TheGlobalBrainandtheEmergingEconomyofAbundance:

Mutualism,OpenCollaboration,ExchangeNetworksandtheAutomatedCommons
BenGoertzel,TedGoertzelandZarathustraGoertzel
CorrespondingAuthorsemail:tedgoertzel@gmail.com
KeyWords:GlobalBrain,EconomyofAbundance,ExchangeNetworks,OpenExchange,Open
Collaboration,AutomatedCommons
ABSTRACT
Theemergenceofartificialgeneralintelligenceandtheglobalbrainprovidesnew
opportunitiesforrealizinghumanityslongquestforamoreutopianexistence.Onepossibilityis
amoresuccessfulimplementationofthestatesocialistvisionofacentrallymanagedeconomy,
possiblycontrolledbyanAGINannyinsteadofacentralcommitteeofpoliticians.Amore
desirablealternative,however,maybethemutualistvisionoforganizingeconomicandsocial
lifealongvoluntarylinesasthestategraduallywithersaway.Anumberofrecentdevelopments
andnewideasmayfacilitatethisoutcome.Theinstitutionofthecommons,inthepastavailable
onlytosmallgeographicalcommunities,cannowbeusedbyglobalcommunities.Open
collaborationandexchangenetworksfacilitatevoluntarycooperativeactivitybypeopleat
dispersedphysicallocations.OpenProductionNetworkscanmakethemostcomplicated
economicexchangestransparenttoconsumers,allowingthemtofactorethicalandsociological
considerationsintotheirpurchasingdecisions.Offernetworkscanhelppeoplewithsimilar
interestsandcomplementaryabilitiestoorganizejointprojectsandorganizations.Blockchain
technologiescouldbeusedtocreatetransparentcurrenciesinwhichtransactionscanbedone
openly.Theseandotherrelatedtechnologieshavethepotentialtohumanizeglobaleconomic
interactions,givingthemmoreemotionalresonance,asincreasingaffluencelessensindividual
andsocietalpreoccupationwithmaximizingeconomicgain.

In1845,ayoungKarlMarx(1970:53)paintedanappealingpictureofautopiawhere
societyregulatesthegeneralproductionandthusmakesitpossibleformetodoonethingtoday
andanothertomorrow,tohuntinthemorning,fishintheafternoon,rearcattleintheevening,
criticizeafterdinner,justasIhaveamind,withouteverbecominghunter,fisherman,herdsman

orcritic.InMarxsvisiontherewouldbenoneedforcoerciveinstitutionsandthestatewould
simplywitheraway.
Butinthenineteenthcentury,therewasnowayforthestatetoregulatethegeneral
productionwithoutassigningpeopletojobsandmakingthemworkfortheirliving.August
Bebel(1910),Marxsonlyfollowerwhoseriouslyaddressedthequestionofhowsocietywould
beorganizedaftertherevolution,thoughtthatdecisionswouldbemadebystatisticiansand
technicians,andthatpeoplewouldfollowthemvoluntarily.Anylawbreakerswouldbe
spontaneouslypunishedbythepeople.
Ofcourse,theworldspracticalexperimentswithMarxismturnedoutverydifferentlyin
practice,buttheemergingtechnologiesofthetwentyfirstcenturyoffernewpossibilities.
FrancisHeylighen(2015)visualizeshumanitysfutureasaReturntoEdenguidedbya
superhumanintelligence,orglobalbrain,thatwillbedistributedacrossalltheworldspeople
andartifacts,connectedbytheInternet.Heanticipatesthatthisfastdevelopingtechnologywill
enableanevermorecomplexsocietytoselforganizevoluntarily.Thiswillenablethe
flourishingofaworldofviews(VeitasandWeaver2015),whereinathousandflowerswill
bloomunconstrainedbyaMaoistgardener.
Whenintelligentrobotsareavailabletodoalltheunpleasantwork,itwillbe
technologicallypossibleforallhumanstolivelivesofleisureandcreativefulfillment(Goertzel
andGoertzel,eds.,2015)..But,thereisnoguaranteethatthesetechnologieswillbringabout
sucharesultnorthat,iftheydo,thisutopicphasewillnotbeprecededbyaverydifficult
transitionalperiod.Challengingorganizationalquestionsneedtobesolved.Howwillsocietybe
structuredandhowwilldecisionsbemade?Howwillthetransitionfromthecurrentstateof

affairstotheidyllicfuturebemanaged?Weshouldnotleavethesequestionsuntilafterthe
Singularity,justasMarxistsshouldnothaveleftthemuntilaftertheRevolution.
UtopianoutcomessuchastheoneHeylighenenvisionsarepossible,butnotinevitable,
andmostcertainlynotintheshortrun.Thereisalwaysarangeofsociologicaloutcomespossible
withinthelimitsofagivenleveloftechnology.Evenwithnineteenthandearlytwentiethcentury
technologies,historymighthavebeenquitedifferentiflessreliancehadbeenplacedonviolent
revolutionandtheuseofstatepowertocompelabruptchange.Theemergingtechnologiesofthe
twentyfirstcenturyaremakinganeverwiderrangeofalternativespossible.Itmaybepossible
tosuccessfullyrealizesomeideasthatwereprovenimpracticalinthepast.Anditwillbe
possibletoimplementsomearrangementsthatwerenoteventhoughtofinthepastbecausethey
werebeyondthelimitsoftechnologicalfeasibility.Thispaperconsidersseveralideasfromthe
pastthatmaybegivennewlifebynewtechnologies,aswellasseveral,suchastheglobal
commonsandopencollaborationnetworks,thathaveonlyrecentlybeenidentified.
CentrallyPlannedandManagedSocialism.Onepossibilitycouldbetorerunthe
Sovietexperiment.OneofthereasonsforthefailureoftheSovieteconomytosuccessfully
competewithwesterncapitalismwasthatthecomputersystemsofthetimewerenotuptothe
taskofcentrallymanaginganeconomy.TheSoviettechnologicalintelligentsiainthelate1950s
wasexcitedbyNorbertWeinersbookCyberneticsandhopedthatcomputerizationwouldoffer
asolutiontotheirmanagementproblems.But,afterdoingsomeseriousfeasibilitystudies,it
wasimpossibletocentralizealleconomicdecisionmakinginMoscow:themathematical
optimizationofalargescalesystemwassimplynotfeasible(Gerovitch2002:273).They
estimatedthatcreatingacomputernetworksufficienttothetaskwouldcostasmuchasthe

Sovietspaceprogram.Theyturneddowntheopportunity,leavingittotheAmericanmilitaryand
venturecapitalists.
WhiletheSovietmodelisnotpopulartoday,becauseofthehumandisastersitcreated,a
fewdiehardsarguethattheSovietsweresimplyaheadoftheirtimeandthatitwouldbepossible
tomakesuchasystemworkwithtodayscomputers(CockshottandCottrell1993,2015
Dietrich2015).Withbarcodingandothertechnologies,westernnationsarealreadywellalong
ontheprocessofcomputerizingalltransactions.Itisconceivablethataregimesuchasthatin
NorthKoreamightcopywesterntechnology,muchastheycopiednucleartechnology,andsetup
anetworkedsystemwithwhichthestatewouldcontrolalleconomictransactions.
Acentrallymanagedsystemmightbemorepalatableifitwerecontrolled,notbya
centralcommitteeofpoliticians,butbyabenevolentArtificialGeneralIntelligenceNanny
whichwouldpresumablyactdisinterestedlyinthegeneralinterest.Butnosuchtechnologyexists
asyet,andthereisnocertaintythatsuchanintelligencewouldmakehumanwelfareitstop
priority.
MutualistEconomics.Thesocialchangesofthenineteenthandtwentiethcenturies
mighthavebeenlesstraumaticifmoreattentionhadbeengiventomutualisteconomictheories
thatwerecurrentatthetime.BasedonthepioneeringideasofPierreJosephProudhon(Hoffman
1972Wright2015),JosiahWarren(Bailie1972Brown2015),BenjaminTucker(Tucker1897)
andothersintheindividualistanarchisttradition(Backer1978Brown2016Horowitz1964),
minimalisteconomictheoryreliedheavilyonthelabortheoryofvalue(Carson2007).Theidea
wastoexchangegoodsandservicesaccordingtotheamountoflabortimeittooktoproduce
them,ratherthanaccordingtomarketprices.

