Ask HN: Is true democracy possible in online tech communities?

Most online communities start democratic but eventually become oligarchies. Reddit has upvotes but moderators have absolute power. Discord servers are basically digital dictatorships.

I've been wondering: Is it possible to build a truly democratic tech community?

Key challenges: - How do you prevent mob rule while maintaining democracy? - Should all voices be equal, or should expertise/contribution matter? - How do you handle spam/quality without authoritarian moderation?

Curious if anyone has seen successful examples, or has thoughts on what the key principles should be.

(Context: Currently researching governance models for a developer platform)