Vana
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2021
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingSoftware
Vana firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Vana
- Legal name
- Vana Foundation
- Website
- https://vana.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2021
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Vana industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Decentralized Data Infrastructure
- NAICS
- Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (5182), Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (518)
- SIC
- Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373), Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370), Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Smart Contract Execution Environments (EVM/WASM, runtimes, precompiles) (FSAPABAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- RWA Oracles, Data Attestation & Proof-of-Reserve/Proof-of-Collateral (FSADAEAM), Oracle Networks & Off-Chain Data (price feeds, randomness, attestation) (FSAPABAE), Data Security & Access Governance for Data (Entitlements/Policy Enforcement) (HDAEADAH), Identity, Credentials & Permissioning for Enterprises (DID/VC, access control, attestations) (FSAPAIAG), Interoperability & Integration Middleware (ERP/core banking connectors, messaging, APIs, cross-chain to permissioned) (FSAPAIAL)
Keywords
Where Vana is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Vana business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Operations
Revenue model
- DLP Token Economics: When AI companies purchase access to data from a DataDAO, they must use VANA to purchase and burn the DLP's tokens. This creates a direct economic link between network usage and token value, with value flowing back to both the network and data contributors.
- VANA Token Utility: VANA token serves multiple functions: network security (validator staking), transaction fee payments for network operations, DLP staking (determines emission rewards for DataDAOs), and is the required currency for purchasing data access across all DLPs.
- Data Access Fees: AI researchers and model developers pay to access pooled datasets through DataDAOs, with payments distributed proportionally to data contributors via burning of DLP tokens.
- Data Validator Fees: Network rewards from data validator fees are added to the staking pool, growing positions for stakers over time.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Pay-as-you-go | Vana App (Invite-only/Waitlist) |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels8 records
Vana product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Vana operates an open, EVM-compatible Layer 1 blockchain protocol that enables users to export personal data from platforms, store it in encrypted personal servers, and pool it through Data Liquidity Pools (DataDAOs) for monetization and AI training. The platform includes a consumer-facing mobile app, the DataConnect SDK for data portability, VANA and VRC-20 tokens for network economics, DataDEX for trading data tokens, and developer tools (Vana Playground, Satori Testnet) for building applications on a live layer of user-owned data.
Product overview
Vana is a decentralized data sovereignty platform built around an EVM-compatible Layer 1 blockchain. The core offering consists of the Vana Protocol for portable, user-owned data combined with the Vana mobile App for end-users to aggregate and control their personal data. Users create a VIBE (personal dataset) through DataConnect SDK and participate in Data Collectives (DataDAOs) that pool data for AI training and monetization. The ecosystem includes the VANA token for network security and fees, VRC-20 data tokens for Data Liquidity Pools (DLPs), DataDEX for data token trading, Vana Playground and Satori Testnet for development, Vana Academy accelerator program, and VIBE Apps for interactive data experiences. The platform enables users to earn VanaXP rewards while maintaining cryptographic control over their data through personal servers secured by user wallet signatures.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- DataConnect: Open-source data portability tool allowing users to connect apps and manage permissions through tools built on the network.
- Vana App
- Vana Academy
- Data Collectives
- DataDEX
- Satori Testnet
Products and services
- Vana Protocol
Quantifiable outcome
- Over 1 million users have connected data on the Vana network
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Vana
Customer profileNamed customers11 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Vana technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration21 records
AI capability6 records
Feature7 records
Vana partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- StargatecoreCross-chain bridge integrated with Vana's ecosystem. Used as Vana's primary bridge for moving assets onto and off Vana L1. Users can swap ETH for wrapped VANA on Ethereum mainnet and bridge to Vana mainnet via Stargate.
- LayerZerocoreLayerZero is the interoperability protocol powering Stargate and other cross-chain bridges on Vana. Vana is part of the LayerZero ecosystem.
- NethermindcoreEthereum research and engineering company that audited multiple Vana protocol components including DLPReward, VRC20, Data Access v0, Vana Contracts, veVANA Tokens, DLPRoot Restructure, and DLPRootV2.