Labortimepricingwasnotjustatheoreticalspeculationreplacingmarketpriceswith
laborcertificateswastriedinthenineteenthcenturybyAmericananarchistJosiahWarrenand
hisfollowers.WarrenopenedaretailstoreinCincinnatiin1827wheregoodsweresoldforwhat
hepaidforthemindollars,plusafourpercenttosevenpercentmarkuptocoverexpenses.In
additiontothedollarprice,therewasachargeforthetimeittookhimtosellthem,asnotedfrom
alargeclockonthewall.Thetimewaspaidforwithlaborcertificatesthatcouldbeexchanged
forlaborbythepurchaser.Itmadeforquick,inexpensiveshopping,andthestorewasquite
popular.
WarrenalsohelpedtosetupexperimentalcommunitiesinthetownsofUtopiainOhio
andModernTimes(nowBrentwood)inNewYork,whereresidentsexchangedlocalgoodsand
serviceswithlaborcertificates,whilecontinuingtousedollarstobuythingsfromtheoutside.
Thisworkedreasonablywell,betterthanmanyoftheutopiancommunitiessetuponthe
communistprincipleofequalsharingbasedonneed(Berry1992).Butusinglaborcertificates
insteadofmoneydidnotbringaboutarevolutionarychangeinhumanrelationshipsasWarren
hoped.Thecertificatessimplybecameanalternativecurrency.Economicstudieshaveshown
thatmostconsumergoodsalreadysellforpricescloselycorrelatedwiththeamountoflaborit
takestoproducethem(Brewster2004).
Morelastinginstitutionsthatgrewupfromthesamephilosophyincludeproducerand
consumercooperatives,workerownedenterprisesandcreditunions,manyofwhichcontinueto
operateandwhichWright(2010),Singer(2002)andothersviewasapathtowardabetterfuture.
Theseenterprises,however,almostalwaysusemoneyastheirmediumofexchangeandcompete
inthesamemarketsascapitalistenterprises.Marketforcescompelthemtomimicmanyofthe

practicesofcapitalistcompanies.AsaresultmostoftheIsraelikibbutzim,themostadvancedof
voluntarysocialistcommunities,haveprivatizedtheirindustriesandoperatethemseparately
fromtheirresidentialcommunities(Gavron2010).
Unlikemarketpricing,labortimeexchangesdonotrewardimprovementsinproductivity
thatcutlabortime.Theydependonpeoplevoluntarilyworkingeffectivelyandefficiently,which
worksinsomesituationssuchasbabysittingcooperativeswhereparentstakecareofeachothers
children.Butitdoesnotworkverywellinmarketsforconsumergoods.Moneypricesarequick
andanonymous:buyerandsellerdonotneedtoknoweachothersmotivations.Thismakes
themefficientandcapitalistenterpriseshavecontributedagreatdealtoeconomicproductivity.
Butthisimpersonalityoftenseemssterileanddehumanizing,itiscriticizedasleadingto
meaninglessconsumerismormaterialism.Thesenseofcommunitythatcomesfromknowing
whereonesfoodoroneshandicraftscomefromislost.Forthisreasonalternativecurrencies
suchasIthacaHours,CalgaryDollarsandEusko(intheBasqueCountry)aresometimesstill
usedtosustainlocalbusinessesandbuildasenseofcommunityinlocalareas(Glover2013).As
theworldbecomesmoreaffluent,thankslargelytothesuccessofcapitalistenterprises,
maximizingeconomicproductivitywillbecomelessimportantandtherewillbeagrowing
opportunitytoinstituteeconomicarrangementsthatmaximizeothervalues.Thisisthevery
outcomethatMarxanticipated,thatcapitalismwouldbuildtheresourcesforhumanitytogoon
tobuildamorehumanealternative
TheGlobalCommons.Onearrangementthatmayberevivedwiththenew
technologicalpossibilitiesistheCommons.InEuropeanhistory,thecommonswerelandsthat
wereavailabletobesharedfreelybyallmembersofanagrariancommunity.Withinternet

communications,theconceptcanbeappliedtoresourcesthataresharedfreelybypeoplearound
theworld(KostakisandBauwens2014).ThebestexampleisWikipedia,anencyclopediawhich
canbeaccessedandeditedbyanyone.TheFree/LibreOpenSourceSoftware(FLOSS)
movementincludestheLinuxoperatingsystemsandmanyotherprojects.Muchofthelaborthat
goesintotheseprojects,asintoWikipedia,isvoluntaryandunpaid.Butmajorcorporationssuch
asIBMandGooglehaveusedandcontributedtotheLinuxsoftware.Thereisnorestriction
againstusingresourcesfromtheglobalcommonsforprofitmakingactivity,aslongas
contributionstothesoftwarearefreelyavailabletoeveryone.
TheinstitutionofacommonsworksbestwithproductsthathavewhatRifkin(2014)calls
nearzeromarginalcost,i.e.,whereproductionofadditionalcopiesofanitemisalmost
costfreeoncetheinitialproductioncostshavebeenpaid.Thistrueforbooks,newspapersand
magazines,moviesandmusicrecordingsiftheyarepublisheddigitally.Butreportersand
authorsstillneedanincome,asdomusiciansandactorsandmovieproducers.Rifkin,
interestingly,chargesmarketpricesforhisbook,eveninelectronicform.Focusingexclusively
onthemarginalcostisunrealistic,youneedtolookatthecostofcreatingtheoriginalcopy.
Withtodaystechnology,thenearzeromarginalcostargumentdoesntapplyto
productssuchasfood,housing,medicine,transportationandenergy.Itwillbeseveraldecades,
atleast,untilwegetreplicatorssuchastheonesonStarTrekthatcansynthesizeahotmealor
amedicationorasuitofclothesonorder.ThereplacementofcapitalismbytheCreative
CommonsthatRifkinpredictswillonlybepossibleafterthesingularity,whenrobotsand
computerswilldoallthetediousortiresomework.Andeventhen,therewillbecostsimposed
byenvironmentallimitationsandlimitedsuppliesofnaturalresources.

