasury and potentially grow it.

Member Relations & Governance

• Ambassador Program WIP
  Thanks to DAO member Anupa, we are making steady progress on the final version of the ambassador program. Next week, we might be able to present the first rough draft to the DAO during one of our weekly calls. Stay tuned for more!

• Latina Blockchain Hackathon
  Lilipop.eth presented the DAO recently with a proposal to become a sponsor for this year's Latina Blockchain Hackathon. Please review the proposal here and comment before it goes up onchain.

• A New Dashboard
  We have a new governance dashboard that is AI-empowered and was created by the degov team. While working on our own native version, this dashboard provides a clean user interface with several useful AI features and more novel solutions to come. Check it out here.

Marketing & Communications

• Reward System for Content Contributors
  As some of you have already noticed, the official rewards system for content contributors to Unlock Protocol DAO is finally published and active. Get the full scoop in last week's newsletter here.

• KOLs Campaign
  As previously discussed, the upcoming KOLs campaign will take place without Ninja Promo, but instead with our friends from The Rise Up Morning Show. Additionally, we are contacting several influencers who can support us with the token price and, in return, with the ApeBond campaign to raise protocol-owned liquidity together.

Technology & Innovation

• KOLs Campaign Payment Proposal
  blahkheart is working on setting up the proposal to pay The Rise Up Morning Show crew for their work by swapping Ethereum to USDC within one proposal. Stay tuned for its release!

This Week's Action Items

Here’s how you can get involved this week and prepare for the discussions coming up next week:

1. Vote on our onchain proposals via Tally or degov.

2. Review the following topics to add to the discussion call next week:
   - Latina Blockchain Hackathon

3. Get $UP token and become an active contributor via the ApeBand campaign here.

4. Share our social media posts and engage with campaigns across X, LinkedIn, Farcaster, YouTube, and TikTok—let’s amplify our message together!

Building DAOs is not an easy task. If it were, anyone would do it, and there would already be a blueprint on how to do it best. I remember when I asked my dad years later how he approached raising me as a kid, he told me he bought a book called "Kursbuch Kinder" which roughly translates to "children's course book", which of course is ridiculous to a certain degree. Yet most of us can probably relate to that desire for guidance or someone who might know better than we do.

I believe there is no such thing as anyone knowing better than us, but what we have to our advantage is collective knowledge, and that will eventually be the key to helping us accomplish our goal. Please join us and become an active part of the DAO. It will provide more accumulated knowledge, fewer failures, and friction that leads to tangible solutions.

The monthly round-up is done, congratulations, you made it! See you in a few weeks again for more exciting updates from your favorite DAO people.

Stay Unlocked!

Sincerely,
Stella ✨

Your Steward for Operations & Coordination

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