OpenLedger—a blockchain infrastructure project backed by Polychain Capital—officially launched its OPEN Mainnet, marking a significant step toward addressing one of AI’s most pressing issues.
The lack of fair attribution and compensation for data contributors. This launch introduces a decentralized network designed to trace AI data lineage on-chain, ensuring creators, researchers, and domain experts are automatically rewarded based on how their contributions are used in AI models and outputs.
The move comes amid growing debates over AI “data theft,” where training datasets are often scraped without credit or payment, and positions OpenLedger as a foundational layer for “Payable AI.”
OpenLedger was founded in 2024 by Pryce Adade-Yebesi, Ashtyn Bell, and Ram Kumar with prior exits including Utopia Labs, acquired by Coinbase, OpenLedger is an EVM-compatible Layer 2 blockchain tailored for AI development.
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It combines blockchain’s transparency with AI’s computational needs to create a “Data-as-a-Shared-Service” ecosystem. Key components include Permissionless, domain-specific datasets curated by community nodes for specialized AI training.
AI Studio and OpenLoRA: Tools for building and serving models with up to 99% cost reduction compared to traditional methods.
ZK-Verifiable Execution: Ensures secure, tamper-proof computations with sub-second finality.
The project raised $8 million in seed funding in July 2024, led by Polychain Capital and Borderless Capital, with participation from HashKey Capital and angels like Balaji Srinivasan and Sandeep Nailwal.
This capital has fueled rapid development, including an incentivized testnet that ran from December 2024 to February 2025, attracting over 6 million nodes, 25 million transactions, and 20,000+ models deployed.
At the heart of OPEN Mainnet is the Proof of Attribution (PoA) system, a blockchain-based mechanism that logs the entire “lineage” of AI assets—datasets, models, and agents—on-chain. This creates an immutable trail for every AI output, allowing it to be traced back to its original contributors.
When an AI model generates content— a story inspired by a writer’s uploaded work, PoA quantifies the influence (e.g., 30% attribution) and triggers automated payouts via smart contracts. Rewards are distributed in $OPEN tokens based on verified usage, eliminating intermediaries.
Payable AI Model: Inspired by platforms like YouTube, this enables passive earnings for data providers. For instance, a researcher uploading domain-specific data earns royalties every time it’s used in an AI agent’s inference, fostering a fairer AI supply chain.
This addresses AI’s “attribution crisis,” where contributors receive no upside from the $1 trillion+ AI economy projected by 2030. By decentralizing data custody and infrastructure, developers can build AI agents without managing servers or provenance, while complying with emerging regulations like GDPR.
The native $OPEN token powers the ecosystem, serving as the medium for rewards, staking, and fees. 40% to contributors/ecosystem; deflationary via inference ffeesl. Attribution payouts, staking 20-50% APY based on network load, governance.
Increased AI usage ? more on-chain attribution ? higher $OPEN consumption for payouts. $OPEN launched without a traditional TGE, prioritizing network stability. It’s listed on major exchanges like Binance.
With community speculation pointing to strong upside potential—comparable projects like Render ($RNDR) achieved 100x gains on narrower utility, while Bittensor ($TAO) trades at a 60x higher valuation despite similar architecture.
The mainnet rollout has generated buzz in crypto and AI circles, 27 products built, $15M in early revenue, and seamless migration of 6M nodes to the live explorer. Partnerships with Cambridge for a $5M decentralized AI research fund; integrations with KaitoAI for rewards 250K $OPEN in a “YAPENING” leaderboard challenge.
X discussions highlight its asymmetry as an “AI infra play,” with users noting the shift from hype-driven agents to fundamental attribution tech. Early adopters can participate via the AI Studio for model deployment or Datanets for data contributions, earning $OPEN through PoA.
With 50+ dApps in development and grants totaling $25M, OpenLedger is positioning itself as the go-to layer for AI x Web3, potentially bridging ecosystems like Base and MegaETH. This launch isn’t just another token drop—it’s a structural fix for AI’s inequities, turning contributors into stakeholders in the intelligence economy.
As AI lawsuits mount and ethical sourcing becomes mandatory, OpenLedger’s verifiable, on-chain model could become a regulatory moat. At its current valuation, it’s an asymmetric bet on the convergence of AI and blockchain, with real-world utility already proven.