IYouandIItInteractions.Butevenifproductscannotbeprovidedfreeofchargeor
exchangedforlabortimecoupons,theimpersonalityofmarkettransactionscanbeovercome
withavailabletechnologyandnewsocialarrangements.Weseethebeginningsofthiswhen
cooperativestoressellfairtradecoffeeandotherproductsfromthirdworldcooperative
enterprisesandconsumerswillinglypayahigherpriceknowingthatitwillhelppoorthirdworld
workers.Withcurrenttechnology,however,consumershavenowayofknowinghowmuchof
theirmoneygoestotheoriginalproducers,orevenwhotheseproducersare.Withopen
exchangetechnology,thiswouldbetransparent.
Theprincipleofknowingwhereyourproductscamefromandwhoproducedthemcould
begeneralizedwithopencollaborationnetworksinwhichallaspectsofthevaluechainare
exposedtoscrutinyinalltheirwarmandhumanglory.Thishaspotentialtoimprovehumanlife
andsmooththepathtoapositiveSingularityforallhumanity,aspeoplebecomeawareofthe
peoplewhoselivesareimpactedbytheirchoices.Thisshouldapplytoallkindsofexchanges
andeconomicactivities,notjusttorelationshipsbetweenaffluentconsumersandthirdworld
peasants.
Thiscouldmakeworkmoremeaningful,evenintheintellectualrealmsthatareoften
thoughtofasinherentlymorecreative.Forinstance,ifascholariswritingareviewofabook
simplytogetapublicationcredit,orajournalistiswritingoneforpay,thetendencywillbeto
writethereviewasquicklyaspossiblesoastomaximizeproductivity.Ontheotherhand,ifthe
reviewerandauthorarelinkedinacollaborativenetwork,andmaybereviewingeachothers
books,theyaremorelikelytoputrealthoughtandfeelingintothework.Inthelanguageof
philosopherMartinBuber(1971),therewillbemoreofanIYouinteractionbetweenthetwo

writersdoingthemutualbookreviewingmoreofarealconnectionbetweenthepeople
involved,eachacknowledgingtheotherasameaningfulhumanbeingandexperiencingthe
othersmindandbeing.WhereasmonetaryinteractionstendtoreduceexchangestotheIIt
level:otherpeopleareviewedasinstrumentsforgettingusmoney,whichwecanthenusetoget
stuffwewant(viathemediumofotherhumaninstruments).Inatypicalmonetaryinteraction,
thereisnotruesecondpersonexperience(Thompson,2001)rather,thesymbolictokenof
moneyisusedtobypasssecondpersoninteractionandreducehumaninteractionstoalevelof
objectification,whichinsomesensedecreasesthehumanityofeveryoneinvolvedinthe
transaction.
ThenetworkofIItinteractionsdoeshaverealefficiencyandusefulness.Itsnicetogo
tothesupermarketandjustgivethecashiersomemoneyandthengetoutoftherequickly
withouthavingtohaveadeepIYouinteractionwiththecashierorhavingtospendthewhole
daytravelingbetweendifferentfarmstobarterfordifferentkindsoffoodwithdifferentfarmers.
Ontheotherhand,oneresultofthisIItorientedfoodsystemisthatwetendtoeatfoodfilled
withtoxinsandnonnutritiveingredients,createdforthepurposeofmaximizingshareholder
valueofvariouscorporations.
Manycommunitiestodayhavefarmersmarketswherefoodissolddirectlybythe
farmerswhoproducedit,andwhopresumablyaremoreconcernednottofilltheirproductswith
toxicchemicals.Withopencollaborationnetworks,consumersmightclickonabarcodeinthe
supermarketwiththeirsmartphonesandobtaininformationabouttheproducer.Perhapsthey
couldevenlinktotheproducerandquestionhimorherabouttheproduct.Whileitwouldbe
hardtosimulatetherichnessoffacetofacecommunicationinaneighborhoodfarmersmarket,

itwouldextendtoproductsnotavailablelocally,suchasfruitsandvegetablesgrowninthe
southernhemispherewhileitiswinterinthenorth.
Opencollaborationnetworksareespeciallyusefulforexchangesofservicesorsharingof
productsortoolsthatareoftendoneforfreeinafacetofacecommunitywherepeopletrustthat
theirneighborwillreciprocatetheirhelpfulnesswhenneeded.Thisismoredifficultwhenone
needshelpfromsomeoneinadistantcommunityoranothercountry,butopencollaboration
networkscouldfacilitatetheseexchanges.
Similarissuesexistintheformationoforganizations.Runningallvolunteer
organizationsisoftenpainfullycomplicated,evenwithfacetofaceinteraction.Oneoftenhasto
laboriouslywheedlepeopleintodoingwhatsbestfortheorganization.Forexample,
opensourcesoftwareprojectscanworkwonderfully,butcanalsoturnintochaoticmesses
becausekeycontributorsareegomaniacsandnobodywantstodotheboringnecessarywork,
everyonewantstodothecoolparts.Whereaspayingemployeestoworkonaprojectcanbe
vastlysimpler:onecanjustassignthemtasks,paythemmoney,monitorandguidetheirprogress
viaprojectmanagementsoftware,andwatchtheworkgetdone.Ofcourseitsnotreallythat
rosyandprojectmanagementisdifficultbutstill,thereisgreatpowerinbeingabletopay
otherstohelprealizeavision.Minordifferencesinorientationthatcancausegreathavocinan
allvolunteersettingareoftenmoreeasilysetasidewhenapaycheckisinvolvedevenvery
opinionatedpeopleareusuallywillingtodosomethingthatsalmosttotheirtasteifitstheir
routetoearningaliving.Andyet,inthebestcase,anorganizationofvolunteersworkingona
projectcontributingpurelyoutofloveoftheprojectcanbeuniquelypowerfulandcreative.
Peoplewillputtheirheartsintoaprojectiftheyconsiderittheirsbecausetheyarecontributing

10

toitoutofpassionratherthanasameanstogettingpaid.Opencollaborationnetworksmay
makethiskindofcollaborationeasierbykeepingtrackofeveryonescontributionandmaking
everythingtransparent.
Thequestioniswhetherthereissomewaytoobsoletethedilemma(Goertzel2010)
posedbythedichotomybetweenIItandIYoueconomicexchanges.Whatwewantisthe
efficiencyofIItexchanges,coupledwiththeemotionalandintellectualbandwidthandhuman
depthofIYouexchanges.WewouldnotexpectawholesaleshiftfromIIttoIYouexchanges,
butopportunitiesforIYouexchangescanbegraduallyincreased,andaspeoplebecome
accustomedtothemandenjoythebenefits,theymaycreateevenmoreopportunities.
OpenProductionNetworks.Radicaltransparencymayproveanimportanttooltoward
thegoalofsignificantlytranscendingtheIIt/IYoudichotomyineconomicexchanges.
Supposeeverygoodorserviceprovidedcamewithatraceable,easilyinspectablehistory,
indicatingwhohadproducedwhichfractionofit,andwhattheyhadreceivedinexchangefor
theirpartintheproduction.Supposethisproductionhistorynetworkwereassociatedwithan
attractive,easytonavigateuserinterface.WewouldthenhaveasortofFacebookof
production.ThenewphoneyoubuyinNewYorkwouldbeeasilytraceabletothepeople
workinginthefactoriesinShenzhenandHanoiassemblingthepartsofthephone,andalsoto
thepeopleworkinginthedumpinGhanawherethepartsofthephonewillbediscardedwhenit
getsoldandbroken.Itwouldalsobeeasilytraceabletotheengineerswhodesignedthescreen
ofthephone.OnemightcallthisanOpenProductionNetwork.
ThissortofOpenProductionNetworkmighthelptoamelioratetheproblemof
compensatingartistsandjournalistsandothercreatorsfortheirworks,intheeraofnonpay

