What does Andrew Yang’s Universal Basic Income have to do with Pets? You’d be surprised.
It’s no coincidence that here at Pawtocol we have chosen to entitle the token that fuels the new pet economy “Universal Pet Income”. Even staunch believers of its counterpart, Universal Basic Income, are likely tilting their heads a bit at this point. After all, how could pets be suffering from the same shifting economic landscape that’s motivating Candidate Yang to propose UBI?
Understanding “what” UBI is, while easily explained, isn’t all that helpful to understanding “why” we need it. UBI is simply an unconditional periodic cash payment every citizen receives. The reason we need it, according to Yang, is far more illuminating:
We are experiencing the greatest economic and technological shift in human history, and our institutions can’t keep up. — Andrew Yang
Lurking just under the surface of this statement is a troubling reality of our new, tech-centric economy. It’s fueled by things our institutions, and generally the public at large, doesn’t understand: data and algorithms. Unfortunately, history has shown that knowledge disparities like this are quickly exploited for profit by those possessing the lion’s share.
So, just as humans see their income potential usurped by data and algorithms, in a way, so do our pets. Purchasing is a perfect example. Whether we click on over to Amazon to buy our pet a treat, or one for ourselves, that activity is generating inputs to their business operation (ie, data) and that operation is responsible for creating the world’s wealthiest human.
And just as human society is left worse off as a result, so is the society of pets. For millions on both branches of the tree, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to even maintain, nevermind grow, their standard of living.
We believe that the income pet’s can generate on our platform will provide more direct benefits to the community than any top-down approach.
Here are three examples of how the platform’s data provides value:
- Healthcare providers can improve their quality of service by having broader, more seamless access to pet data.
- Manufacturers can better allocate R&D resources or more quickly respond to quality control issues if consumers share their data.
- Retailers can improve customer loyalty or more effectively compete with larger retailers by knowing more about the products of their patron’s purchase.
Universal Pet Income is borne out of the same revolutionary ideas and methods as Universal Basic Income. The Pawtocol platform is a new economy, one that seeks to build real, lasting value starting with individuals.
Read more about the value of a pet’s data.
Read more here about the launch of our IEO!
