Numbers Protocol
Numbers Protocol is a Taipei-based blockchain infrastructure company that provides C2PA-compliant provenance and verification for digital media, serving newsrooms, content creators, regulated enterprises, and AI platforms through its Numbers Mainnet, ERC-7053 standard, and Capture product suite.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2019
- HeadquartersTaipei, Taiwan
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingSoftware
What Numbers Protocol does
Numbers Protocol is a decentralized provenance infrastructure company founded in 2019 and headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan, that provides blockchain-based verification for digital media authenticity. The platform combines C2PA content credentials with the proprietary ERC-7053 indexing standard, anchored on an EVM-compatible blockchain (Numbers Mainnet, chain ID 10507) built on an Avalanche Subnet. Each digital asset is assigned a unique Numbers ID (NID) via cryptographic hashing, creating an immutable, Git-style history of creation, modification, ownership, and licensing. The company offers a product suite including ProofSnap (mobile app and browser extension for capturing photos, videos, and webpages with sealed C2PA credentials), the Capture product family (Dashboard, SDK, Cam, and Eye widget) for managing and embedding provenance in third-party applications, and the AI-powered Numbers Verify Engine for reverse-image search and content verification.
The company serves four primary customer segments: Legal, Compliance & Insurance and Enterprise AI Governance organizations requiring tamper-proof audit trails; Newsrooms & Journalism organizations (Rolling Stone, Reuters, DeFiance Media, Pyro Image) using provenance for editorial integrity and election documentation; Content Creators & Media Companies protecting intellectual property; and AI & Technology Platforms requiring verifiable content licensing for training data. Strategic partnerships include co-authorship of ERC-7053, C2PA Coalition membership, Emmy-nominated work with Stanford's Starling Lab and Rolling Stone, and tier-one integrations with Adobe, Microsoft, Google, Coinbase, Cloudflare, and Google Cloud via the x402 Protocol for machine-to-machine content licensing.
The business model combines enterprise subscriptions with SLA-backed deployments for regulated industries, freemium consumer applications (ProofSnap, Capture Dashboard with $60 trial benefits), developer API/SDK revenue via the Capture SDK, and token-based incentives through the NUM utility token. The go-to-market is hybrid: enterprise field sales targeting financial services, legal, and insurance; product-led growth via self-serve mobile and web apps; community-led growth through election and civic participation programs (Taiwan, Indonesia, India); and API-first developer adoption through the Capture SDK. The company is venture-backed by approximately $6.97M in disclosed funding across 12 rounds (2019-2023), with investors including Binance, Protocol Labs, LongHash Ventures, Darwin Venture Management, and the National Development Fund of Taiwan Government, supplemented by a 2025 Google News Initiative grant.
Numbers Protocol firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Numbers Protocol
- Legal name
- Numbers Co., Ltd.
- Website
- https://numbersprotocol.io
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2019
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Numbers Protocol is a Taipei-based blockchain infrastructure company that provides C2PA-compliant provenance and verification for digital media, serving newsrooms, content creators, regulated enterprises, and AI platforms through its Numbers Mainnet, ERC-7053 standard, and Capture product suite.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Numbers Protocol industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Blockchain-based Digital Media Provenance Infrastructure
- NAICS
- Financial Transactions Processing, Reserve, and Clearinghouse Activities (522320), Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (518)
- SIC
- Finance Services (6199)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Blockchain Forensics & Investigations (attribution, tracing, recovery support) (FSAPAJAD)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Regulatory Reporting, Tax & Audit Trails (reconciliation, provenance) (FSAPAJAI), Royalties, Rights & Revenue Management (on-chain royalties, splits, licensing, enforcement) (FSAPAFAC)
Keywords
Where Numbers Protocol is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Taipei
- HQ country
- Taiwan
- HQ region
- Asia
Offices1 record
Markets served
Numbers Protocol 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
- NUM Token Utility: The NUM token serves as the native utility token securing the Numbers Mainnet and incentivizing user participation in content verification and archival activities.
- Digital Asset Licensing: Machine-readable license records for digital assets enabling content owners to manage rights, with x402 protocol integration enabling AI agents to license content programmatically with automatic settlement.
- Enterprise Platform Access: Enterprise deployments offered with SLA support, compatible with existing Adobe and Microsoft authenticity infrastructure, targeting regulated industries requiring document authenticity and audit trail solutions.
- Consumer App (ProofSnap): Mobile and browser applications for individual users to capture and verify digital media with provenance credentials, with potential premium features or API usage fees.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Pay-as-you-go | Capture Dashboard - Developer Trial |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Enterprise Sales |
Go-to-market motion4 records
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels6 records
Numbers Protocol product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Numbers Protocol builds blockchain-based provenance infrastructure that creates immutable, cryptographically verifiable records of origin, ownership, and modification history for digital media assets. The company offers a suite of products including mobile capture apps (ProofSnap, Capture Cam), developer SDKs, verification engines, and an EVM-compatible blockchain (Numbers Mainnet) that anchors C2PA content credentials on-chain. It serves enterprises, newsrooms, content creators, and AI platforms needing to prove content authenticity and chain-of-custody.
