Yeah... we're asking for examples of something whose core properties include staying small and being forgotten. That's a bit like asking for perfect crimes - if we knew about them, they weren't perfect :)

Volunteer fire departments maybe? Emerged from neighbors helping each other, many still exist without credentials or gatekeeping. Just people with a truck.

As for Ethereum Foundation - it's one of the few where I actually see the process happening. They're not just talking about "subtraction", they're doing it - shrinking teams, pushing responsibility outward, actively resisting the natural pull toward empire. Plenty of issues, sure, but the direction is promising.