Mike Harris
Mike devised the Decentralized Rulebooks system and led its technical development. His background spans distributed systems, privacy-by-design, and mathematics.
LinkedInExonym / Project
The work continues as a project.
A continuing exploration of trust, privacy, and democratic governance online.
What Exonym is
An independent civic technology project.
Exonym explores how online rules, permissions, and accountability could be distributed instead of concentrated in a single platform. The central idea is Decentralized Rulebooks: public rules paired with portable credentials that people can use across services.
The work began with a question: how might the web become more open, equitable, and democratic? That question still guides the project.
Read about RulebooksProject status
Where Exonym stands today.
Exonym GmbH ceased trading on 31 December 2025. Exonym continues as an independent project focused on the ideas behind Decentralized Rulebooks. No commercial service is currently offered.
The people
Founded by Mike Harris and Bryce Willem.
Bryce Willem
Bryce shaped Exonym’s communications and visual identity. His work spans design, digital products, and public-interest storytelling.
LinkedInFrom the founders
Some ideas are worth putting into the world.
Mike and Bryce believed the technology was worth sharing regardless of whether a company succeeded. Their work brought together technical design, privacy, and a vision for more democratic governance online.
Explore the research