Star Atlas DAO (POLIS)

Overview

A governance token for a space game

Star Atlas DAO is the governance system for Star Atlas, a space-themed game built around exploration, trade, and player-run organizations. Its token, POLIS, gives participants a way to help make decisions about the project. Star Atlas also has a second token, ATLAS, which serves as the main currency for in-game activity. In simple terms, ATLAS helps the game economy run, while POLIS helps govern it. (support.staratlas.com)

The distinction matters because Star Atlas connects several kinds of activity. Players can use ships and other digital items in game experiences, trade assets through a marketplace, and take part in community decisions. POLIS links those decisions to a formal process: holders can lock tokens to gain voting power, discuss proposals, and vote on changes that reach the governance portal. (support.staratlas.com)

History & Team

From game development to community governance

Star Atlas began releasing its blockchain-based products in 2021, including its marketplace and the ATLAS and POLIS tokens. Its web-accessible DAO platform followed in 2022. In 2023, the project introduced its first POLIS Improvement Proposal, or PIP-1, to set out a governance framework involving the DAO, a constitution, and the Star Atlas Foundation. These steps gave the community a structured route from discussing ideas to voting on them. (experience.staratlas.com)

The company developing Star Atlas is ATMTA. Its listed cofounders and leaders include Michael Wagner, chief executive officer; Danny Floyd, chief product officer; and Jacob Floyd, chief technology officer. Pablo Quiroga has also been identified by Star Atlas as a cofounder. Animoca Brands’ purchase of Star Atlas spaceship NFTs in 2022 is an example of outside participation in the game’s asset ecosystem; it was an NFT purchase rather than a POLIS token allocation. (experience.staratlas.com)

Technology & How It Works

Solana programs and voting power

POLIS and the DAO operate on Solana. The governance system uses on-chain programs for token locking, voting, proposal management, rewards, and execution. A multisignature wallet—one that requires approval from multiple signers—helps carry out approved actions involving DAO assets and programs. The project’s governance documentation identifies separate components for managing proposals and calculating votes. (support.staratlas.com)

A holder gains POLIS Voting Power, called PVP, by locking POLIS for a chosen period. Voting weight depends on both the amount locked and the length of the lock. The voting power tied to a lock declines as that lock approaches its end, and locked tokens cannot be withdrawn before the period expires. This design gives a longer commitment more weight than a shorter one made with the same number of tokens. (support.staratlas.com)

Community ideas can become PIPs. The process includes discussion, drafting, council review, and an on-chain vote. A proposal needs to meet participation and approval requirements before it can pass. The Star Atlas Foundation then handles execution where an approved decision calls for an on-chain action or a real-world legal act. (support.staratlas.com)

Tokenomics & Utility

A fixed allocation with two distinct token roles

The published POLIS allocation totals 360 million tokens. The economic plan assigned 40% to rewards and emissions, 30% to the team, 22.5% to private token sales, 1.5% to a public presale, 2% to public token sales, and 4% to listings and liquidity pools. These figures describe the token distribution plan, not how many tokens any group holds at a given time. (experience.staratlas.com)

POLIS’s main function is governance. Locked tokens create voting power and can earn POLIS rewards under the locker system. Through the DAO, participants can address matters such as treasury spending, economic policy, and community initiatives. ATLAS has a different job: it is used for payments and rewards in the game economy. The DAO’s decisions can therefore affect how ATLAS held in its treasury supports development and other ecosystem work. (support.staratlas.com)

This two-token design separates everyday game transactions from longer-term decisions. A player buying resources may use ATLAS without taking part in governance. A POLIS holder can focus on proposals even if they spend little time flying ships. Some participants do both, connecting their experience of the game to decisions about its direction. (support.staratlas.com)

Ecosystem & Use Cases

Games, assets, and player groups

Star Atlas includes a browser-based strategy experience called SAGE, alongside an Unreal Engine 5 game experience. In SAGE, players can manage fleets, move through the galaxy, gather resources, and craft items. Ships, crew, and other assets can be represented by tokens or NFTs on Solana. The marketplace provides a way for players to exchange game assets, tying ownership and production to the wider game economy. (support.staratlas.com)

