This page explains how codatta turns data into a revenue‑generating asset (the Royalty Economy), how the Train‑Now, Pay‑Later (TNPL)
business model rides on top of it, and, briefly, why a blockchain foundation is the most practical way to make it work at scale.
For the big‑picture narrative, see our vision: https://codatta.io/vision.Key concepts:
Royalty Economy: usage‑based, ongoing revenue sharing for data owners and validators.
TNPL: developers train first, pay later via royalties once value is created.
Blockchain (light rationale): programmable ownership, provable provenance, and automated payouts.
A protocol-level mechanism that links data usage—training, fine-tuning, and evaluation consumption, plus metered inference of downstream AI models derived from licensed data—to continuous royalty flows for data owners (contributors, validators, backers) and the protocol treasury.
Pay‑as‑you‑train: micro‑royalties (or attribution-only, per deal) during training/fine‑tune consumption; inference of derived models is metered for settlement.
Performance‑linked: multipliers unlock when agreed quality thresholds are met.
Protocol share: a small public share sustains infra, audits, and research.
Analogy: Like music streaming royalties, but for knowledge: every meaningful use of your data pays you back.
We keep this brief here and dive deep in a dedicated section.
Programmable ownership: Fractional, time‑bound ownership that updates as staking/verification evolves.
Provable provenance: On‑chain fingerprints and lineage make who contributed what auditable.
Automated payouts: Smart contracts route royalties instantly and globally.
Open market access: Anyone can discover, license, and build—no walled gardens.
Composability: Ownership fractions can be repackaged into portfolios (risk/return tuning).
Privacy by design (hybrid): Sensitive data stays off‑chain; proofs, hashes, and policy live on‑chain.
Putting it together: These primitives form the minimum viable substrate for a functioning royalty economy. Programmable ownership expresses and updates the right to be paid; provenance binds each usage to the correct contributors; automated payouts and open market access make per-event micro-royalties economical and global; composability turns otherwise illiquid data shards into financeable, discoverable assets; and the hybrid privacy model satisfies enterprise governance and regulation. Without this full set in concert, attribution becomes unenforceable, settlement becomes unscalable, or markets remain closed—conditions under which TNPL and per-use royalties cannot thrive.
This flow illustrates the lifecycle of data and royalties in codatta’s Royalty Economy.
Data moves through four compact phases: Sourcing and Labelling (contributors create and verify data through staking),
Listing & Licensing (data is published and licensed for use), Model Build (developers train, fine-tune,
and launch AI models using the licensed data), and Usage & Settlement (models are deployed, users interact,
and royalties flow back to contributors). The dashed feedback loops show how ownership fractions evolve and
how royalties and reputation updates continually feed the ecosystem — ensuring that contributors keep
earning and that ownership stays dynamically aligned with verified participation.
Example — Signals for Compliance (simplified)Crypto has massive volumes of accounts that must be labeled fast and correctly. Each annotation needs evidence, dependable reasoning and must reflect the latest status (minutes, not weeks). Codatta runs a global intelligence network—contributors, validators, and AI—to produce and update these annotations at scale. The steps below illustrate the key flow from creation to royalties.
Show details
1
Sourcing & Labelling
A contributor submits an evidence‑backed risk signal with staking‑as‑confidence.
Q: Is TNPL just a payment plan?A: No. It’s a contractual revenue‑share anchored by verifiable data usage and performance.Q: Can I mix upfront + royalties?A: Yes. Hybrid deals are supported (minimum guarantee + royalty tail).Q: Do I lose control of my data?A: No. Access is policy‑gated; proofssimpl/on‑chain policy enforce scope and terms.Q: What about privacy/regulation?A: Sensitive content stays off‑chain; only fingerprints, policies, and flows are on‑chain. Data rooms and access logs are auditable.