Product overview
Numbers Protocol is a provenance infrastructure platform comprising a suite of integrated products for capturing, sealing, and verifying digital media authenticity. The core offering includes ProofSnap (mobile app and browser extension) for capturing photos, videos, and web content with C2PA credentials and blockchain timestamps, and the Capture product suite (Dashboard, SDK, Cam, Eye) for managing, registering, and displaying provenance for digital assets. The technology stack is anchored by the Numbers Mainnet (an EVM-compatible blockchain built on Avalanche Subnet), the ERC-7053 standard for interoperable media indexing, and the AI-powered Verify Engine for reverse-image search and provenance verification. The NUM token serves as the native utility token. All products are designed for both human users (journalists, creators, enterprises) and AI agents, enabling verifiable trust infrastructure for digital content in the AI era.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- ProofSnap: Mobile and browser extension application for capturing photos, videos, and webpages with blockchain-backed provenance and C2PA credentials
- Capture
- NUM
- x402 Protocol
Products and services
- ProofSnap Mobile (iOS/Android) and browser extension (Chrome) application that captures photos, videos, and webpages and seals them with C2PA credentials, GPS, device info, and blockchain timestamps to Numbers Mainnet for legally admissible digital evidence.
- Capture Cam Mobile application for iOS and Android that captures photos and videos and registers them on the Numbers blockchain with C2PA credentials, GPS, device information, and cryptographic signatures in a single tap.
- Capture Dashboard Web-based decentralized storage and content management platform for managing authenticated digital media assets, uploading files with C2PA labels, and accessing blockchain-registered provenance records.
- Capture SDK Software development kit that enables developers to integrate blockchain provenance capabilities and C2PA labeling for images, audio, and video files into third-party applications and workflows.
- Capture Eye HTML widget that websites can install to display blockchain provenance information for digital content, supporting direct license NFT purchases through a COLLECT button.
- Numbers Verify Engine AI-powered search and verification engine that uses reverse-image search and similar image detection to find and verify the provenance of digital media, including assets stripped of metadata or screenshots.
- x402 Protocol HTTP-native payment and licensing protocol enabling machine-to-machine content licensing and micropayments using stablecoins such as USDC, allowing AI agents to license content programmatically with automatic settlement.
- Numbers Mainnet (Blockchain) EVM-compatible blockchain (chain ID 10507) built on Avalanche Subnet, serving as a digital media library and indexing system that anchors C2PA content credentials and provenance data on-chain.
- ERC-7053 Standard Open Ethereum standard (EIP-7053) co-authored by Numbers Protocol for interoperable indexing of digital media history across EVM-compatible blockchains, enabling Git-style commit events for asset provenance.
- NUM Token Native utility token of Numbers Protocol, designed to secure the Numbers Mainnet and incentivize users to archive and verify content with good provenance.
Quantifiable outcome
- 67M+ digital assets verified on-chain
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Numbers Protocol
Customer profileNamed customers7 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Numbers Protocol technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration9 records
AI capability5 records
Feature11 records
Numbers Protocol partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Nine partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and regional.
- Starling LabflagshipCollaboration with Stanford University's Starling Lab for cryptographic verification framework in photojournalism, war crime documentation, and election integrity projects. Multiple Emmy-nominated and award-winning projects including 'The DJ and The War Crimes' with Rolling Stone.
- Rolling StoneflagshipAward-winning collaboration on 'The DJ and The War Crimes' interactive project documenting war crimes using blockchain-verified photojournalism, earning Emmy nomination for Outstanding Interactive Media.
- DeFiance MediacoreIntegration of Capture Eye technology into DeFiance's editorial content platform and official website, enabling content verification, copyright protection, and monetization through advanced licensing features.
- Pyro ImagecorePartnership with Taiwan's first blockchain-powered visual storytelling platform to integrate Numbers Protocol provenance technology for authentic visual reporting and creator protection.
- A.V. MappingcoreIntegration enabling music artists to upload tracks to A.V. Mapping platform with automatic blockchain registration through Numbers Protocol, establishing traceable digital music assets with immutable origin records.
- Coinbase (x402 Protocol)corex402 protocol leveraging stablecoins for programmatic micropayments adopted by Coinbase, enabling AI agents and APIs to autonomously pay for resources on-demand with USDC settled on chains like Base or Solana.
- Cloudflare (x402 Protocol)corex402 protocol adoption through Cloudflare for HTTP-native payment capabilities, enabling programmable micropayments for content licensing and API monetization.
- Google Cloud (AP2 Extension)corex402 protocol integration via Google Cloud's AP2 extension for machine-to-machine content licensing and deepfake verification capabilities.
- nDX Program (Taiwan)regionalAward-winning team from Taiwan's nDX program alongside PyroImage News Agency launching x402 Protocol for machine-to-machine content licensing and deepfake verification aligned with C2PA and ERC-7053 standards.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Numbers Protocol competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- TruePic: TruePic provides C2PA-based content authenticity and provenance verification for photos and videos, serving enterprises, media organizations, and platforms. It is the most direct competitor in the digital media provenance category where Numbers Protocol operates.
