Full-Stack Developer · STS Researcher
Building sovereign identity and heritage infrastructure. Incoming PhD focused on the political economy of decentralized identity.

I work at the intersection of protocol architecture and political theory, with a particular interest in how technical systems encode power, governance, and legitimacy. My current work bridges Science and Technology Studies (STS) with hands-on Web3 development, with an emphasis on digital sovereignty and long-term institutional design.

My work spans both system implementation and critical analysis, with an emphasis on how technical design choices shape power, governance, and long-term institutional behavior.

I work primarily with Rust and TypeScript, building and analyzing protocol-level systems across the Internet Computer and EVM-based environments. My work includes smart contract and protocol architecture, identity and access models, and the translation of complex technical systems into language that can be understood, evaluated, and maintained.

My research sits at the intersection of political economy and technical infrastructure. I focus on decentralized identity, governance mechanisms, and commons-based systems, drawing from Science and Technology Studies (STS) to examine how digital systems encode power, legitimacy, and institutional values over time.

A decentralized infrastructure for cultural heritage and museum stewardship.
The project explores how decentralized identifiers and cryptographic provenance can support long-term institutional trust, public ownership, and digital sovereignty for cultural artifacts.

A critique of netarchical capitalism and the political economy of blockchain systems.

A 40,000-word research project examining how decentralized technologies can either reproduce extractive power structures or enable genuinely cooperative digital institutions.
Writing sample available upon request.

“Code is law” is an incomplete idea.
In practice, code functions more like a constitutional draft — defining who holds power, how decisions are made, and whose interests are protected.

My work is guided by three principles:

1. Sovereignty
   Digital identity should be owned, not rented. Users must be able to exist, transact, and exit without reliance on centralized intermediaries.

2. Mechanism Design
   Protocols are economic and political systems. Their incentive structures determine whether they enable coordination or concentrate power. Design choices are never neutral.

3. Democratic Ownership
   A system is only worth building if it can be meaningfully governed by its users. If participants cannot understand, influence, or leave a system without penalty, it is not decentralized — it is merely automated.

I treat decentralized systems as institutional infrastructure: long-lived structures that shape coordination, trust, and power over time.

Ultimately, my work is aimed at expanding the digital commons — unlocking shared digital value by building systems that preserve collective ownership, democratic participation, and long-term public benefit in an increasingly privatized digital world.

• GitHub: https://github.com/Jack0thy
• Email: jacksmye@gmail.com
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-smye/

• GitHub: [https://github.com/Jack0thy]
• Email: jacksmye@gmail.com
• LinkedIn: [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-smye/]