This is an early draft of the Season 3 Strategy and Budgets as presented in the Lisk DAO Townhall on December 10th. We are keen to get LSK stakeholder input on the draft and aim to submit the proposal for a vote in the coming weeks once feedback is incorporated.
Lisk DAO Season 3 Strategy and Budgets
Executive Summary
This proposal seeks approval for the Lisk DAO Season 3 strategy and budgets, aimed at supporting Lisk in becoming the Growth Platform for EM Founders.
The estimated budget for H1 2026 is 1,450,000 LSK, including the anticipated 78K LSK remaining from Season 2. Subtracting that amount, the requested funds are 1,372,000 LSK.
The Season 3 proposal is a significant reduction from the 3,925,000 LSK budget of Season 2 in nominal and absolute terms as a result of the creation of the Lisk DAO fund taking over the graduation allocation and the exclusion of accelerator costs.
Motivation
Season 3 continues the momentum established in previous seasons and marks another step in the gradual decentralisation of Lisk. By transferring operational responsibilities from the Lisk core team to the DAO, Season 3 strengthens community-led decision-making, accountability, and participation.
This season builds upon the proven frameworks from Season 2 while emphasising real-world use cases, builder empowerment, and ecosystem sustainability, ensuring Lisk remains a key pillar of the broader Superchain network.
Rationale
Approval of Season 3 will provide a clear and predictable six-month framework for ecosystem growth, grant allocation, and reporting. The structure ensures that the DAO continues to operate with transparency, measurable impact, and alignment with the Superchain priorities of interoperability, shared security, and real-world adoption.
Specification
Following the Lisk DAO Season Strategy, we propose the following setup and procedures for Lisk DAO Season 3.
Theme
In 2026, Lisk DAO will focus on functioning as a Growth ecosystem and accelerator for EM use-cases, further strengthening the link between the Lisk ecosystem and tangible onchain applications.
Through grants, incentives, and support programs, Season 3 aims to:
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Empower developers and teams to scale their products on Lisk.
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Drive the creation and adoption of use cases across DeFi, payments, and fintech.
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Expand the network of contributors and strengthen community governance.
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Build a pipeline of high-quality projects for the Lisk DAO Fund & EMpower Fund.
Intents
| Intent | Category | Key Measurables |
|---|---|---|
| 1) Make contributing to Lisk DAO engaging and rewarding. | Social | (A) Make Lisk ecosystem funding more transparent, (B) Increase governance participation and rigour. |
| 2) Accelerate Lisk programs and builders. | Economic | (A) Support key programs and builders, (B) Make it simple to discover and engage with Lisk programs and apps. |
| 3) Increase Lisk chain and ecosystem revenue | Economic | (A) Total chain revenue (B) Total ecosystem project revenue (C) Track and report on Lisk KPIs and treasury holdings. |
| 4) Build a pipeline for the Lisk DAO Fund and EMpower Fund/ | Economic | (A) Support and graduate DAO-funded projects toward long-term investment opportunities. (B) Track the number of DAO-backed projects progressing to external funding rounds. |
Season Structure
We propose Season 3 to be operated through a two-tier system
1. Ecosystem Strategy Council: Tasked with aligning on Lisk Ecosystem Strategy, budgets, and program prioritisation.
2. LiskDAO Ops team: Tasked with operating the Builder Grants, Ecosystem Incentives, and other programs.
Budget
The budget will be managed through the existing 3-out-of-5 Superchain Safe.
| Item | Budget | Who selects projects? (Module I) | Who evaluates impact? (Module H) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Development and Infra Grants | 500K LSK | Lisk DAO Grants Council | Ecosystem Strategy Council |
| Ecosystem Incentives | 600K LSK | Lisk DAO Operations Team | Ecosystem Strategy Council |
| Lisk DAO Operations | 250K LSK | Lisk DAO Operations Team | Lisk DAO |
| Website, marketing, and data | 50K LSK | Lisk DAO Operations Team | Ecosystem Strategy Council |
| Program Infrastructure | 50K LSK | Lisk DAO Operations Team | Ecosystem Strategy Council |
| TOTAL | 1.45M |
Season 3 Initiatives
Season 3 will focus on three key initiatives designed to empower builders and strengthen real-world application development on Lisk.
