How DAHAO Works Under the Hood
The concepts, design patterns, and integration points that make DAHAO revolutionary. Built on four foundational concepts that work together to create living governance.
Core Architecture Overview
DAHAO is built on four foundational concepts that work together
┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │ DAHAO CORE │ ├──────────────────────────────────────────────────┤ │ │ │ Terms (@) → Principles (#) → Rules │ │ ↑ ↑ ↑ │ │ └────────── Meta-Rules ────────────────┘ │ │ │ │ Version Control │ MCP Integration │ Branches │ └──────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
The Four Layers Explained
Think of terms as versioned dictionary entries that you or your community can control:
Why versioning matters: When rules reference @harm, they can specify which version they need, ensuring stability while allowing evolution or getting the closest meaning.
Principles are value statements built using Terms:
- Use specific Term versions for clarity
- Cannot be directly enforced (that's what Rules do)
- Guide the creation and evaluation of Rules
This is where DAHAO becomes revolutionary. Rules are executable governance:
Traditional Rule:
"All research must undergo peer review before publication"
DAHAO Rule:
An actual workflow that:
- • Validates researcher credentials automatically
- • Checks methodology against standards
- • Assigns appropriate peer reviewers
- • Tracks review progress in real-time
- • Publishes when consensus reached
- • Visual Builder: Drag and drop workflow creation
- • Natural Language: Describe what you want, AI converts to workflow
Meta-rules govern how governance itself can change:
- How to modify Terms (voting thresholds, discussion periods)
- Rule precedence and conflict resolution
- Branch inheritance policies
- What cannot be changed (immutable safety rules)
Version Control System
DAHAO treats governance like software development
Semantic Versioning
- • Major: Breaking changes (2.0.0 → 3.0.0)
- • Minor: New features (2.0.0 → 2.1.0)
- • Patch: Bug fixes (2.0.0 → 2.0.1)
Branch Extensions
- • Branches extend parent versions
- • Must maintain compatibility
- • Can propose changes upstream
Operations
- • Fork: Create new branch with custom rules
- • Merge: Integrate successful innovations
- • Rollback: Instant restoration if something breaks
- • A/B Test: Try new versions with small groups
MCP Integration Architecture
DAHAO as MCP Hub - Connect any service or AI model
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │ DAHAO as MCP Hub │ ├─────────────────────────────────────────────────┤ │ │ │ External Services DAHAO │ │ ┌─────────────┐ ┌─────┐ │ │ │ GitHub │ ←────MCP──→│ │ │ │ ├─────────────┤ │ │ │ │ │ OpenAI │ ←────MCP──→│ Hub │ │ │ ├─────────────┤ │ │ │ │ │ Slack │ ←────MCP──→│ │ │ │ ├─────────────┤ └─────┘ │ │ │ Custom APIs │ ←────MCP────┘ ↑ │ │ └─────────────┘ │ │ │ │ │ │ External Clients MCP │ │ ┌─────────────┐ │ │ │ │ Claude │ ←─────────────┘ │ │ │ Computer Use│ │ │ └─────────────┘ │ └─────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
- Connect to any MCP-enabled service
- Use in Rules for automation
- Examples: GitHub for code review, OpenAI for analysis
- Other systems query DAHAO governance
- Check compliance programmatically
- Example: Claude asks "Does this violate any principles?"
Rules Engine Architecture
How rules execute automatically
Event-based (new proposal, time-based, external webhook) and condition matching (location, type, threshold)
Query databases or APIs, run AI analysis, send notifications, update records, initiate votes
Sequential execution, parallel processing, conditional branches, loop iterations
Branch Architecture
Hierarchy Model for Governance Evolution
Core DAHAO (Universal principles) ├── Environmental Protection │ ├── Ocean Conservation │ ├── Wildlife Protection │ └── Climate Action ├── Technology Governance │ ├── AI Safety │ └── Open Source └── Your Custom Branch
- • Start with parent's Terms, Principles, Rules
- • Override or extend as needed
- • Maintain compatibility requirements
- • Experiment without affecting parent
- • Private data and rules
- • Custom MCP connections
- • Propose improvements upstream
- • Share successful innovations
- • Cross-pollinate ideas
Security Architecture
Permission layers and security features
System Level ├── User Permissions (read, write, admin) ├── Branch Permissions (member, moderator, owner) ├── Rule Permissions (which data, which services) └── MCP Permissions (per-service access control)
Rules only access permitted data, MCP calls respect service limits, branch isolation enforced
Every action logged, immutable history, full traceability
Per-user limits, per-service quotas, cost controls
Performance & Scaling
Optimization strategies for enterprise-scale governance
- • Cache MCP responses
- • Reuse analysis results
- • Version-aware invalidation
- • Independent steps run simultaneously
- • Distributed rule processing
- • Optimized workflows
- • Token limits for AI calls
- • API rate limit respect
- • Cost budget enforcement
Integration Patterns
For developers and organizations
SDK Approach
REST API
- • Standard HTTP endpoints
- • JSON request/response
- • Authentication via tokens
WebSocket
- • Real-time updates
- • Event subscriptions
- • Live governance feed
Gradual Adoption
- • Start with one department/project
- • Create branch for experimentation
- • Connect existing tools via MCP
- • Expand as confidence grows
Integration Points
- • CI/CD pipelines (governance checks)
- • Slack/Teams (notifications)
- • Databases (data governance)
- • AI tools (enhanced analysis)
Advanced Capabilities
Self-improvement, cross-branch learning, and future-ready design
The system can modify its own modification process:
- • Meta-rules govern rule changes
- • Community decides governance evolution
- • A/B testing for governance changes
- • Metrics-driven improvements
- • Successful patterns spread
- • Failed experiments contained
- • Best practices emerge
- • Network effects compound
DAHAO abstracts away the underlying technology:
- • Integration layer: MCP, REST, GraphQL, or future protocols
- • AI abstraction: OpenAI, Claude, Llama, or what comes next
- • Storage agnostic: Git, blockchain, or emerging solutions
- • One constant: Your governance rules remain stable
DAHAO's architecture enables:
The technical architecture is designed to be:
- • Simple to use (hide complexity)
- • Powerful to extend (MCP, branches, rules)
- • Safe to experiment (version control, rollback)
- • Democratic to govern (community decisions)
What's Next
Building the future of governance together
As we build DAHAO together, we're planning:
- • Git-based version control for all governance
- • Personal branches for customization
- • Automated GitHub workflows
- • Full technical documentation