- HashlockcoreSecurity audit firm that audited the Vana Protocol (smart contracts and core protocol components).
- Reddit Data DAOcoreCommunity-owned data collective built on Vana where Reddit users join with their account, add data, and earn points based on karma. The DAO attracted ~140,000 Reddit users and trained the first user-owned AI model — a flagship showcase of Vana's DataDAO model.
Scale indicators8 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Vana competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Ocean Protocol: Decentralized data marketplace using datatokens to monetize datasets for AI; closest direct competitor to Vana's DataDAO/DLP model, sharing the same user-owned-data thesis and targeting AI researchers as buyers.
- Streamr: Decentralized real-time data streaming and marketplace network; comparable in building tokenized data economies and competing for the same AI/user-owned data narrative.
- SingularityNET: Decentralized AI services marketplace with its own blockchain; overlaps with Vana's decentralized AI + tokenized data vision and competes for the same Crypto+AI capital pool.
- Fetch.ai: Decentralized AI agent network with native L1 and token economy; competes with Vana for decentralized AI mindshare and developer attention within the Crypto+AI thesis.
- Numerai: Crowdsourced data science tournament that pays contributors in NMR tokens for stock-market prediction models; comparable model of tokenized, community-contributed data powering AI/ML outcomes.
- Bittensor: Decentralized machine intelligence network where contributors are rewarded in TAO tokens for training and serving AI models; closely comparable as a tokenized network for distributed AI/data contribution that targets similar AI researchers and Crypto+AI investors.
Emerging players
- The Graph: Decentralized indexing and query layer for blockchain data; integrated into Vana's ecosystem but addresses an adjacent data infrastructure problem with its own tokenized marketplace.
- Livepeer: Decentralized video transcoding network with token-incentivized contributors; comparable model of tokenized, community-provided compute/data resources but focused on video infrastructure.
- Akash Network: Decentralized cloud compute marketplace using tokenized supply/demand; adjacent to Vana's data sovereignty thesis as both apply crypto-economic primitives to resource marketplaces.
- Storj: Decentralized encrypted storage network; conceptually aligned with Vana's encrypted personal server architecture and user-controlled data storage model.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Vana social profiles
Digital presenceVana compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance7 records
Vana financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Vana leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
Vana funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds5 records
Investors11 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Vana M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A1 record
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Vana
What does Vana do?
Vana operates an open, EVM-compatible Layer 1 blockchain protocol that enables users to export personal data from platforms, store it in encrypted personal servers, and pool it through Data Liquidity Pools (DataDAOs) for monetization and AI training. The platform includes a consumer-facing mobile app, the DataConnect SDK for data portability, VANA and VRC-20 tokens for network economics, DataDEX for trading data tokens, and developer tools (Vana Playground, Satori Testnet) for building applications on a live layer of user-owned data.
Is Vana a public or private company?
Vana is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Vana founded?
Vana was founded in 2021. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Vana based?
Vana is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does Vana make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. DLP Token Economics are the primary driver. The others are VANA Token Utility, data Access Fees and data Validator Fees.
Who are Vana's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Ocean Protocol, Streamr, SingularityNET, Fetch.ai, Numerai and Bittensor. Emerging players are The Graph, Livepeer, Akash Network and Storj.
Does Vana have an API?
Yes. Vana provides a public developer API and SDK for building on the protocol. Developers can access documentation at docs.vana.org and GitHub at github.com/vana-com for DataConnect SDK and code samples. The protocol enables developers to build applications on a live layer of user-owned, portable data with over 1M users who have connected data. The network is open source and permissionless. Developer documentation is at docs.vana.org.
What industry is Vana in?
Vana's product category is Decentralized Data Infrastructure. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAPABAA, Smart Contract Execution Environments (EVM/WASM, runtimes, precompiles), with a secondary code of FSADAEAM, RWA Oracles, Data Attestation & Proof-of-Reserve/Proof-of-Collateral. Its NAICS code is 5182 and its SIC code is 7373.