Concept · Governance & Ownership
Founder's Dilemma
Origin: Noam Wasserman (2012)
Biological Parallel
Queen ants face Wasserman's founder's dilemma in every colony founding: dig deep for maximum survival during drought (be rich) or stay shallow for rapid worker production to claim territory before competitors (be king). Fire ant queens typically choose wealth—deep nests with 95% survival but slow growth. Invasive Argentine ants conquered California by choosing control—shallow nests, explosive growth, territory dominance—but only because California's climate eliminated the drought risk that makes the wealth strategy essential in harsher environments. Different environments favor different choices.