Ocean Protocol

What Ocean Protocol does

Ocean Protocol is a decentralized data exchange protocol founded in 2017 in Singapore by Bruce Pon and Trent McConaghy (with later co-founders Chirdeep Singh Chhabra and Cristina Pon) and operated by the non-profit Ocean Protocol Foundation Ltd. The protocol enables data owners to tokenize, share, and monetize datasets and AI models while preserving privacy, with core technical components comprising Data NFTs (ERC721) for asset ownership, Datatokens (ERC20) for access control and pricing, Compute-to-Data for privacy-preserving computation that runs algorithms against data without relocating it, Ocean Nodes for decentralized AI model hosting and compute orchestration, and Predictoor for AI-powered prediction bots on crypto price feeds. Distribution occurs through the self-serve Ocean Market reference marketplace, developer SDKs (Ocean.py/Ocean.js), third-party marketplaces that embed Ocean components (Mercedes-Benz's Acentrik, Gaia-X, BDP), and Ocean Enterprise for customized private deployments.

The business model is protocol-level rather than SaaS: revenue accrues via small per-transaction fees on data exchanges, with Polygon the most-used network; these fees fund ongoing development and the buy-and-burn of OCEAN tokens, of which roughly 1.4 million had been burned cumulatively as of September 2023. Customer segments span AI/ML researchers and data scientists (primary), data-providing enterprises and governments (primary), crypto/DeFi traders using Predictoor (secondary), and Web3 developers building on the SDKs and Shipyard grants (secondary). Strategic context is shaped by the Foundation renouncing control of the OCEAN token contract in mid-2023, the 2024 ASI Alliance merger with Fetch.ai and SingularityNET, and the October 2025 exit from that alliance following governance disputes, leaving Ocean as an independent community-governed infrastructure protocol.

Name

Ocean Protocol

Legal name

Ocean Protocol Foundation Ltd.

Website

https://oceanprotocol.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Ocean Protocol is a decentralized data exchange protocol that enables tokenization, privacy-preserving computation, and monetization of AI models and datasets for AI developers, data-providing enterprises, and Web3 builders.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Decentralized Data Exchange Protocol

NAICS

Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (518210)

SIC

Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370), Finance Services (6199)

akta.pro primary industry

Decentralized Storage Networks (IPFS/Filecoin/Arweave, archival & retrieval) (FSAPALAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Decentralized Lending Protocols (DeFi Money Markets) (FSADAFAB), Decentralized Bandwidth & Connectivity (bandwidth marketplaces, VPN, ISP/last-mile DePIN) (FSAPALAD)

Keywords

• Decentralized data exchange
• Data tokenization protocol
• AI data marketplace
• Privacy-preserving computation
• Blockchain data infrastructure

Headquarters

HQ city

Singapore

HQ country

Singapore

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Transaction Fees: The protocol generates revenue through transaction fees from data exchanges on the Ocean network. These fees fund ongoing development of Ocean technology and support the buy-and-burn process of OCEAN tokens. Polygon network is the most frequently used network for transactions. As of September 2023, approximately 1.4 million tokens had been burned through this mechanism.
2. Data Marketplace Fees: Third-party markets such as Gaia-X, BDP, and Acentrik use Ocean components and abide by the fee structure set by Ocean Protocol, with transaction fees remitted back to the Ocean community.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Ocean Protocol operates a decentralized data exchange protocol built on blockchain technology that enables secure sharing, tokenization, and monetization of data and AI models. The platform combines Data NFTs (ERC721) for asset ownership, Datatokens (ERC20) for access control, Compute-to-Data for privacy-preserving computation, and Ocean Nodes for decentralized AI model hosting, with Ocean Market serving as the reference marketplace for data publishers and consumers.

Product overview

Ocean Protocol is a decentralized data exchange protocol designed for tokenized AI and data monetization. The platform operates as a unified system with multiple integrated modules: the core Ocean Protocol provides the foundational blockchain infrastructure and tokenization capabilities; Ocean Nodes enables decentralized AI model hosting and computation; Predictoor powers AI-driven cryptocurrency price predictions; Data NFTs (ERC721) and Datatokens (ERC20) handle asset tokenization and access control; Compute-to-Data enables privacy-preserving data analysis without raw data exposure; Ocean Market serves as the reference decentralized marketplace; and Ocean.py/Ocean.js provide developer SDKs. The system supports enterprise deployments through Ocean Enterprise and ecosystem growth via Ocean Shipyard grants and Data Farming rewards.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Ocean Protocol Decentralized data exchange protocol for tokenizing AI models and data, enabling secure data monetization while preserving privacy; the foundational product offering for data owners seeking to control, monetize, and commercialize their data assets.
• Ocean Nodes Decentralized infrastructure that enables users to run and monetize AI models, managing data, computational resources, and AI models through Ocean Protocol's infrastructure with privacy focus and modular architecture.
• Predictoor AI-powered prediction platform where users run prediction bots or trading bots on cryptocurrency price feeds to earn rewards; integrates with DeFi token price data for decentralized price predictions.
• Compute-to-Data Privacy-preserving service that shifts computation toward the data rather than exposing raw data; coupled with Data NFTs and Datatokens, enables users to remotely leverage machine learning and AI without relocating assets.
• Ocean Market Reference decentralized data marketplace powered by the Ocean stack where providers publish data and buyers consume data, providing transparent and immutable transaction records with minimized custodianship.
• Ocean Enterprise Enterprise-focused offering for organizations seeking to deploy private or customized data marketplaces using Ocean Protocol technology.
• Ocean.py Python SDK enabling developers to interact with Ocean Protocol for publishing/consuming data assets, running Compute-to-Data jobs, and integrating with Ocean Market.
• Ocean.js JavaScript SDK for building applications on Ocean Protocol, enabling developers to publish data assets, interact with datatokens, and access Compute-to-Data functionality.