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walledblogsandfreeP2Pfilesharing.Consumershavelittlemotivationtocompensate
corporatepublishersfortextsormusicwhentheycanaccessthemonline,maximizingthe
shareholdervalueofacorporationisnotapriority.Butiftheycancompensatethewriteror
artist,theymaybemotivatedtodirectasmallamountofvalue(money,oreffortonmypart,or
whatever)directlytothem.Thelikelihoodofthiswouldbegreatertotheextentthatthe
consumerknewaboutthepersonallifeoftheartistorwriter,frominformationavailableon
socialmediawebsites,andfeltanIYouconnectionwithhimorher.
OfferNetworks.OpenProductionNetworksarecompatiblewithmonetaryexchange.
However,theyalsolendthemselvestomanydifferentsortsofexchange.Forexample,they
formanaturalmatchwithOfferNetworks(Goertzel2015).InanOfferNetwork,aperson
offerstoprovideacertaingoodorservicetosomeone,inexchangeforsomeoneelseproviding
anothergoodorservicetothem.Anoptimizationalgorithmisusedtoreconcilevariouspeople's
offersandrequests.Anumberofbarterorientedwebsitesexisttoday,mostlyfocusedonbinary
transactionsbetweenphysicallynearbypeoplethesearesimplekindsofOfferNetworks.
OfferNetworkscouldalsobeusedtoformorganizations.Thiswouldbeaformalization
andamplificationofprocessesthathappenalready,butininformalways.Supposetenpeople
makeanoffertospendtenhoursperweekonadoityourselfhardwareprojectmakingatoy
robotofacertainsortbuteachpersonconditionstheirofferonatleast5otherpeoplemakinga
similaroffer.Iftheseoffersaremadeviaawebbasedofferclearinghouse,forexample,thenit
doesnttakeaverysmartmatchingalgorithmtomatchthesepeoplewitheachotherandsuggest
tothemthattheyshoulddoatoyrobothardwareprojecttogether.

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Coupledwithappropriatesoftware,anonlineOfferNetworkframeworkcouldbeusedto
enablepeopletoautomaticallyformteamsandthenincorporatetheseteamsasformal
corporationsornonprofitorganizations.Aswellastraditionalformsoforganization,newtypes
oforganizationsuchasOpenValueNetworks(Kostakis,etal,nodateKostakisandBauwens
2014)ofvarioussortscouldbecreatedthisway.
TransparentCurrenciesandOpenCollaboration.Presentdaycurrencysystemsare
opaqueinvariousways.Governmentcaninjectmoneyintotheireconomiesincomplexways,
withoutpubliclydisclosingtheiractivities.Currentcryptocurrenciesareextremelyopaqueby
design.Ontheotherhand,itisalsopossibletodesignhighlytransparentcurrencysystems.The
OfferCoinmechanism(Goertzel2015)isoneexamplethisisaquantifiedmeasureofvaluethat
isderiveddirectlyfromanetworkofofferrequestexchanges,inafullytransparentway.Inan
OfferNetworkintegratedwithanOpenProductionNetwork,theupsanddownsinvalueofan
OfferCoinwouldbetraceabledirectlytoexchangescarriedoutbetweenindividuals.This
tracingcouldbecomplexinsomecases,butpeoplecouldbuildsoftwaretoolstotrackand
visualizetheprocessesinvolvedandsummarizetheresults.
OfferCoinscouldbeimplementedusingblockchaintechnology,leveragingthesecurity
andthedistributed,peertopeeraspectthatmakesblockchainsopowerful.However,inthe
OfferCoinframework,unlikeBitcoinandmostothercurrentcryptocurrencies,theinitial
foundersofthecoindontgetallocatedespecialamountsofwealth.Andsecrecyoftransactions
isnotthekeypoint.OfferCoinscanbetransactedanonymously,butthepointofanOpen
ProductionNetworkispreciselytheopposite,soinanOpenProductionbasedeconomy,major

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transactionswouldneedtobedoneopenly,evenifmediatedandsecuredviablockchain
techniques.
OfferNetworksdonthavetobetransparent.Butiftheyaretransparent,theybecomea
kindofOpenProductionNetwork.WhatwemeanbythetermOpenCollaboration/Exchange
NetworkorOCNetworkisanOpenProductionNetworkinwhichtransactionsarecarriedout
eitherusingexchangesinthemannerofOfferNetworks,whicharetransparentlyrecordedor
usingcurrencieswhosevaluesare(likeOfferCoins)directlyandtransparentlygroundedin
exchanges.
Adistributed,decentralizedsoftwareinfrastructureforimplementingthissortof
economicframeworkmightinvolve,forinstance:
Softwarematchingagentsthattakerequest/offerpairs,andseektofindsetsof
requests/offersthatwillsatisfythem.
Matchingagentswouldalsoprovidestandardtemplatesforrequest/offerpairs,
tomaketheprocessofrequestingandofferinglesslaborious.Forexample:a
bookreviewingtemplate,asoftwareteamformationtemplate,ababysittingclub
template,etc.Newtemplatescouldalsobecreatedanduploadedandthen
potentiallyadoptedbyothers.
Softwareagentsthatreportandsummarizethenetworksofproductioninvolvedin
creatingagoodorservice
Softwareagentsthatallowacreatortoregisterandbroadcasttheparticularsof
theirinvolvementinproductionofagoodorservice

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 Softwareagentsthatincorporateorotherwiseformallyconcretizeorganizations
thathavebeencreatedviamatchingagents
MatchingagentscouldalsodispenseOfferCoins.Agentsmightthenemergeto
exchangeOfferCoinsassociatedwithdifferentmatchingagents,atvarious
exchangerates.
Thissortofopeneconomywouldhavemanyadvantagesovercurrentarrangements.It
wouldenableandencouragepeopletoincorporateasmuchIYouinteractionintotheireconomic
exchangesastheyhavetimefor.Itwouldgroundmoneyinspecificexchangesbetweenpeople
inatransparentandconcreteway,hencereducingthecapabilityofpowerfulindividualsto
manipulateeconomiesviabehindthescenesmonetarymanipulations.Itwouldprovide
mechanismsforcreatingexchangesandorganizationsthatsimplydontcomeaboutinthe
currenteconomye.g.,justtogiveahandfulofalmostarbitraryexamples:
writersreviewingeachothersbooksonanexchangebasisresultinginmore
intellectualexchangehappeningmoregrowthofknowledge
consumerspayingwritersdirectlyfortheirarticles,musiciansdirectlyfortheir
songs,andsoforth
purchasersofelectronicsdirectingabitofextramoneyorservicetothe
individualswhoassembletheirelectronicsordealwiththegarbageoftheir
discardedelectronics,outofcompassionthatemergeswhenseeingtheactual
humansinvolvedintheproductionchainsinwhichonesproductsareembedded
teamscomingtogetheroutofmutualinterest,which(giventhegeneralnatureof
modernsociety)wouldnotcometogetherwithoutsomespecificautomated