Governance adds another activity to that ecosystem. A participant might propose a community initiative, discuss how treasury funds should be used, or vote on an economic change. Guilds, known in Star Atlas as decentralized autonomous corporations or DACs, organize players around shared goals. The project’s broader governance design also describes faction and regional decision-making as the game world develops. (support.staratlas.com)

Development continues across these connected systems. For example, Star Atlas made a C4 version of SAGE available in a public test environment in 2026. Its menus cover fleets, inventory, crew, crafting, buildings, and the galaxy map. That test environment shows how many different activities the team is bringing together in the browser-based game. (support.staratlas.com)

Advantages & Challenges

What the design enables—and what it demands

POLIS gives game participants a defined way to influence shared rules instead of relying only on developer announcements or informal feedback. Published proposals, community discussion, and recorded votes make the path from an idea to a decision easier to follow. The treasury also gives governance a practical role: approved proposals can direct resources toward work for the ecosystem. (support.staratlas.com)

The same design asks participants to learn several systems. A voter needs to understand token locks, voting power, proposals, and the subjects being decided. Longer locks receive more voting weight, so governance influence depends on both token holdings and commitment time. Effective community rule also depends on people taking part: proposals need discussion, sufficient votes, and a workable plan for execution. (support.staratlas.com)

Star Atlas faces a broader design challenge as well. Its game, marketplace, and DAO are linked, but they develop at different speeds. Turning a political decision into a useful game feature may require software work, economic planning, and coordination among players, the foundation, and developers. (support.staratlas.com)

Where to Buy & Wallets

Accessing POLIS on Solana

POLIS is available on Kraken and through Solana-based exchanges such as Raydium and Orca. Platform access depends on location; Raydium’s stated restrictions include the United States. Kraken offers a direct POLIS purchase page, while decentralized exchanges use a connected Solana wallet for swaps. (kraken.com)

Phantom, Solflare, and Backpack are Solana wallets identified in Star Atlas’s own wallet guidance. They can be used to hold POLIS and connect to Star Atlas applications. A small amount of SOL is needed in a wallet to pay Solana transaction fees when moving tokens or interacting with the DAO. The governance portal provides the POLIS locker used to create voting power. (support.staratlas.com)

Regulatory & Compliance

Legal structure and religious assessment

The Star Atlas Foundation operates the DAO’s governance website on behalf of the organization. Its published terms describe the foundation as a Cayman Islands entity and place those website terms under Cayman Islands law. The foundation’s role includes carrying out approved DAO decisions that require a legal entity to act. (govern.staratlas.com)

Rules for token offerings and exchange services depend on the jurisdiction. In the United States, the Securities and Exchange Commission explains that the legal treatment of a crypto-asset transaction depends on its facts, including any promises tied to the buyer’s expectation of profit. In the European Union, the Markets in Crypto-Assets framework applies to covered crypto-asset offerings and service providers. These frameworks address legal questions separately from the DAO’s own voting rules. (sec.gov)

POLIS has no established project-wide Shariah designation in its published governance materials. Assessing its halal status calls for looking at the token’s actual uses, including governance rewards and the game activities connected to the wider ecosystem. Islamic financial standards treat Shariah review as a question about an asset’s structure and use, rather than a label that follows automatically from its technology. (ifsb.org)

Future Outlook

Building out the game and its governance

Star Atlas’s longer-term aim is to give players a larger role in managing its game world. The DAO already has processes for POLIS locking and proposals. Its usefulness will grow with the range of decisions that participants can make and carry out through those processes. Game development matters too: more working activities in SAGE and other experiences create more economic and community questions for players to govern. (support.staratlas.com)

The project’s test releases and economic reports show an ongoing effort to connect fleets, production, markets, and governance. For POLIS, the central question is how well the voting system helps players make clear decisions as that connected world becomes more detailed. (support.staratlas.com)

Summary

Star Atlas DAO uses POLIS to give participants a voice in the direction of a Solana-based space game. Locking tokens creates voting power, while proposals turn community ideas into formal decisions. Alongside ATLAS, game assets, and player organizations, POLIS provides the governance layer of an ecosystem that joins gameplay with shared economic management. (support.staratlas.com)