Vana Secures Php 1.4 Billion to Revolutionize AI with User-Owned Data

Vana, a blockchain-powered AI platform, has raised $25 million (Php 1.4 billion) in a funding round led by Paradigm, with support from Coinbase Ventures and Polychain. The startup is focused on transforming the AI landscape by empowering users to own and monetize their data. Vana addresses a significant challenge in AI development: the "data wall," where centralized entities control vast amounts of user data, limiting innovation.

Vana aims to decentralize this model, allowing individuals to contribute their data voluntarily to decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs). By doing so, users can collectively own and share in the value generated by AI models trained on their data. This decentralized approach fosters data liquidity, making high-quality datasets available for training AI while ensuring privacy and ownership for users. Vana's platform, compatible with Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) blockchains, also rewards users through token-based incentives, creating a system where data ownership is shared, and innovation is encouraged.

Funding Breakdown

• $5M Strategic Round with Coinbase Ventures, closed last week

• $18M Series A with Paradigm

• $2M Seed led with Polychain

This funding will accelerate the development of user-owned AI ecosystems, particularly in the context of decentralized AI applications. Vana’s vision is to break down barriers in the AI space by redistributing the control of data and the profits generated from it back to users, ensuring that AI development is both democratic and privacy-focused.

Vana's move to decentralize AI comes at a pivotal moment when public concern over data privacy and ownership is growing. By allowing users to contribute to AI development in a secure, transparent way, the company hopes to create a more equitable future for AI technologies.