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matchingmechanism.Whatusefulorinspiringcreativeproductsmightsuch
teamscreate?
consumersoffoodbeingabletoreadthecommentswrittenbythefarmers
producingthatfood.Iftheguysprayingacornfieldthinksacertainpesticideis
badandsayssoonhisblog,youcanfindthisbytracingthroughtheOpen
ProductionNetworktoseewhichpeoplewereinvolvedingrowingthecornused
tomakethecornchipsyoureeating.Youmightevenpaythefarmerabitforhis
blogpost,torewardhimfortakingthetimetosharetheinformation.
TransitioningtoanOpenCollaborationNetworkbasedeconomyofthissortwouldseem
verydifficultatpresent,becausealikelyeffectwouldbetodiminishtheproportionofprofit
goingtolargecorporationsandtheirshareholders,andincreasetheproportionofprofitgoingto
individualcontributorsonalllevels,andespeciallytoindividualcontributorsindeveloping
nations.Mostpeoplewouldratherdirecttheirvaluetotheindividualsmoredirectlyinvolvedin
producingthegoodsandservicestheyconsume.Andmanypeoplewouldcompassionately
directmorevaluetoindividualsinthedevelopingworld,involvedintheproductionchains
underlyingtheproductsandservicestheyconsume,iftheyweredirectlyconnectedtothese
individualsinahumanway(seeingtheirpictures,readingtheirblogposts).Itseemsvery
unlikelythatanOpenCollaborationNetworkwouldleadtosomanyCEOsgettingpaid
$20M/yearwhilesomanyworkersstruggleininhumaneconditionsforadollarperday.
Humansarecomplexwithmultipleaspects.Thecurrentmoneyorientedeconomytends
todrivepeopletoconsidereachotherasobjects,andtoignoreotherpeople'sparticularities,
feelings,thoughtsandneeds.AnOpenCollaborationNetworkeconomywouldhelppeopleto

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interactwitheachotherinmoreofanIYoufashionevenwhentheyarenotlivinginthesame
communityandinteractingfacetoface.Ofcourse,noeconomicsystemwillmagicallymake
everyonewhollyselflessandcompassionateandnoristhisnecessarilydesirable.Butthereis
nodoubtthathumanbehaviorsandattitudesareheavilybiasedbythesocialnetworksand
processesthatpeopleembedthemselvesin.
TheVision.ThegoldenageforOpenCollaborationNetworkswillcomeaboutoncethe
eraofscarcityispastandhumanityentersintoaneraofabundance.Afterthesingularity
humanswillenjoyatrueeconomyofabundanceandwillnotneedtoworkinjobsinorderto
secureresourcesfortheirbasicneedsfood,water,shelter,clothing,healthcare,education,
culture.
Theavailableresourceswillnotbeunlimited,buttheywillbesufficientforeveryday
humanhappiness.Mostpeopledonthaveaburningneedtobuildasupercomputerthesizeof
Neptuneeveninaneraofabundance,securingthislevelofresourcesmightrequiresome
significanteffortbutthissortofspecialcaseproblemwillnotconcernthevastmajorityof
people.
Somearguethatpeople'sdesireswillexpandtoexceedtheavailableresourcessothat
abundancewillneverbeexperienced,butwefindthisveryunlikely.Thehumanmindandbody
havetheirlimits.Weexpectthat,ifpeoplearephysicallycomfortableandhaveamplemental
andemotionalandsocialstimulation,fewofthemwillhaveaburningneedtoacquiremore
resources,aneedsufficienttoimpelthemtoundertakelonghoursofunpleasantactivities.
Inaneconomyofabundance,theprimaryreasontocarryoutactivitiesisfortheir
intrinsic,personalorsocialvalue.Associetiesapproachthisstateofabundance,peoplewillhave

17

moretimeforIYouinteractions,andvaluesandpreferenceswillgraduallychange,especially
amongemerginggenerations.Somepeople,astechnologyadvancessufficientlytoenable
radicalabundance,maychoosetoenhancetheirmindsandbodiessomuchastobecome
superhuman.Thewholenotionofeconomicexchangemaybecomeirrelevantforsuperhuman
beings,eventhosethatoriginatedashumans.Butforthosewhoremainhumaninaneraof
abundance,humanvalueswilllikelyfeelincreasinglyimportant,henceIYouinteractionswill
likelyfeellikeacriticalpartoflife.OfferNetworksandOpenProductionNetworks,ormore
sophisticatedvariationsoftheseideas,wouldseemverynaturalwaystoorganizesocial,creative
andaestheticactivitieswithinasocietyofpeoplewhosemaingoalsaretoseeksocial,aesthetic
andpersonalvalue.
TheTransition.Thesimilaritybetweenthispostsingularityutopianvisionandthe
postrevolutionaryvisionofferedbyMarxistinthenineteenthandearlytwentiethcenturiesgives
uspause.Ifwehavelearnedanythingfromtheexperienceoftwentiethcenturyrevolutions,itis
thathumansfinditdifficulttoadjusttorevolutionarychangesandthattheperiodoftransition
fromoneconditiontoanothercanbeverytraumatic,oftenwithmassivelossofhumanlife.
Thesetransitionscanbefacilitatedbybuildingthenewworldgraduallyastheoldone
withersaway,allowingpeopletograduallychangetheirvaluesandexpectations.Thismight
havebeendonebetterinthelatenineteenthandearlytwentiethcenturiesifideasalreadypresent
atthattimehadbeenmoresuccessfullypromoted.AsBacker(1978:2)observes,iftheFrench
andFrenchspeakingSwissworkershadtriumphantlypropagatedProudhonsideastothe
workingclassesofotherEuropeancountriesandintheprocesshadeclipsedMarxistideas,we
wouldobviouslyliveinavastlydifferentworld.

18

Ourtasktodayistopropagatetheseandotherideasaswidelyaspossible,encouraging
experimentationandinnovation,withoutpretendingthatwehaveablueprintforthefuture.Of
course,wecannotexpectawholesaleshifttonewmodesofeconomicinteractioninthecurrent
eraofscarcity.Buttherearesignificantandgrowingopportunitiestobuildthesenewinstitutions
voluntarilywithinthelegalframeworkofexistingsocieties.Themorethisisdone,thesmoother
thetransitiontoapostSingularityeconomyofabundanceislikelytobe.
Astheeraofabundanceapproaches,thereisagrowthofbothchallengesand
opportunities.Therearepressuresforchangethatrequirearesponse,butthatarenotcritical
enoughtogenerateasystembreakdownandrevolutionarytransformation.Someofthesefactors
include:
Theincreasingconcentrationofwealthinasmallerandsmallerpercentageofthe
populationofeachnation
Theincreasingeliminationofjobspreviouslydonebyhumans,andthe
takingoverofthesejobsbymachines
Theincreasingdisseminationofknowledgeandinformationtoeveryoneinthe
world,viatheInternet,smartphones,andsoforth
Theriseofbullshitjobs(Graeber2013)whichprovidelittletruevalueto
society,yetoccupypeoplestimeandprovidethemthemoneytheyneedto
sustainthemselvesinsociety
Itsnothardtoseewherethesetrendsaregoing.AsrobotsandAIadvance,eventually
therewillbefeweractuallyusefuljobsleftforpeopletodo.Thisdynamicwillbepaperedover