1. Lisk DAO Development & Infrastructure Grants
The program will be split into two milestone-based tiers:
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Development Grants (25,000–100,000 LSK): For projects with clear KPIs driving TVL growth, ecosystem adoption, or cross-chain integration.
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Infrastructure Grants: For essential tooling and protocol support.
All applications, reviews, and tracking will move to Karma, replacing Charmverse, to ensure transparency and community oversight.
Delegates and Ambassadors can endorse projects on Karma, creating an open feedback loop between builders and the community.
2. Lisk DAO Ecosystem Incentives
Season 3 continues onchain, KPI-driven incentive programs (e.g., Lisk Surge, Builder Rewards) focused on TVL, dApp usage, and user activity.
Of the 600,000 LSK budget, at least 250,000 LSK will be distributed via Divvi or comparable onchain measurement tools, rewarding measurable onchain activity (e.g., gas fees used, unique users, transaction volume). All rewarded projects will be tracked on Karma for full transparency.
This ensures incentives directly support real usage, measurable growth, and long-term value on the Lisk Mainnet.
Changes from Season 2: Ambassador Program & Incubation and Acceleration Programs
In Season 3, the LiskDAO will not allocate a budget for the Ambassador Program or the Incubation and Acceleration Programs. These initiatives will instead be proposed and managed by the Lisk Core Team, allowing the DAO to focus its resources on builder grants, ecosystem incentives, and operational support.
The DAO will continue to collaborate closely with the Lisk team to ensure alignment across all ecosystem efforts and to maintain visibility into the progress of these programs.
Grants Council Members
The DAO Ops team of Season 3 will consist of the following members.
| Role | Member | Prev Roles |
|---|---|---|
| Lead | JashFi | Lead at Superchain Eco |
| Member | Ibrahim | Lisk Builder who graduated from CV Labs |
| Member | JujuBoy | Long-time Lisk Community Member and Delegator |
Lisk Ecosystem Strategy Council
In Season 3, we’re introducing the Lisk Ecosystem Strategy Council, a representation of leadership and key stakeholders in the Lisk Ecosystem who will prepare and present ecosystem strategy plans to the Lisk Delegates and Governance for input and approval.
We propose that the Ecosysteam Strategy Council consist of a merit-based, balanced structure with representation from the leading stakeholders in the Lisk Ecosystem.
The ES Council would meet once a month to share and review Lisk Ecosystem’s progress and discuss strategy and tactics to further accelerate Lisk.
| Member | Current Role |
|---|---|
| Jash | Lead of Lisk DAO Season 3 |
| Luuk | Manager of Lisk DAO Fund |
| Lisk Core Member | A representative for the Lisk Core team |
| EMpower Fund Member | A representative for the EMpower Fund |
| Partner Organisation Member | A representative of the Onchain Foundation or one of the Accelerator Programs |
| Delegate #1 | We propose to offer these two slots to the independent Delegates with the highest vpLSK balance. If the person doesn’t accept, we will continue to go down the list. |
| Delegate #2 | Could put the final 2 slots up for Delegate application and vote |
Timeline
Season 3
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Start Date: January 12, 2026
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Mid-Season Report: April 1, 2026
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End Date: June 18, 2026
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Post-Season Report: June 25, 2026
Action Plan
Upon approval:
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The Grants Council and Ecosystem Strategy Council will begin the Season 3 workstreams.
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Within one week, the updated grants application process on Karma will be launched to enable proposal submissions, public tracking, and endorsement of funded projects.
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Regular updates, performance reviews, and impact reports will be published throughout each season to ensure transparency and accountability. Liskdao.com will function as the main information hub. Monthly Lisk DAO Townhalls and Ecosystem Strategy Council meetings will be hosted.
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Ahead of Season 4, the DAO will publish the Season 3 Post-Season Report, providing insights and analysis of outcomes to help refine grant processes, incentive mechanisms, and funding priorities for the next season.
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If the proposal is not approved, all remaining funds from previous seasons will be returned to the Lisk DAO Treasury.