Quantifiable outcome

• 1.4 million OCEAN tokens burned through buy-and-burn mechanism as of September 2023

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability7 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• BigchainDB GmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBigchainDB GmbH is a co-founder of Ocean Protocol Foundation along with DEX Pte. Ltd. The collaboration focuses on building the decentralized data exchange platform on blockchain technology, with BigchainDB providing blockchain infrastructure expertise.
• DEX Pte. Ltd.coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDEX Pte. Ltd. is a co-founder of Ocean Protocol Foundation, contributing to the development of the protocol alongside BigchainDB GmbH.
• Mercedes Benz (Acentrik)majorTechnology or IntegrationAcentrik from Mercedes Benz is a 3rd party enterprise marketplace built using Ocean components. The marketplace uses Ocean's technology for its data exchange operations while likely using another currency for service exchanges. If publicly accessible and abiding by Ocean's fee structure, transaction fees are remitted to the Ocean community.
• Gaia-XmajorTechnology or IntegrationGaia-X is a 3rd party data marketplace that uses Ocean Protocol components to power its marketplace functionality for federated data infrastructure.
• BDP (Big Data Platform)majorTechnology or IntegrationBDP is a 3rd party marketplace utilizing Ocean Protocol components to power its data marketplace operations.
• Meltem DemirorsminorOthersChief Strategy Officer at CoinShares, providing guidance on fundraising and go-to-market strategies since 2015.
• Dr. Ben GoertzelminorOthersCEO of SingularityNET and Chief Scientist of Hanson Robotics, providing insights on AI applications and decentralized AI development.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Filecoin: Filecoin is the largest decentralized storage network, providing tokenized data storage and retrieval. Ocean Protocol competes for the same decentralized data economy mindshare, with Ocean focusing on the exchange/compute layer above raw storage while Filecoin focuses on the storage layer itself.
• SingularityNET: SingularityNET operates a decentralized AI services marketplace where AI models can be published and consumed for AGI-related compute. Former ASI Alliance partner with overlapping thesis on tokenized AI/data, directly competing for AI infrastructure developer mindshare.
• Fetch.ai: Fetch.ai builds decentralized AI agent infrastructure and was the lead party in the failed ASI Alliance merger with Ocean Protocol. Competes in the same decentralized AI/data infrastructure category and had a direct token-related dispute with Ocean.
• Arweave: Arweave provides permanent decentralized data storage via a blockchain-like structure, enabling data permanence and monetization. Competes for decentralized data storage mindshare and serves overlapping developers building data-centric Web3 applications.
• Streamr: Streamr operates a decentralized real-time data marketplace and network, enabling data streams to be traded peer-to-peer. Direct competitor in the decentralized data exchange category with overlapping tokenized data monetization mechanics.

Broad incumbents

• The Graph: The Graph is the leading decentralized protocol for indexing and querying blockchain data, with a broader Web3 infrastructure footprint. Adjacent to Ocean Protocol's data exchange layer, with overlap in serving Web3 developers needing data infrastructure.
• IPFS: IPFS is the foundational peer-to-peer hypermedia protocol for decentralized file storage and addressing. The base layer protocol below Ocean's data exchange, used by many Web3 projects including Ocean for underlying data addressing and storage.

Emerging players

• Ceramic Network: Ceramic provides decentralized data streaming and composable data infrastructure for Web3 applications. Targets overlapping developer use cases around decentralized data management, identity, and composable data graphs.
• Aleph.im: Aleph.im provides decentralized cloud computing, storage, and database services as a DePIN network. Competes in the decentralized compute and storage category, with overlap in serving Web3 developers needing infrastructure for data-intensive applications.
• Render Network: Render Network is a decentralized GPU compute network for 3D rendering and increasingly AI inference. Competes for decentralized AI compute mindshare, overlapping with Ocean Nodes on the AI compute monetization thesis.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/oceanprotocol
• GitHubgithub.com/oceanprotocol
• Instagraminstagram.com/oceanprotocol_
• Facebookfacebook.com/oceanprotocol
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ocean-protocol

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds7 records

Investors19 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments5 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Ocean Protocol