Here is my Twitter for more background: @michlai007 (link)
Please indicate if you are running to be the Council Lead or a Council Member: Council Member
Does this nomination represent an individual or organization: Individual
Candidate country of residence (or, if an entity, incorporation and principle place of business): Nomadic (Asia, Mexico)
Have you previously served on Optimism’s Security Council: No
Have you previously served on any other Council or Board in the Collective: No
Are you a representative of OP Labs: No
Are you a representative of another OP Chain: No
If you are a delegate, please provide the link to your delegate profile: link
If you are a member of the Citizens’ House, please link to your most recent attestation here: N.A.
Please outline your contributions, and their impact, to the Optimism ecosystem to date:
I am on the governance council (the Spartan Council) at Synthetix. Synthetix has been a key contributor to the genesis of Optimism through being one of the first apps to launch on OP Mainnet, and later through consistently being one of the top fee generators on the chain.
Relative to some other applicants, I will be new blood, which could infuse new ideas and perspectives beneficial to improving Security Council processes.
Please demonstrate any non-Optimism experience you believe is relevant to this role:
==> Key management experience:
I developed a strong understanding of secure key management at Anchorage. As the first business hire and head of business development, I gained a lot of context on secure key management, the challenges that key holders face, and tradeoffs inherent in different key management models.
I have a longstanding interest in cybersecurity and privacy and regularly attend conferences like DEFCON.org and Hope.net. This also means my personal op sec is relatively high. For example, I wrote a blog with personal security suggestions for Devcon Bogota in 2022 that was shared across many company Slack channels afaik (see tweet).
==> Crisis management experience:
I’ve served on the Spartan Council at Synthetix (the governance council) since May 2023. Just this year alone we’ve had to react in real-time to several existential events arising from market volatility. We had to quickly determine the magnitude and cause of events, and act to balance different stakeholders’ interests. I’m also designing the next version of Synthetix’s security council (though I definitely won’t be on it, which suits the eligibility criteria).
I serve on the Board of Directors at the Electric Coin Company (makers of Zcash), helping manage through a time of crisis and rebirth (token price crash, CEO transition, cross-entity conflict), at both the executive and community levels.
==> Other experience:
I have a meaningful grasp of legal matters (contracts, litigation, regulations) through a previous life in private equity investing and through COO-type roles in other startups. Given the progressive approach to decentralization the Collective is taking, this experience is relevant.
I went through a full-stack web dev bootcamp in 2017, to better communicate with devs. This experience is relevant to optimize communication in environments led by tech products.
Please elaborate on your technical background, including your github handle (this will be used to calculate your github expertise score and will be added to your nomination before it goes to a vote by the Foundation):
I write some Ruby, Python and Javascript, but just for fun!
I like finding ways to explain complex concepts in fun ways, so I put together a mini-movie with Legos explaining how OP rollup transactions work 
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wn_-ux9MgZo
Please elaborate on your experience with relevant member (or Lead) requirements:
For specific experiences, please see the preceding question on non-Optimism experience. Overall, since beginning my career in 2007, I’ve picked up broad experience in collapsing uncertainty in complex situations.
Here is more color on what I am about, since many might not yet know me.
From a motivation angle, I got into crypto in 2016 after one talk by Vitalik in Hong Kong where he shared a use case that immediately resonated: smart contracts for escrow payments. I had just arranged a 3-day (!) escrow for $100mn for my day job, and my eyes popped out at the ~$300,000 price tag - and there Vitalik was with a superior solution. This aligns with the Optimism refrain of “upgrading capitalism” - cutting out middlemen who rent-seek excessively through the sale of “trust.”
Since then, I’ve stayed because I want to build tools for human freedom. I’ve interviewed Edward Snowden (link; Devcon Bogota, 2022); given talks on privacy at Zcon (link; talk on the history of surveillance, The Handmaid’s Tale, and meeting Margaret Atwood, 2023), HOPE.net (link; talk at a long-established hacker convention on privacy in cryptocurrency, NY, 2022); talked about WW3-resilient stacks (link; Shielding Summit, Brussels, 2024); organized a 4-hour privacy special with a Tor cofounder, Meta whistleblower Frances Haugen and a professional hacker (link; ETHDenver, 2023); and helped set up the Universal Privacy Alliance (alliance of leading privacy projects).
Please describe your philosophy on what makes a good Security Council member:
Three main traits:
(1) Hard skills
(a) understand and have experience in secure key management, and
(b) understand how the protocol works, enough to ask intelligent questions in case of an emergency.
(2) Soft skills
When it’s business-as-usual, an SC member should be responsive and collaborative.
In emergency situations, they should react quickly and firmly, while balancing pressure from different stakeholders.
(3) Mandate-driven
An SC member should be clear what their scope is and to whom they are responsible, in order to protect the integrity of the Optimism Collective’s governance structures. Some understanding of legal frameworks may also be useful in dispatching their duties.
Please disclose any anticipated conflicts of interest: None.
Please verify that you understand you may be removed from this role via the Representative Removal proposal type in the Operating Manual: I understand
Please verify that you understand that election is subject to successful completion of a Foundation screen which may include KYC/AML, sanctions screening, and a requirement to sign a standard contract: Yes
Please verify that you are able to commit ~5 active hours / month to fulfill the Member Responsibilities. Please note that there is an “on-call” aspect to this role that is not fully encompassed in the active hours estimate: Yes