VESPR : In-App Governance 🏛️ & Catalyst Registration 🗳️

[GENERAL] Name and surname of main applicant

VESPR Team

[GENERAL] Are you delivering this project as an individual or as an entity (whether formally incorporated or not)

Entity (Incorporated)

[GENERAL] Please specify how many months you expect your project to last (from 2-12 months)

9

[GENERAL] Please indicate if your proposal has been auto-translated into English from another language

No

[GENERAL] Summarize your solution to the problem (200-character limit including spaces)

Our proposal seeks to integrate Cardano Governance and Catalyst Registration seamlessly into VESPR wallet, empowering ADA holders to participate in shaping the future of the network.

[GENERAL] Does your project have any dependencies on other organizations, technical or otherwise?

No

[GENERAL] If YES, please describe what the dependency is and why you believe it is essential for your project’s delivery. If NO, please write “No dependencies.”

No dependencies

[GENERAL] Will your project’s output/s be fully open source?

No

[GENERAL] Please provide here more information on the open source status of your project outputs

If the "Open-sourcing VESPR | ⚡ VESPR Turbo" proposal is funded, the content of this proposal will also be open sourced.

[METADATA] Horizons

Governance

[SOLUTION] Please describe your proposed solution

Understanding the Problem

Despite the Cardano blockchain’s decentralized governance structure and open participation, users face a challenging process to participate in governance actions and to register for catalyst voting. This often involves complex, multi-step registrations, external tools, and switching between apps, discouraging broad adoption and limiting the full potential of decentralized governance.

Without direct and simple in-app integration, many users, especially those unfamiliar with technical processes, are excluded from the governance decision-making process and Catalyst voting. This results in lower participation rates, reduced diversity of voices in governance, and stunted community-driven innovation.

Approach to the Solution

Our proposal seeks to integrate on-chain governance voting and Catalyst fund registration seamlessly into VESPR wallet. By developing an intuitive, secure in-app feature, we will enable users to:

• Register to vote in Project Catalyst directly from their wallet without needing external tools or websites.
• Vote on governance proposals within the wallet app, providing a smooth user experience and encouraging participation in governance without technical barriers.
• Delegate voting power to dReps directly from within the VESPR wallet application.
• Integrate real-time proposal updates, voting results, and participation metrics in-app.
• Provide easy-to-understand interface, tooltips and educational materials embedded within the app to guide users on how to register, vote, and participate in Cardano governance.

The focus will be on building a user-friendly, accessible interface that minimizes technical complexity, empowering every ADA holder to participate in shaping the future of the network.

Engagement and Beneficiaries

This project will engage a wide range of stakeholders in the Cardano ecosystem:

• ADA Holders: The primary group this project will engage is ADA holders, especially those who are interested in participating in governance but currently feel excluded due to the complexity of the process. By simplifying the voting experience, we will encourage a broader spectrum of ADA holders to take part in the decision-making process.
• Developers and Innovators: Project Catalyst funds community-driven projects, including developers, startups, and innovators who submit proposals for funding. By increasing voter engagement, these groups will have a better chance of receiving fair and comprehensive feedback on their ideas, leading to more diverse and high-quality projects.
• Governance Participants: Cardano governance stakeholders, including community leaders and decision-makers, will benefit from increased participation and more representative governance. This helps ensure that decisions reflect the broader interests of the network.
• New Community Members: By simplifying governance participation, we anticipate that this project will also attract new users to Cardano, especially those drawn to the decentralized ethos but deterred by current complexities. Lowering barriers encourages newcomers to become active members of the ecosystem.

Uniqueness and Importance

This project is unique because it directly integrates on-chain governance voting and Catalyst registration into the already trusted VESPR wallet, streamlining the entire process for users. This reduces friction by reducing the need for external tools and lowers the technical barriers to participating in Cardano’s governance and Catalyst voting, making it more accessible to a broader audience.

The importance of this solution is even more critical now, as governance on the Cardano network has just been launched and adoption is still low among projects. Many users are unfamiliar with the new processes, and some existing projects have been unable to keep up with the latest governance changes due to a lack of resources. As a result, several projects are closing or no longer offering support, which has created a gap in the ecosystem.

Additional Remark on Project Catalyst integration

Under this proposal, VESPR will integrate Project Catalyst registration, but not Project Catalyst voting. This is because the current infrastructure of Project Catalyst does not allow third party integrations for catalyst voting.

[IMPACT] Please define the positive impact your project will have on the wider Cardano community

By simplifying the governance process, this integration will boost voter turnout across Catalyst funds, ensuring a more diverse, inclusive, and representative set of decisions. More voters mean better decentralization, which is key to Cardano’s mission.

