Coaststead Workshop, Seasteading08

Background

40 miles from San Francisco. (Outside US territory, inside EEZ).
Free Trade Zone - Businesses which profit from lower regulation, but won’t piss off the US.
Easier, but less freedom (legally & practically).

are votes for an idea. Participants were given 10 to distribute in each stage. If you have not yet voted, feel free to add up to 10

s on this doc.

Criteria

Here are the main criteria:

Favorable legal environment - won't get us boarded by the US Coast Guard. Ideally, things that are legal in the US but highly regulated (medical care). Or, banned at the state level in CA, but legal in other states or in the past (marijuana, firearms, certain types of gambling).
Profitable. Need high profit margins to pay the "ocean tax". And to leave enough consumer surplus that people are willing to take a 2 hour boat ride (possibly 30min seaplane/gyrocopter).
Low "Repugnance". Won't piss off the general population. Ideally, regulations that everyone is against. In practice, we're surely going to piss off some people, let's just try to minimize it.
Low utility requirements - Can't use tons of space, power, fresh water, high bandwidth...
Better done on coaststead than a ship

Bonuses:

Low capital requirements. (Makes it easier to start businesses, and it may be hard to get them funded.)
Fun! Reinforce the idea that the nanny state is anti-fun, and makes for good PR.
Low head count (living there may be expensive)

Themes/Industries

Health Care
Start Ups
Proximity Based Businesses
Isolation-Oriented Activities

Retreat Location
Allergy Free Zones

Prisons

Schools

Medical schools & services

Ocean Stuff

Aquaculture
Yacht services

Space Launch
Adoption agency / baby farm
Sin City
Nuclear Plants
Gold Warehouse
Educational Tourism
Fight Club
World Library
Refugee Camps
Fireworks

Business Ideas

(by category)

Aquaculture

Processing plant
Transport

Marina Hub
Fishing Fleet
Fleet
Fuel

Conira
PRO

Food sustainability
Improving ocean
absorbing CO2
food production
reducing pollution

Business model

Omaha steaks model (direct shipping seafood)
Wind / Wave power

Need

$ Investments
Growing cages
labour

accomodations

nutrients
electricity

refrigeration
sweet water (desalination)

Tourism

Coral farm
Diving
Research & Education

Species

Shellfish

Pearls
lobster
oyster
shrimp

fish

Salmon
tuna
swordfish
sport fishing
Seaweeds

Education

No Visas (Students & teachers)
Mobility
Drug research
No taxes
Startup barrier lower
Less Gov't
Oceanography
World Library / Patents
Neat Environment / Educational Tourism
Conference Center
Stem Cell Research

Isolation

(People want you away from them (Not In My BackYard, Physical Externalities, Fear)

Psychological Externality

Mental Health

Prisons

Physical Externality

Nuclear Power

LOUD festivals / entertainment

Waste disposal (Incineration / reprocessing)
Spaceport
Dangerous Manufacturing (solid rocket propellant, chemicals, fireworks, semiconductors)
Pyrotechnics
Secure meetings / conferences (Should prob. go in "retreat" section - Patri)

Retreat

(You want to get away from other people)

General retreat / resort center
Zen Retreat Center
Cleansing
Sin for fun
Learning
Rehab
Detox
Health: Exercise / Weight
Creativity

Art
Writing
Co-Working

Telescopes (need to be far from light)
Allergy-free zone (for those w/ serious insensitivities)
Privacy

No surveillance
Cone Of Silence
Avoid Protestors ("Geneva", G8 meeting site)

Humanitarian

Political Asylum
Sponsored Refugees / Homeless
Abortion Clinic
Ocean Preserve - endangered species care
Cryonic Intake
Quarantine
Isolation of genetically modified species
Gene Bank
Affordable Housing

Economic Freedom

Web Hosting
Online Gambling
Intellectual Property

General
Patent-Free Zone

Schools
New / High-risk business models
Health Care (has own category below)
Data/Document Storage
Contract-designated jurisdiction / Corporate Headquarters
Visa-Free Meeting Place
Banking

Floating Hedge Funds, etc.

Will this run into repugnance issues?

Healthcare

Exotic Medicine & Research

Experimental Medicine
Human Augmentation
Human trials of new/banned drugs & procedures
Seasickness research center
Stem Cell (embryonic)
Cyborgs

Organ sales / transfer
Reproductive

Adoption
Abortion
Surrogacy
Genetic screening
Genetic Modification
Sex Changes
Cloning
Sperm/Egg selection (genetic engineering where you choose offspring by selecting specific sperm/eggs, rather than modifying them.)

Business models w/ better incentives

Patient pays only if treatment works
Robin Hanson's method of healthcare where you insure quality of life.

Gene Therapy
Isolation for recovery of immune-compromised people

Sin City

Violence Tourism (people who want to fight violently / watch such fights)
Gambling
Sex

Imports

Drugs
Rock 'n Roll
Pornography
Fun environment for other businesses
Trade Shows

Advantages over Vegas:

Environment

Sharks / Sea Life

Mobile
Sea Recreation

Diving
Fishing
Sailing

Not so damn hot
No immigration restrictions
Lower regulation
Lower staff costs
Less legal risks

For tourists
For business owners

Anonymity Possible
Taxes

Avoid IRS reporting of gambling wins