The decentralized user-owned data network Vana officially announced the launch of its mainnet and native token VANA last night. This release not only breaks the data barriers that hinder AI development but also achieves privacy protection, enabling users to share the value created from their data.
The Vana network is developed by Open Data Labs, a research and technology company based in San Francisco, originating from the MIT Media Lab. The Vana network is an EVM-compatible blockchain that allows users to use data for AI model training while maintaining personal data ownership and control through privacy-preserving technologies.
Before the official launch of the mainnet, Vana's testnet phase achieved notable results. During the testnet period, approximately 1.7 million transactions were processed daily, and over 1.3 million users contributed more than 6.5 million data points to DataDAO. The success of the testnet demonstrates that programmable data ownership is not only possible but also critical at this key moment in the current development of AI. Anna Kazlauskas, CEO of Open Data Labs and founder of Vana, stated:
Today's mainnet launch marks a fundamental shift in data ownership and monetization in the AI era. Users have legally owned their data, although most users may not even realize that their data legally belongs to them, while platforms have captured all the economic value. Vana lays the foundation for a brand new data economy, where users can benefit from the AI models they help create, while developers can ultimately access the cross-platform datasets needed to build truly powerful AI. Property rights are the foundation of modern economic prosperity, and in today's digital economy, programmable data rights will be the cornerstone of the next generation of AI development.
Key features of the Vana mainnet include:
Trustless verification: Achieving data verification through secure data access and trusted execution nodes;
Fine-grained permission control: Empowering users with complete control over their data usage;
On-chain data traceability: Tracking how user-contributed data is applied;
Data Liquidity Pools (DLPs): Supporting collective sharing, governance, and monetization through DataDAO;
Proof of Contribution Mechanism: Ensuring fair reward distribution based on data quality;
Staking VANA: Stake VANA to DataDAO through the Data Hub.
Through the network's proof of contribution system, users can earn rewards by contributing data to DataDAO and receive tokens for specific datasets, which grant users governance rights while maintaining control over data usage. These data tokens can be exchanged for VANA, the native currency of the network. Additionally, DataDAO will also receive DataDAO rewards. Besides data contributions, users can also earn additional tokens by running nodes, validating transactions, and staking to DataDAO.
The total supply of VANA tokens is 120 million, which will serve as the foundation of the network's economic model, supporting the following functions:
Governance over network parameters and data usage;
Staking to protect the network and verify data contributions;
Incentivizing data contributors to submit high-quality data;
Revenue sharing from AI model development and data usage.
DataDAOs built on Vana include DNA DAO, aimed at addressing privacy issues surrounding genetic data ownership, and the successful Reddit Data DAO, which has showcased the potential of community-owned data pools.
The mainnet launch comes at a critical moment when AI development faces an increasingly severe data scarcity problem, while users seek greater control over their digital footprints. Vana's solution enables individuals to participate and benefit from the AI economy while maintaining sovereignty over their own data.
Art Abal, CEO of the Vana Foundation, stated: "When AI meets data barriers, and more platforms monetize user data without sharing any profits with users, users should have the right to have a place in the future of AI. The way private data is bought and sold in Web2 has collapsed. Our data is extracted and held for ransom by a few platforms and data brokers. They determine the value of our data and the technology created from it. But this will not continue. This is just the beginning; in the future, we can determine the value of data and the technology it creates. This is the data revolution."
About Vana
Vana is the first decentralized user-owned data network, unlocking data as a new category of digital asset. The Vana network consists of an EVM-compatible blockchain, a secure personal server environment, and a set of native contracts, designed to enable trustless and secure exchange of user-owned data through DataDAO. The network allows users to participate in the growing AI economy by sharing data with others and earning rewards for contributions while maintaining control over their data.
About the Vana Foundation
The Vana Foundation is a non-profit organization responsible for ensuring the sustainability and growth of the Vana ecosystem.
About Open Data Labs
Open Data Labs is a research company focused on accelerating the technological development of user-owned data. They created the Vana protocol and provide ongoing core development services to the Vana Foundation.
