Vana Mainnet Launches, $VANA Empowers Data as a New Asset Class in the Global AI Economy

Monday, December 16, 2024 — Vana, the pioneering network where users own their data, announces the official launch of its mainnet and its native token $VANA. This launch marks an important step in breaking through the “data barrier” of AI development, while protecting privacy and allowing users to participate in the economic value of their data.

Vana was developed by San Francisco-based Open Data Labs, which originated from the MIT Media Lab. The Vana Network is an EVM-compatible blockchain that allows users to not only maintain ownership and control of their data, but also use that data for training AI models through privacy-preserving technology.

During the testnet phase, more than 1.3 million users contributed 6.5 million data points to DataDAO, processing approximately 1.7 million transactions per day. Anna Kazlauskas, Founder of Vana and CEO of Open Data Labs, said the testnet proves that programmable data ownership is critical to the development of AI: “Today’s mainnet launch represents a fundamental change in data ownership and monetization in the AI era. Although users legally own their data, platforms capture all of the economic value — and most users don’t even realize their data belongs to them!” “Vana lays the foundation for a completely new data economy — where users can benefit from the AI models they help create, and developers have access to the cross-platform data they need to build powerful AI. Just as property rights drove prosperity in the modern economy, in the digital economy, data rights will drive the next generation of AI.”

The core functions of the Vana mainnet include:

1. Secure nodes and trustless verification to ensure the credibility of data input
2. Detailed permission management for users to use data
3. On-chain data traceability to ensure transparent data usage
4. Data Liquidity Pool (DLP), which realizes collective management and profit distribution of data through DataDAO
5. Proof of Contribution mechanism to ensure fair rewards for high-quality data contributions
6. Pledge $VANA to DataDAO through Data Hub

Through the Proof of Contribution system, users can earn income by providing data to DataDAO and obtain tokens for specific data sets, which confer governance rights and maintain control over the use of data. These tokens can be redeemed for $VANA, while top DataDAOs will also receive additional rewards. In addition to data contributions, users can also earn more tokens by running nodes, validating transactions, and staking.

$VANA has a total supply of 120 million and will support the network's economic model, with functions including:

1. Governance of network parameters and data usage
2. Staking $VANA to secure the network and validate data contributions
3. Incentivizing high-quality data submissions
4. Revenue sharing from AI model development and data usage

Some of the DataDAO projects on Vana include DNA DAO, which focuses on addressing genetic data privacy, and an extension of the Reddit Data DAO, which has demonstrated the potential for community-owned data pools. Learn more about DataDAO on Vana here.

The mainnet launch comes at a time when AI development is facing data shortages and users want more control over their digital footprint. Vana's solution not only allows individuals to benefit from the AI economy, but also maintain ownership of their data.

As AI encounters data bottlenecks and more platforms monetize user data without sharing any of the benefits with users, users should have a stake in the future of AI. Vana Foundation CEO Art Abal said:

“In the Web2 era, the way private data is bought and sold no longer makes sense. A small number of platforms and data intermediaries extract user data and monopolize the value of data. They determine the price of data and the technology that results from it. The future will be different - we will determine the value of our own data and participate in the technology it creates. This is a data revolution!”

Users can stake $VANA on the Data Hub. For more information visit www.vana.org, read our Documentation, follow us on X, and release a new DataDAO.

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About Vana

Vana is the first decentralized network where user-owned data is unlocked, unlocking data as a new digital asset class. The Vana Network consists of an EVM-compatible blockchain, a secure personal server environment, and a set of native contracts designed for the trustless and secure exchange of user-owned data through DataDao. The network enables users to maintain control of their data while participating in the growing AI economy while sharing it with others and being rewarded for it.

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About the Vana Foundation

The Vana Foundation is a not-for-profit entity whose core mission is to ensure the sustainability and growth of the Vana ecosystem.

About Open Data Labs

Open Data Labs is an independent research company focused on accelerating technologies that enable users to own their data. Open Data Labs created the Vana Protocol and provides ongoing core developer services to the Vana Foundation.