Enter the world of startup societies

The next evolution of (re)designing society according to values

Network state. Coordi-nation. Cloud country. Free city.

These are hot topics in the decentralization space, so much so that even talking about them is buzzing about concepts that are still not totally defined.

Yet the trend analysis shows us fascinating indications of where these movements are converging.

Two words: physical territories.

Originating from global communities organized around shared values and digital networks, these iniatives are turning towards building or acquiring land and physical spaces to represent their booming member bases.

This movement is waxing faster than mushrooms overnight, and we're in for the ride.

Decentralized society initiatives

A few key advantages to these initiatives include:

• Designing new communities united by shared values such as longevity, privacy, self-sufficiency, or personal freedoms.

• Autonomy in setting regulations, legal systems, and economic mechanisms that support those shared values.

• Leveraging larger groups to negotiate with existing governments for favorable conditions.

• Unlike traditional citizenship, membership is voluntary and borderless and can be verified by alternative methods such as web3 addresses.

• Public services can be offered by the most suitable candidates, not just the civic government by default.

Here is a matrix we made to compare these initiatives.

That is what distinguishes these initiatives from one another, now let's talk about what they have in common.

Each of these projects is a) a group of people who are b) willing to pool resources to c) achieve a common goal and d) in need of inventing mechanisms that supports their common purpose*

*Thanks to the

Green Pill

podcast episode with Primavera de Filippi for being the inspiration to elucidate this

In essence, each of these project types is responding to something that they see lacking at a societal scale and are proposing alternative models for how to address the deficiencies.

For free cities, it is the monopoly that government has on public services and a general lack of personal freedoms.

For network states and cloud countries, it’s the restrictions of land and territory and nationality, as well as rebelling against surveillance states.

For coordi-nations, it's addressing complex global problems that require radical cooperation and collaboration.

(Note: these are generalized statements, so pass up any policing impulses you have and leave constructive dialogue below.)

All of these iniatives can fall under the category of a startup society.

Startup societies: is that just a group of entrepreneurs?

The term draws from the startup city concept, but does not limit the concept by scale or format.

The truth is, we now have tools to build our own societies, governments, and economies.

Startup society models are breaking the assumption that entrenched bodies of power and societal operating systems are the most suitable to run the show. Actually, the value proposition here is to be able to design fractals of society according to shared ethos, whatever that ethos may be.

Here is a startup society typology map created by

Startup Societies Network

As you can see, they come in many flavors.

The fundamentals of the startup societies we are involved with are organized around decentralization, which is the main trend that we are talking about here.

What ReFi is to finance and DeSci is to medicine, startup societies are to government/society, busting open previously closed doors and private clubs.

Decentralized societies inspiring us right now

One example of a startup society that is embodying that exploration right now is Vitalia, an experiment along the lines of Zuzalu (and frequented by the same incendiaries).

We are currently based in Roatán, Honduras at the free city Próspera for a two-month colive with 200 others fascinated by the network state movement and actively designing the tech that facilitates its realization. We’ve been consulting their community creation process and supporting with logistics.

The ethos of Vitalia is making death optional by building spaces to pursue biotech longevity, regenerative medicine, and healthy lifestyles.

Because this is such a fetal space, there are few other projects that are leading the charge, but the ones that we are aware of and databasing, we'll be covering in future articles.

Challenges and Opportunities

Potential challenges in building a startup society:

• Identifying favorable geographic locations and geopolitical environments

• Organizing and mobilizing larger groups of people while maintaining coherence

• Not replicating the same flaws of the system you are rejecting

Opportunities for growth and innovation within the movement:

• These projects love tech. New operation protocols, governance tools, and even social platforms that support their custom ethos and optimize their project will be prioritized.

• Services tailored to help create these spaces such as legal consultation, community design, and government negotiation will be highly desirable in the upcoming years as new projects launch.

• Real estate connections and predictions over favorable locations will make you very popular in this movement, as well as the skills of ontological design and physical infrastructure that can satisfy a futurist.

Make it self-sufficient though.

So how did Regen Tribe encounter and connect with the idea of startup societies and why are we talking about this?

We've been on a mission to create an accelerator that allows for a particular type of startup society to flourish. One that is completely self-sufficient in energy, food, water, and waste.

The network state movement, for example, focuses on legal sovereignty. With the infrastructure that we champion, you also achieve self-sufficiency.

Sovereignty + self-sufficiency = true autonomy.

We spoke about this at the Free Cities conference in Prague last October.

No matter the flavor of your startup society, if you want to exit dependency on failing systems, the infrastructure of your physical communities should be circular and self-sufficient. This is also why we insist on tying startup societies to physical land projects.

We are currently undergoing some quantum evolutions at Regen Tribe as we respond and adapt to what our new research is showing us.

In the coming months, we will be sharing our collective incubations in the space.

Future Outlook

This movement is undoubtedly going to have impact on the landscapes of governance, real estate, citizenship options, personal identity addresses, alternative economic models, and the invention of new social technologies. Especially as these Internet communities move into physical spaces.

The future of Regen Tribe is building a platform to connect these groups of digital communities to physical spaces.

Subscribe to this substack and join this waitlist to stay up to date with our tech releases to support this emergence.

The movement is experimental, dynamic, and constantly changing. There will be new information tomorrow, and the day after that. We are remaining curious and furtive in our desire to help redesign society.

Now, what are your thoughts on the movement? Objections? Concerns? Memes?

We encourage you to explore the possibilities and potential gaps of decentralized societies. Propose your own observations about the movement in our online community group on the Tribes platform.