In the past years, one of the VESPR’s focus points has been to reduce the entry barrier for less tech-savvy users. And we plan to continue to double-down on this by making sure those users also have an easy/clear way to take part in governance.

• Quantitative Metrics:
• Voter Participation: One of the primary metrics of success will be an increase in the number of voters in each Catalyst fund. We will track and compare voter turnout rates before and after the in-app integration is deployed.
• Registration Rates: We will measure the number of ADA holders registering for Catalyst participation directly through their wallets, showing the ease of registration as a key success factor.
• Proposal Engagement: By promoting in-app registration, we anticipate an increase in the number of users reviewing and voting on Catalyst proposals. Tracking engagement metrics such as proposal views and votes will help quantify this.
• Community Feedback:
• We will actively collect feedback from users through surveys, Cardano forums, and social media platforms. Their experience using the in-app governance features will provide qualitative data on user satisfaction and areas for improvement.
• Governance Improvements:
• A more engaged community will lead to better decision-making outcomes within Cardano’s governance. We expect to see more diverse opinions represented in voting results, which can be analyzed over time to measure the inclusivity of decisions.
• Catalyst Fund Success: By driving greater voter engagement, the quality of funded projects should improve. This can be tracked by monitoring the success rate and impact of Catalyst-funded projects, linking back to broader community participation.

[CAPABILITY & FEASIBILITY] What is your capability to deliver your project with high levels of trust and accountability? How do you intend to validate if your approach is feasible?

Our capacity to deliver this project with high levels of trust and accountability is demonstrated by our track record and robust operational framework.

Capability Indicators:

• Reliability: We have a proven history of managing VESPR with over 99.95% uptime over the past year, showcasing our commitment to reliability and excellence in service delivery. Maintaining an uptime of over 99.95%, despite significant increases in user numbers and transaction volumes speaks to our technical and operational proficiency.
• Proven Track Record: We have also a proven history of managing Catalyst-funded projects. We successfully met all milestones, adhered to the proposed timeline, received positive feedback and fostered open-source collaboration on the Ledger Flutter SDK and VESPR integration. Our expertise in Cardano wallet integrations, governance mechanisms, and decentralized applications ensures we can efficiently tackle both the technical and strategic aspects of this proposal. 
• Significant Market Growth: Our market share within the Cardano ecosystem has expanded by 20x over the past year, indicating strong user trust and adoption of our wallet.
• Advanced Development: In the past month we have released Ledger and Keystone hardware wallet integrations, added multiple new languages, developed our own Transaction Chaining engine under-the-hood and all of that while keeping fully compliant with the latest fork. This reflects our team’s ability to efficiently manage and execute complex projects.

We have continuously integrated community’s feedback and we work together with our users to identify what’s best to come next and how we can better support the entire Cardano community.

[PROJECT MILESTONES] What are the key milestones you need to achieve in order to complete your project successfully?

UX Research, Designs and project analysis

Milestone outputs: 

• User interface designs
• Initial scope for project’s required work

Acceptance criteria: 

• UI designs in figma are completed for the VESPR wallet
• Initial project scope is ready for commencing development work

Evidence of milestone completion:

• Figma designs will be provided
• Screenshots of Jira/Linear ticket(s) (or alternative project management tool) will be provided

API Development

Milestone outputs: 

• Add/update API routes on servers to query for existing proposals/dReps and for info on any given existing proposal or dRep

Acceptance criteria: 

• Created API endpoint to query for existing proposals/dReps for info on any given proposal/dRep

Evidence of milestone completion: 

• Show sample API response in Postman/CURL for the new requests

UI Implementation

Milestone outputs: 

• Implement UI for catalyst registration, showing dRep registration/delegation status, showing available dReps, registering as dRep, delegating to dRep, voting to proposals

Acceptance criteria: 

• UI is implemented in the VESPR app for catalyst registration, showing dRep registration/delegation status, showing available dReps, registering as dRep, delegating to dRep, voting to proposals

Evidence of milestone completion: 

• Screenshots from the app with the new UI

Integration

Milestone outputs: 

• VESPR wallet will be able to register for catalyst, show dRep registration/delegation status, show available dReps, delegate to dRep, vote for proposals

Acceptance criteria: 

• VESPR wallet will be able to register for catalyst, show dRep registration/delegation status, show available dReps, delegate to dRep, vote for proposals 

Evidence of milestone completion:

• VESPR will provide screen recording showing a catalyst registration, a dRep registration, available dReps list and dRep delegation

Beta Release and User Testing

Milestone outputs: 

• VESPR will publish a beta version with the in-app catalyst registration and governance enabled

Acceptance criteria: 

• VESPR published a beta version with the in-app catalyst registration and governance enabled

Evidence of milestone completion: 

• VESPR will provide screenshot evidence of app’s beta version with in-app catalyst registration and governance being released to testers

Official Launch and Closing Reports

Milestone outputs: 

• VESPR will publicly release the app with in-app catalyst registration and governance
• Catalyst Final Report and Closeout Video.