19

forawhilebybullshitjobs,buteventuallycorporationswillparethesedown,astheyaresimply
notbeneficialtothebottomline.
AsMarshallBrain(2015)haspointedout,onecanexpectthisdynamictokickin
massivelyoncecomputervisionsystemsreachthehumanlevelinaccuracy.Asurprising
varietyofjobs,today,basicallyconsistofhumanbeingsservingasbiologicalvisionprocessors
forcomplexcomputingsystems.Butvisionisbeingworkedonveryhardbymanylarge
corporationsFacebook,Google,Baidu,andsoforth.Itislikelytobesolvedinyears,not
decades.Andonceitssolved,thelongdiscussedobsolescenceofhumanlaborviamachine
laborislikelytokickintohighgear.
Andthenwhathappenstothepeoplewhoareoutofwork?Optionsinclude
Theyarelefttodie
Theyareputonwelfarei.e.someformofbasicincomeisputintoplace
Theyaregivenbullshitjobsbythegovernment,outofanarchaicsenseofwork
ethic
Thefateofworkersinthedevelopingworldisparticularlyconcerning.Itisrelatively
easytoforeseewealthynationsinstallingabasicincomefortheircitizens,iftheonlyapparent
alternativeismassstarvationandhomelessness.Itsmoredifficulttoenvisionwealthynations
deliveringabasicincometo,say,subSaharanAfrica.Willweseeasituationwherethe
majorityofAfricansneedtoreturntosubsistencefarming,becausetheworldeconomyhasno
jobsforthem,butthewealthynations(or,mainly,thesmallpercentageofindividualswhoown
thebulkofthewealthynations)havenomotivationtosharetheirwealth?Onesolutionmaybe
todevelopstrongerdirectrelationshipsbetweenlocalthirdworldcommunitysystemsof

20

exchangeandproductionandhightechcentersthatcanprovidetechnologyappropriateforthe
communities.Exchangesbetweenthesecommunitiescanbedevelopedandmaintainedusingthe
mechanismsdiscussedinthispaper.
ThefurtherwecangettowardanOpenCollaborationNetworktypeeconomybefore
humanlaborbecomesobsolete,thebetteroffwewillbe.Whathumanityneeds,inorderto
launchaSingularitythatismorelikelytobepositiveforthevastbulkofpeople,ismoreIYou
andlessIItandOpenProductionNetworksandOfferNetworkswillencouragethis.
SharingCommonResources.OpenCollaboration/ExchangeNetworksalsohave
potentialtoprovideahighlyeffectivemethodofdealingwithcommonresourcesincluding
Naturalcommonresourcessuchasairandwaterandparkland
Manmadephysicalcommonresourcessuchasbandwidthandtransportation
networks
Informationalandaestheticcommonresourcessuchastexts,musicandvisualart
Purefreemarketsystemshaveatendencytoleadtotragedyofthecommonsproblems,
whicharegenerallymodulatedinmodernsocietiesviagovernmentregulation.Butgovernment
regulationisoftenheavyhanded,inefficientandslowtoadapt.
Inthecaseofinformationalandaestheticcommons,decentralizednetworksarealready
risingtotheforeandwreakinghavocwiththeoldwaysWikipediaandpeertopeermusic
sharingbeingtwokey,muchdiscussedexamples.Buttheseexampleswouldactuallybenefit
tremendouslyfromanOpenProductionNetworkframework.Asnotedabove,wesuspectthatif
therewereeasywaysformusicconsumerstodirectvaluetomusicalartistswhosemusicthey

21

appreciate,thiswouldhappenreasonablyoften,resultinginmanymusiciansbeingcompensated
morethantheyarenow.
AndWikipediasufferssomewhatfromalackofeasytransparency.Theinternalpolitics
anddecisionsofthecabalofhighrankingWikipediaeditorsisopaquetomostWikipediausers.
So,forexample,Wikipediapagesoncontroversialtopicssuchastranshumanismorpsicanbe
hijackedbyzealotswithstrongopinions,inawaythatishardfortheordinaryreadertotrace.
OnecanreadthediscussiononaWikipediatalkpage,butonecanteasilytellwhoapages
controllingeditorishowmuchtheyactuallyknowaboutthetopicinquestion,whattheir
historyofjudgmentoropiniononthetopicis,etc.
Inthecaseofphysicalcommons,rightnowitisnotmadetransparenthowmuchofeach
commonresourceisusedbyeachitemweconsume.Forinstance,manypeopleintheUShave
coffee/teamachinesthatusesmallplasticcoffee/teacartridgesoneforeachcupfulofbeverage.
Thesecartridgesallowsomesmallconvenience.Buttheyalsocreateplasticgarbagethathasto
gointosomelandfillsomewhereconsumingacommonresource.Thisisobviouswhenyou
thinkaboutit.Butifthedegreeofcommonresourceusedbytheplasticcartridgeswasmade
moreapparenttotheusersay,viaasmartphoneappthatrevealedthecommonresourcesused
byanobjectwheneveryouphotographedtheobjectwithyourphonethenonesuspectsthe
usageofthesecartridgeswouldgowaydown.Muchasinthecaseofcompassionforthe
workerslaboringtomakepartsofoneselectronicsorclothesforadollaraday,inthecaseof
commonphysicalresourcesaswell,outofsightisoutofmind.Opaqueordifficulttounravel
productionnetworks,inabusysociety,leadpeopletoignorethingsafewstepsdownthevalue

22

chainfromthegoodsorservicestheyconsume.Transparent,openproductionnetworkswould
causepeopletothinkalittlemoreaboutthecommonresourcestheyutilize.
Opencollaboration/exchangenetworkswouldinmanycasesbeconsideredasortof
commonsbasedpeerproduction(KostakisandBauwens2014).ButOCNetworkscouldalso
beusedformorehierarchicallyorganizedproductionprocesses.Someprocessesmayjustbefar
moreeffectivelyexecutedinafairlystructuredandhierarchicalway,andtheresnotnecessarily
anythingwrongwiththis.WhatOCNetworksrequireismerelythattheworkingsoftheprocess
betransparent,andfoundedonexchangemediawhosevalueisdeterminedinatransparentway.
InapostSingularitysociety,whenagroupofpeopleshareasetofcommonresources
outofmutualagreementsuchasdesiringacommunallifestylethissortoftransparent
monitoringofcommonsusagewouldbeanexplicitpartofthesocialcontract.Incontemporary,
scarcityerasocieties,mostpeoplefindongoingmonitoringofcommonsusageahassle.Tothe
degreethehasslecanbeminimizedviatransparentvaluechainsandeasytousevaluechain
inspectiontools,people'sbestinstinctsanddeepestcompassioncanbemorefrequentlybrought
tobearonissuesofcommonsusage.
OpenCollaboration/ExchangeNetworks,AIandtheGlobalBrain.Open
CollaborationNetworksdonotintrinsicallyrequireadvancedartificialintelligence.(Matching
algorithmsandsoforthmayinvolveoptimizationtechniques,butthesecanbeconsideredmore
computersciencethanAI.)However,AIhaspotentialtogreatlyenhancethefunctionalityof
OCNetworksinmultipleways,forexample:
Suggestingmatchesforpeople'soffer/requestpairs,basedonunderstandingofthe
associatedsoftconstraintsandpreferences