- Starling Lab: Stanford- and USC-affiliated lab using cryptographic verification for photojournalism, war crimes documentation, and election integrity. A flagship collaborator of Numbers Protocol (Emmy-nominated war crimes project, Taiwan election), and also a buyer/build user of similar provenance infrastructure.
- Codex Protocol: Codex Protocol provides blockchain-based provenance and registry infrastructure for physical and digital collectibles. It uses similar on-chain attestation patterns for asset history and ownership tracking, making it a comparable provenance infrastructure provider.
- Story Protocol: Story Protocol is an on-chain intellectual property infrastructure that registers, tracks, and licenses IP programmatically. It targets a similar machine-readable IP/provenance use case and competes for the same content licensing and rights-management opportunity that Numbers addresses via x402.
Broad incumbents
- Adobe (Content Authenticity): Adobe's Content Authenticity Initiative and C2PA-based credentials are embedded across Creative Cloud and Firefly. Adobe is the leading broad incumbent building content authenticity tooling that overlaps with Numbers Protocol's positioning as interoperable infrastructure.
- Microsoft (Content Credentials): Microsoft integrates C2PA-based provenance credentials across Bing image generation, Designer, and Office. As a hyperscaler with C2PA-compatible authenticity infrastructure, Microsoft represents both a potential partner and a broad competitive threat to Numbers Protocol's enterprise pipeline.
- Veritone: Veritone offers AI-powered media analytics, content authentication, and rights management for media and entertainment, government, and legal sectors. It is a broader incumbent that overlaps with Numbers' enterprise media authenticity and AI governance value proposition.
Emerging players
- Tessera (formerly ArtBlocks Engine): Tessera (formerly KnownOrigin / ArtBlocks Engine) provides NFT provenance and on-chain royalty infrastructure for digital art. It overlaps with Numbers Protocol's Capture Eye NFT license feature and broader NFT licensing infrastructure, though it is more focused on the digital art vertical.
Others
- Chainalysis: Chainalysis is the leading blockchain analytics and forensics firm for attribution, tracing, and investigations of crypto transactions. It is not a direct competitor (financial forensics, not media provenance) but operates adjacent blockchain forensics infrastructure that shares the same attribution/tracing value proposition.
- Pixsy: Pixsy provides image IP protection, reverse image search, and copyright enforcement for photographers and content creators. While focused on infringement detection rather than provenance registration, it serves a similar content creator and photojournalism customer base as Numbers Protocol.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks1 record
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Numbers Protocol social profiles
Digital presenceNumbers Protocol compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Numbers Protocol financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Numbers Protocol leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
Numbers Protocol funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds12 records
Investors14 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Numbers Protocol M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Numbers Protocol
What does Numbers Protocol do?
Numbers Protocol builds blockchain-based provenance infrastructure that creates immutable, cryptographically verifiable records of origin, ownership, and modification history for digital media assets. The company offers a suite of products including mobile capture apps (ProofSnap, Capture Cam), developer SDKs, verification engines, and an EVM-compatible blockchain (Numbers Mainnet) that anchors C2PA content credentials on-chain. It serves enterprises, newsrooms, content creators, and AI platforms needing to prove content authenticity and chain-of-custody.
Is Numbers Protocol a public or private company?
Numbers Protocol is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Numbers Protocol founded?
Numbers Protocol was founded in 2019. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Numbers Protocol based?
Numbers Protocol is headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan, in the Asia region.
How does Numbers Protocol make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. NUM Token Utility is the primary driver. The others are digital Asset Licensing, enterprise Platform Access and consumer App (ProofSnap).
Who are Numbers Protocol's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are TruePic, Starling Lab, Codex Protocol and Story Protocol. Broad incumbents are Adobe (Content Authenticity), Microsoft (Content Credentials) and Veritone. Tessera (formerly ArtBlocks Engine) is listed as an emerging player. Others are Chainalysis and Pixsy.
Does Numbers Protocol have an API?
Yes. Numbers Protocol offers the Capture API (also referred to as Capture SDK), a developer toolkit that enables programmatic integration of blockchain provenance capabilities into third-party applications. The API supports C2PA standard labeling for images, audio, and video files, allows upload and registration of digital assets to the Numbers blockchain, supports C2PA credential injection, and provides access to asset profile and verification data. It is designed for music and video platforms, generative AI companies, and enterprise content management systems. Documentation is available at docs.numbersprotocol.io/developers/numbers-blockchain/. Developer documentation is at docs.numbersprotocol.io/developers/numbers-blockchain.
What industry is Numbers Protocol in?
Numbers Protocol's product category is Blockchain-based Digital Media Provenance Infrastructure. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAPAJAD, Blockchain Forensics & Investigations (attribution, tracing, recovery support), with a secondary code of FSAPAJAI, Regulatory Reporting, Tax & Audit Trails (reconciliation, provenance). Its NAICS code is 522320 and its SIC code is 6199.