How is crowdfunding changing culture?

Crowdfunding, then, is doing two important things that other forms of funding struggle with, changing our culture in the process.

Firstly, it is fostering the new 'maker' culture with projects like Stompy and Makey Makey. This latter 'invention kit for everyone' (and others like it) will surely play a part in the culture of innovation that UK state funders such as Nesta are desperate to ignite. In other words, crowdfunding is possibly the best place to bring art, technology and the economy together. Scroll to the bottom of WeFund's home page for more evidence of this with its Equity start-up fund or look at the brilliantZombies Run! app created with Orange Prize winning author Naomi Alderman.

Secondly, it is a crucial method for routing around non-existent state funding or market influence that is stacked against public good in either the digital or physical realm.

Where this is all going is anyone's guess. For some crowdfunding is a flash in the pan, even problematic, force. Scour the web and you'll find the start of crowdfunding satire such as KickStriker, the site that came out of Clay Shirky's university class, or this cartoon in the New Yorker.

Guardian Professional