23

 Identifyingwhichportionsofthevaluechainapersonwillfindinterestingtolook
at
Carryingoutmatchingofrequestsandoffersinwaysthatmaximizebeneficialuse
ofcommonresourcesandrecommendingpurchasesorrequest/offerpairsthat
seemlikelytoprovidepeoplewithsatisfactionwhilealsobeingbeneficialin
termsofcommonresources
ThelatterfunctionwouldenableAItoserveastheengineofakindofautomated
commonsbutnotinisolationrather,enmeshedwiththeoperationofanoverallOCNetwork.
Inthiscontext,IYourelationshipswithotherpeopleprovidinggoodsandserviceswould
naturallyoccuralongsideIYourelationshipswithcommonresources.Thegeneralvibeof
economicinteractionwouldbeoneofinspectingandunderstandingtheexchangesimplicitin
oneschoicesbetheseexchangeswithotherpeopleorwithcommonnatural,physicalor
informationalresourcesratherthanoneofconsideringexchangesasisolatedtransactionsof
moneyforgoodsorserviceswithoutanyrichercontextualmeaning.
Aswithexchangesbetweenindividuals,thiswouldnotbeutopicandwouldcertainlynot
eliminateconflictsregardingutilizationanddevelopmentofcommonresources.However,it
wouldtendtobringoutpeoplesbetter,moreprosocialsidesratherthantheirmoreselfishor
indifferentsides.Whereasthecurrentsocioeconomicorganization,focusedonIItmonetary
exchanges,tendstoamplifypeoplestendenciestowardselfishnessandunempathictreatmentof
others.
Giventhecomplexityofmoderneconomiesandthevaluechainsthatcomprisethem,
thereseemsapotentialmajorroleforAIinpresentingpeoplewiththehumanandcommons

24

relatedconsequenceoftheirchoices,andsuggestingtothemchoicestheywillfindrelatively
satisfyinginalldimensions.SuchanAI(ornetworkofAIagents)wouldserveasakeytool
shapingthenetworkofhumanandroboticordigitaleconomicagentsintoakindofglobal
brain.
Thissortofglobalbrainwouldkeepglobalaims(regardingcommonresources)inmind,
andmakerecommendationstoindividualsregardingwaystofulfilltheirindividualdesireswhile
alsoservingglobalaimseffectively.Itwouldalsoguidepeopletothinkmoreprosociallyand
toengageinIYouinteractionswithothersandwiththeirphysical,naturalandinformational
environment.Itwouldnotinterferewithpeople'srighttomakeanysortofoffersandrequests
theylike(thoughofcoursesocietallawsmightforbidcertainoffers)butitwouldnudgepeople's
behaviorincertaindirections.
Incurrentsocietyindividualschoicesaremostcommonlynudgedviaadvertising,which
hasthekeygoalofmaximizingshareholdervalueforlargecorporations,i.e.ofacceleratingthe
concentrationofwealthinasmallfractionofthepopulation,anddirectingpeople'smindstoward
actsofconsumption.NudgingpeopleinthedirectionofIYouinteractionsandcollectively
positivegrowthanddevelopmentofcommonresourcesdoesnotseeminferior.
AnExampleScenario.Tomaketheseideasmoreconcrete,letusconsideranexample
scenario.Considerthecaseofanentrepreneurwhowantstocreateanewformofentertainment
robot,andhaveitmanufacturedatscaleandsold.
Currently,inordertodothis,theentrepreneurfirstmustacquirefundsfromsomewhere
perhapsviaworkinginajobdoingsomethingelsethatsocietyvaluesmoregreatly,or
perhapsviasolicitingfundsfromawealthyindividual(whohas,orwhoseparentsorancestors

25

have,donesomethingthatsocietyvalues),oraventurefirmfundedbywealthyindividuals,etc.
Thentheentrepreneurmustmakeaconceptualdesignfortherobot,andoutlinespecificationsfor
therobotsbehavior.Thenshewillhireaprototypingfirmtocreateaprototypeversion.They
willpayemployeestobuildtheprototype,andwillbuildinacertainprofitmargintotheirfee,
whichtheshareholdersofthefirmwillultimatelyusetoenrichtheirlifestyles.Thentogetthe
prototypebuiltatscale,shewillneedtofindfundstohaveafactorycreatetheappropriate
toolingforhisproduct,anddoaninitialproductionrun.Ifshedoesnthavethefundsonhand,
hewillgotoabanktoborrowmoneyforthisThenshewillhireamarketingfirm(whichwill
alsobuildinaprofitmargintotheirfees,whichwillgototheirshareholders)tomarkether
product.Shippersandretailersalsocomeintoplay,eachwiththeirownprofitmargins.
Tochoosewhichprototypingormarketingfirmtouse,andwhichfactorytouse,the
entrepreneurwillaskotherssheknows,toassessthereputationsofvariousalternatives.She
mayfindthatthefactorydelaysproductionofherrobotforunclearreasonse.g.theymaytell
herabunchofobviouslyfalsestoriesaboutthedelay,whenthetruthisthatabiggerandmore
importantcustomertemporarilypreemptedhisproductionrun.Themarketingfirmwillpay
mediasourcestorunadsforherrobot,intendedtograbpeoplesattentionsotheyknowthenew
robotexists.Theseadsenablethemediasourceto(afterextractingtheirprofitmargin)pay
journaliststowritearticles,oractorsandproductioncrewstocreatevideos.
Onethingtonoteintheaboveprocessis:theprocessoftransformingtheentrepreneurs
entertainmentrobotdesignintoaproduct,andbringingthisproducttotheattentionofpotential
consumers,involvesahostofdifferentbusinessorganizations,eachoneofwhichtakesacertain
profit,whichisthendistributedtotheshareholdersoftheorganization.Iftheproductis

26

successful,theentrepreneurwillbenefitfinanciallyfromthesalesofherrobot.Butthevarious
shareholdersalongtheproductionchainwilllikely,asagroup,benefitfarmore.Theymay
deservethis,inthesensethatthey(ortheirancestors)mayhaveaccumulatedthefundsthey
investedinthebusinessesalongtheway,viacreatingthingsofvaluetosociety.Ontheother
hand,thereisawelldocumentedincreasingreturnsphenomenonregardingwealth(Piketty,
2013).Themoremoneyyouhave,theeasieritistomakeevenmoremoney.Onthewhole,
fundsachievedviainvestmentdwarffundsachievedviadirectlycreatingproductsorexecuting
services.
WhatwouldtheaboveprocesslooklikeinaworlddominatedbyOpenExchange
Networks?Theentrepreneurcoulduseanoffernetworkinacrowdfundingtypemanner,and
offertoprovideentertainmentrobotsmeetingacertaindescriptiontopeople,ifthenumberof
peoplewillingtoexchangeatleast50OfferCoinseachforsucharobotexceedsacertainnumber
(say,10,000,ifthiswastheminimumamountneededforaneconomicalproductionrun).
Supposingshegetsenoughtakers,thenothervendorsmayenterintotheexchangeviatheoffer
network.
Aprototypingcollective(agroupofpeoplewithdiverseskills,workingtogethertomake
hardwareprototypesforvariousproducts)mayhaveanoutstandingoffertocreateaprototype
basedonsomeonesdesign,IFsomeone(potentiallysomeoneelse)willprovidethemacertain
amountofcloudcomputingtime,foruseontheirvariousprojects.Thefolksdesiringtoobtain
therobotscanthenusevariouspayorexchangemechanismstoobtaincloudcomputingtime,
whichcanbesuppliedtotheprototypingcollective.Theprototypingcollectiveitselfmayhave

