DAOs self-regulate through a variety of online tools - Twitter, Discord, Telegram.
These Web3 communites are unfortunately pigeonholed by legacy terminology carrying over from the currently centralized web.
A simple Tweet from David Phelps (@divine_economy) changed my entire outlook on what a DAO represents.
"DAOs are a state."
Hold on. Like Nebraska? Or California?
The word state has been engrained in human culture to depict a physical location. Where elected individuals govern the populous. Where banks hold authority of currency reserves. Where citizens are colocated within a geographic border.
None of these paradigms hold true on the decentralized, open web.
"DAOs have governance systems, autonomous currencies, and treasuries to manage monetary policy."
Governance is managed through open-source, community-verifiable code executed on the blockchain.
Currency operates independently from the DAO.
Treasuries operate independently from the currency - as their own bank, if you will.
These were the few examples David outlined, but this list spans further.
"That makes them the first truly optional states in the history of the world."
Optional = opt-in. Opt-in = transparent. Transparent = fulfillment.
No more borders. No more central currency. No more codependent treasury. Just a group of like-minded individuals looking to further their shared goals through the endeavours of the DAO.
Through the issuance of tokens, you can join any number of global states. The use cases for these groups are endless. To name a few -
Charity
Venture fund
NFT project
Freelance workers