Acceptance criteria: 

• VESPR app with in-app catalyst registration and governance is live on at least one initial platform
• Catalyst Final Report and Closeout Video are made

Evidence of milestone completion: 

• VESPR will provide app store evidence that the app with in-app catalyst registration and governance has been launched on at least one initial platform

[RESOURCES] Who is in the project team and what are their roles?

Alex Dochioiu | CEO & Senior Software Architect

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexandru-dochioiu

Alex, founder and senior software architect of VESPR Wallet, has over 10 years of experience developing safety-critical mobile applications for major financial institutions, including American Express and Virgin Money. His extensive background ensures that VESPR adheres to industry best practices and maintains the highest technical standards. Alex brings a wealth of knowledge in handling complex, mission-critical systems, ensuring smooth execution of the technical aspects of the project.

In addition to leading VESPR, Alex is a member of Cardano's Product Committee and the Cardano Blockchain Infrastructure Alliance, where he contributes to shaping the long-term vision and strategy for the Cardano blockchain. His involvement in the committee allows him to align VESPR’s development with the broader goals of the Cardano ecosystem, ensuring that both the project and the platform evolve in tandem.

Vlad Stan | Engineering Manager and Senior Software Engineer

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stanvladut/

Vlad oversees the entire software development process, managing the project's lifecycle, coordinating resource allocation, and ensuring rigorous quality assurance. With a strong focus on performance and quality, he ensures that systems scale smoothly under heavy traffic, delivering reliable, high-quality user experiences while driving innovation in the engineering process.

He is a seasoned engineer and people leader with over 10 years of experience, known for effectively guiding high-performing teams on large-scale projects for high profile companies, such as Adobe. He led cross-functional teams across multiple geographies, delivering impactful projects to millions of users.

[BUDGET & COSTS] Please provide a cost breakdown of the proposed work and resources

Milestone 1: 45k ADA

Project Manager: 10 days @ 600 usd/day = $6,000

Product and UI Designer: 15 days @ 400 usd/day = $6,000

Software Developer: 5 days @ 800 usd/day = $4,000

Milestone 2: 95k ADA

Project Manager: 2 days @ 600 usd/day = $1,200

Software Developer: 40 days @ 800 usd/day = $32,000

Milestone 3: 75k ADA

Product Owner: 5 days @ 400 usd/day = $2,000

Software Developer: 30 days @ 800 usd/day = $24,000

Milestone 4: 75k ADA

Product Owner: 5 days @ 400 usd/day = $2,000

Software Developer: 30 days @ 800 usd/day = $24,000

Milestone 5: 55k ADA

Project Manager: 2 days @ 600 usd/day = $1,200

Product Owner: 5 days @ 400 usd/day = $2,000

Software Developer: 20 days @ 800 usd/day = $16,000

Final Milestone: 40k ADA

Admin and Project Management: 10 days @ 600 usd/day = $6,000

DevOps: 10 days @ 800 usd/day = $8,000

[VALUE FOR MONEY] How does the cost of the project represent value for money for the Cardano ecosystem?

The costs for enhancing VESPR are aligned with industry standards and current income rates of the team members. Those rates reflect typical wages and freelance rates in our field for the top talent necessary for high-quality outcomes. These costs are justified by the significant improvements and increased user engagement expected, which will elevate Cardano’s competitive position.

Value Proposition:

• This proposal offers a transformative solution to Cardano’s governance ecosystem. By integrating governance directly into a mobile wallet, VESPR lowers barriers to participation and enhances voter engagement. The solution is aligned with Cardano’s decentralized ethos, ensuring that governance decisions reflect the interests of the global ADA holder community.
• Innovation: This proposal will set a new standard for decentralized governance applications by making Catalyst registration as simple as a few taps on a mobile screen.
• Scalability: VESPR’s solution is designed to grow with the expanding Cardano community. As more users join the ecosystem, they will seamlessly engage with governance through wallet integration, contributing to the long-term health of Cardano’s decentralized governance.

This investment represents substantial value for money by promising to significantly enhance network utility and community onboarding within the Cardano ecosystem.