Inception Governance

Inception is governed by its community of INCP token holders. This page explains how governance works, the proposal lifecycle, voting thresholds, and how to participate.

Governance Scope

The Inception governance system controls:

• Protocol parameters: Gas limits, block times, fee structures
• Network upgrades: Hard forks, client updates, consensus changes
• Treasury management: Allocation of protocol funds
• Bridge operations: Signer set updates, limits, supported assets
• Emergency actions: Circuit breakers, pause mechanisms
• Grant programs: Funding for ecosystem development

What Governance Doesn't Control

Individual smart contracts deployed by users are not subject to governance. Governance only affects protocol-level parameters and official Inception infrastructure.

Who Can Participate

Any INCP holder can participate in governance.

• Voting power: Proportional to INCP holdings
• Delegation: Delegate your voting power to others
• Proposal creation: Requires minimum INCP threshold
• No lockup required: Vote with your wallet balance (liquid governance)

Proposal Lifecycle

1. Discussion Phase

Before formal proposals, ideas are discussed in community forums:

• Community forums: Initial discussions and feedback
• Discord/Telegram: Informal community input
• Temperature checks: Gauge community interest
• Duration: No fixed timeline, typically 1-2 weeks

Purpose: Refine ideas, build consensus, identify issues

2. Formal Proposal

Once refined, create a formal governance proposal:

Requirements:

• Minimum INCP balance: 100,000 INCP (subject to governance change)
• Clear proposal specification
• Technical implementation details (if applicable)
• Risk assessment and impact analysis

Proposal contents:

• Title and abstract
• Motivation and rationale
• Detailed specification
• Implementation timeline
• Security considerations
• Success criteria

3. Voting Period

Formal voting period where INCP holders vote:

• Duration: 7 days
• Options: For, Against, Abstain
• Vote changes: Can change vote during voting period
• Snapshot: Voting power based on INCP balance at proposal start

How to vote:

1. Connect wallet to governance portal
2. Review proposal details
3. Select your vote (For/Against/Abstain)
4. Submit transaction (pays gas fee)
5. Vote recorded on-chain

4. Quorum and Approval

For a proposal to pass, it must meet quorum and approval thresholds:

Parameter Changes (Standard)

• Quorum: ≥4% of total INCP supply must vote
• Approval: >50% of votes must be "For"

Examples:

• Adjusting gas limits
• Modifying fee parameters
• Updating bridge limits
• Treasury allocations

Security-Critical Changes

• Quorum: ≥4% of total INCP supply must vote
• Approval: ≥66% of votes must be "For"

Examples:

• Protocol upgrades (hard forks)
• Consensus mechanism changes
• Emergency pause mechanisms
• Core contract upgrades

Abstain Votes

"Abstain" votes count toward quorum but not toward approval percentage. Use abstain when you want to support quorum but have no strong opinion.

5. Timelock Period

Approved proposals enter a mandatory timelock before execution:

• Standard proposals: 7 days timelock
• Security-critical: 14 days timelock
• Emergency actions: Reduced timelock (case-by-case)

Purpose:

• Allow community to review approved changes
• Provide time for security audits
• Enable emergency exit if critical issues found
• Prepare infrastructure for changes

Guardian Veto

During the timelock, a multi-sig guardian council can veto proposals if critical security issues are discovered. This safeguard will be phased out as the protocol matures.

6. Execution

After the timelock expires, anyone can execute the proposal:

• Proposal transaction is executed on-chain
• Changes take effect immediately or as specified
• Execution transaction pays gas (typically by proposer or protocol)

Voting Thresholds Summary

Delegation

Don't have time to vote on every proposal? Delegate your voting power:

How delegation works:

1. Choose a delegate (individual or organization)
2. Delegate your INCP voting power to them
3. They vote on your behalf
4. You can revoke delegation anytime
5. Your INCP never leaves your wallet

Delegating:

// Via governance portal UI
// Or directly on-chain:
governanceToken.delegate(delegateAddress);

Choosing a delegate:

• Review their voting history
• Check their governance participation
• Understand their values and priorities
• Consider their technical expertise

Self-Delegation

By default, your voting power is delegated to yourself. You only need to manually delegate if you want someone else to vote for you.

Creating a Proposal

Prerequisites

• Hold minimum 100,000 INCP (or receive delegation to meet threshold)
• Proposal has been discussed in community forums
• Technical implementation is clear and audited (if applicable)

Steps

1. Draft Proposal: Use the standard template
2. Forum Discussion: Post in governance forum for feedback
3. Refine: Incorporate community feedback
4. Submit On-Chain: Create formal proposal via governance portal
5. Campaign: Engage community to vote

Proposal Template

# [Proposal Title]

## Abstract
Brief one-paragraph summary

## Motivation
Why is this proposal needed?

## Specification
Detailed technical specification

## Implementation
How will this be implemented?

## Timeline
When will this be executed?

## Security Considerations
What are the risks?

## Success Criteria
How do we measure success?

Governance Parameters

Current governance settings (subject to change via governance):