27

formedviaansweringsomeonesoffernetworkcallforparticipationaimedatpullingtogether
engineers,artistsandprojectmanagerstocreateaviableprototypingorganization.
Allthesechainsofinteractionwouldbemediatedbysoftwarebehindthescenes,
requiringlittlemoreeffortthanmakingacreditcardtransaction.Similarchainswouldbe
carriedouttohandlemarketingandmanufacturing.Thechoiceofprototypingcollective,
marketingcollectiveandfactorymaybemadesolelybytheentrepreneur,ortheentrepreneur
mayaskthefolksrequestingtherobotswhichoftheavailablefirmstheyprefer.Information
aboutthehistory,philosophyandpracticesofeachfirmwouldbereadilyavailable.The
customersmightdecidetopay55OfferCoinseach,insteadoftheoriginal50coinsmentioned,to
havetherobotmadeinafactorythattreatsitsemployeesespeciallywell.Insteadofadvertising,
exchangesmightbeusedwhereinpeopleagreetowatchbriefvideosaboutotherpeoples
productsorideas,inexchangeforsmallamountsofOfferCoins,orinexchangeforpeople
watchingtheirownvideosorconsumingothermediaproductionstheyhavecreated.
Inthisfuturisticeconomyversionoftheprocess,exchangesareoccurringbetween
individualsactuallydirectlyprovidingproductsorservices,ororganizationsofpeoplewho
gatheredtogetherasateamtoprovideacertaintypeofproductorservicethatisbetterdelivered
byagroupthanbyanindividual.Shareholdersplaynorole,andbanksandloansarenot
needed.Everyonecan,iftheycareenoughtolook,seethevariousingredientsgoingintothe
productstheybuyandcreate,andtheservicestheyreceiveandoffer.Endusersoftheproduct
becomefamiliarwiththeentrepreneurviatheirresponsetohisinitialoffer,andalsomaybe
familiarwiththeprototypingfirmduetonoticingthecloudcomputetimetheyprovidedtothem
viatheexchangenetwork.Somemaycommunicatewiththeentrepreneurorwitheachother

28

regardingthechoiceoffactoryorprototypingormarketingfirm,andestablishrelationships
valuableinfutureinteractions.Theroleoftheconsumersandvariousorganizationsinthe
chain,inhelpingselectthevariousotherorganizationsinthechain,ultimatelymeansthatthe
natureofthefinalproductisnottheresultoftheentrepreneuralone,butofalltheindividuals
alongtheway.Iftheprototypingcollectiveismoreofafreelyformednetworkofcollaborators
thanatypicalhierarchicalcorporatestructure,thentheindividualsinvolvedinthecollectiveare
morelikelytofeelincentivizedandpermittedtoprovidetheirownopinionsregardingvarious
decisionsmadealongtheproductionchain.
Ratherthanposingasthesolecreatoroftheproduct,theentrepreneurappearsexplicitly
astheseedofacreativeprocesscarriedoutbyasubnetworkoftheGlobalBrain.Ofcourse,
somethinglikethisisalreadythecaseproductsalreadyemergefromcollectiveactivityin
selforganizingdistributednetworksofhumans,machinesandorganizations.Butthetendency
towardsecrecyandhierarchicalorganization,enforcedby(amongotherfactors)thekey
economicroleplayedbybusinesseswithacentralgoalofcompetitivelymaximizingshareholder
value,placesthefocusonprocessesoccurringwithinorganizationsandindividualsratherthan
ondistributednetworkactivities.IntheOpenCollaboration/ExchangeNetworksapproach,
interactionsoccuramongindividualsandorganizationsformbasedonexplicitexchanges
betweenindividualsandthisallowshigherlevelpatternsoforganizationandadaptationto
becomemorecomplexandexplicit.
Theonlymiddlemaninvolved,intheOpenCollaboration/ExchangeNetworkscenario,
isthesoftwaremediatingthematchinganddistributionofoffersandrequests,theformationof
teams,theinspectionofchainsandtheassignmentofreputations.This,however,canbe

29

opensourcesoftwarerunningpeertopeer,orusingcloudcomputetimeobtainedvia
offernetworkexchangewithusers.Donationsfromusersofthesoftwarewouldlikelybemore
thanenoughtofundanopensourcedevelopmentteammaintainingandimprovingthesoftware.
Multiplecoopetingversionsofthesoftwaremayexist,muchlikemultipleLinuxversionstoday.
Thissortoffuturistic,openexchangeprocessdoesntrequirepostSingularitylevelsof
abundance.Itwouldworkjustfineinamassivematerialabundancesituationwheretheonly
servicebeingexchangedishumanattentionbutitalsomakessenseinthecaseofmoderate
materialscarcity,suchaswefaceintheworldtoday.Allitreallyrequiresisthatthetechnology
toenableopenexchangeandopenproductionberelativelyinexpensive.Andarguably,we
alreadyareinthissituationtoday.WhatkeepsusfromhavinganOpenCollaboration/Exchange
Networkeconomyrightnow,inthedevelopedworldatanyrate,arebasicallyinertiaandlackof
broadunderstanding.Butthecheaperandmorepervasivecommunicationandcomputing
technologiesbecome,andthemoreadvancedAIandothersoftwarebecomes,thelessitwilltake
tojoltourcurrenteconomysubstantiallyinanOpenCollaboration/ExchangeNetworkdirection.
Conclusions.Currentlyemergingtechnologieshavethepotentialtofacilitateboth
utopiananddystopianoutcomes.ThekindoftotalitarianstateenvisionedbyOrwellin1984
couldbeevenmoreoppressivewithmoderncomputernetworkingthanitwaswiththetelevision
camerasheenvisioned(Pavlovski2014).Butmutualistandcommunitarianalternativescould
alsoworkbetterwiththekindsoftechnologicalinnovationswehavedescribed.Toagreat
extent,newtechnologiesmakeitpossibletotranscendthedilemmabetweentheneedforthe
efficienciesofscaleandthedesireforhumanlevelinteraction.Theparticularsviawhichthis

30

potentialwillberealized,aredifficulttoforeseeandtosomeextent,areourstoshapeaswe
unfoldthefuturetogether.
Thesechangescanbeimplementedgradually,alongsidethecurrentmarketsystem,and
willplayalargerandlargerroleasintelligenttechnologieslessentheneedforeithereconomic
orpoliticalcoercion.Mostlikely,neithercapitalismnorthestatewilldisappear,buttheirrole
maydiminishdrasticallytotheextentthatotherinstitutionsarecreatedtotaketheirplace.As
humanandposthumanactivitiesareincreasinglycoordinatedbytheglobalbrain,managing
theseactivitieswillgivetheglobalbrainbetteraccesstothethoughtsandmotivationsofhuman
andotheractorsandthisaccesswillongoinglyreshapethenatureoftheglobalbrainitself.
Currently,inanontransparenteconomy,theglobalbrainhasverylimitedaccesstoalot
ofwhatgoesoninitsmind,justashumanshavelimitedaccesstothemindsofotherhumans.
OpenNetworkswillfacilitateintrospectionandanalysis,byhumansandbyartificial
intelligences,intothemassivedetailsofaverycomplexemergingsystem.Itisimpossibleto
predicthowthissystemwillevolve,butthereareconcretestepswecantakenowtohelpit
evolveforthebest.

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