Parameter	Value
Proposal Threshold	100,000 INCP
Voting Period	7 days
Quorum (Standard)	4%
Approval (Standard)	>50%
Approval (Security-Critical)	≥66%
Timelock (Standard)	7 days
Timelock (Security-Critical)	14 days

Emergency Actions

In critical situations (security exploits, network failures), expedited governance is possible:

Emergency Council:

• Multi-sig composed of trusted community members
• Can pause contracts or halt specific operations
• Requires supermajority (e.g., 6-of-9 signatures)
• Actions reviewed by full governance within 48 hours

When used:

• Active exploits or attacks
• Critical bugs discovered
• Network consensus failures
• Bridge security incidents

Transparency:

• All emergency actions posted to status page
• Full post-mortem published within 7 days
• Governance vote to ratify or reverse action
• Emergency powers phased out over time

Progressive Decentralization

Emergency powers exist for network security during early stages. As the protocol matures, these powers will be gradually reduced and eventually removed entirely.

Governance Portal

Access governance at gov.inceptionera.com (when live):

Features:

• View active proposals
• Cast votes
• Delegate voting power
• Track proposal history
• View current governance parameters
• Monitor voting results in real-time

Best Practices

For Voters

• Research thoroughly: Read proposals and discussions
• Consider long-term impact: Think beyond immediate gains
• Engage in discussion: Share your perspective in forums
• Vote consistently: Regular participation strengthens governance
• Delegate if absent: If you can't participate, delegate to someone who will

For Proposers

• Start with discussion: Gauge interest before formal proposal
• Be specific: Clear technical specifications
• Address concerns: Respond to community feedback
• Provide context: Explain motivation and impact
• Plan implementation: Have clear execution plan
• Security first: Consider all security implications

Common Proposal Types

Parameter Updates

Adjusting network parameters:

• Gas limits
• Block size
• Fee structures
• Validator requirements

Threshold: Standard (4% quorum, >50% approval)

Treasury Grants

Funding ecosystem projects:

• Developer grants
• Security audits
• Marketing initiatives
• Community events

Threshold: Standard (4% quorum, >50% approval)

Protocol Upgrades

Major network changes:

• Hard forks
• Consensus updates
• Client upgrades
• Core contract changes

Threshold: Security-Critical (4% quorum, ≥66% approval)

Bridge Operations

Bridge-related changes:

• Adding new assets
• Updating signer set
• Adjusting limits
• Fee changes

Threshold: Standard (4% quorum, >50% approval)

Governance Token (INCP)

Governance rights are tied to INCP holdings:

• Supply: 50,000,000,000 INCP (50 billion)
• Voting power: 1 INCP = 1 vote
• No lockup: Vote with tokens in your wallet
• Delegation: Can delegate without transferring tokens

See Tokenomics for detailed token information.

Governance Roadmap

Phase 1 (Current):

• On-chain voting
• Timelock execution
• Emergency council safeguards

Phase 2 (Planned):

• Snapshot voting for cost-effective signaling
• Improved delegation mechanisms
• Governance rewards for participation

Phase 3 (Future):

• Fully on-chain execution
• Removal of emergency safeguards
• Cross-chain governance integration

Monitoring Governance

Stay informed about governance activity:

• Governance Portal: gov.inceptionera.com
• Forum: Community discussion platform
• Status Page: inceptionera.com/status
• Social Media: Official announcements
• Discord/Telegram: Real-time community discussion

Governance Principles

Inception governance is guided by these principles:

1. Transparency: All proposals and votes are public
2. Inclusivity: Any INCP holder can participate
3. Security: Rigorous review for critical changes
4. Gradualism: Prefer iterative improvements over radical changes
5. Reversibility: Design changes to be reversible when possible
6. Evidence-based: Decisions informed by data and analysis

Need Help?

• Review governance forum discussions (when live)
• Check the Status Page
• Read the Tokenomics documentation
• Contact through the main site

Additional Resources

• Governance Portal: https://gov.inceptionera.com (when live)
• Forum: https://forum.inceptionera.com (when live)
• Tokenomics: /tokenomics
• Protocol Docs: /protocol
• Bridge Docs: /bridge

FAQ

Can I vote if my INCP is staked?

Yes, staking and governance are separate. Staked INCP retains voting power.

Do I need to vote on every proposal?

No, voting is optional. However, active participation strengthens governance.

Can I change my vote?

Yes, you can change your vote anytime during the voting period.

What happens if quorum isn't met?

The proposal fails, regardless of approval percentage. It can be resubmitted later.

Can proposals be amended?

No, once submitted, proposals cannot be amended. If changes are needed, create a new proposal.

How are ties handled?

For standard proposals (>50% approval), a tie (exactly 50%) results in rejection. Security-critical proposals require ≥66%, so ties aren't possible.

Can emergency actions be reversed?

Yes, emergency actions can be reviewed and reversed by full governance within 48 hours.

Get Involved

Ready to participate in governance?

1. Acquire INCP: See Get INCP
2. Join discussions: Engage in community forums
3. Stay informed: Follow governance proposals
4. Vote: Cast your vote on active proposals
5. Delegate: Or delegate to align with your values

Your participation shapes the future of Inception.