Botto

What Botto does

Botto is a decentralized autonomous AI artist launched on October 8, 2021, that continuously generates visual artworks and auctions them as NFTs on Ethereum, with governance and creative direction controlled by BottoDAO, a community-run decentralized autonomous organization. Token holders vote on the artist's style and thematic direction through weekly rounds, and 40% of auction revenue is distributed weekly to active curators in $BOTTO tokens, creating a feedback loop in which community input directly shapes the AI's output. The project has accumulated more than $3.5 million in NFT art sales within its first two years and grown a community of over 15,000 contributors, with exhibitions at venues including Art Basel Hong Kong.

The core product stack consists of the Botto artist (the generative AI system that produces artwork) and Botto Studio, a self-serve platform at studio.botto.com where curators vote, comment, stake tokens, and explore the Memory knowledge graph that stores accumulated aesthetic data. Botto operates from Brooklyn with a small core team (1-10 employees) supplemented by distributed DAO contributors, which keeps operational costs low relative to revenue scale. The business model is straightforward: weekly NFT auctions generate revenue, 40% is redistributed to the community, and the remainder supports operations, development, and the $BOTTO token ecosystem.

The go-to-market is structurally community-driven rather than sales-led: growth is fueled by token-incentivized participation, cultural positioning within the generative AI art scene, and selective institutional art-world validation through gallery exhibitions. The March 2024 funding round of $1.67 million, led by 1kx with Collab+Currency and Variant, was raised specifically to enhance artistic capabilities, decentralize governance, and improve technical infrastructure, indicating that the core team views model quality and on-chain governance as the two primary levers for the next stage of growth.

Name

Botto

Legal name

Botto

Website

https://botto.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

AI-Generated NFT Art

NAICS

Independent Artists, Writers, and Performers (711510), Art Dealers (459920)

SIC

Services-Mailing, Reproduction, Commercial Art & Photography (7330), Security & Commodity Brokers, Dealers, Exchanges & Services (6200)

akta.pro primary industry

Art, Collectibles & Luxury RWA Tokenization (FSADAEAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

Art & 1/1 Digital Art NFT Marketplaces (FSADANAB)

Keywords

• AI-generated art
• Decentralized autonomous artist
• NFT art platform
• DAO governance
• Generative artwork

Headquarters

HQ city

Brooklyn

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. NFT Artwork Sales: Botto generates revenue through the continuous creation and sale of AI-generated artworks as NFTs. The system has generated over $3.5 million in sales within two years of operation.
2. $BOTTO Token Economy: Platform token used for staking, rewards distribution, and community governance. Active Rewards distribute 40% of auction revenue weekly in $BOTTO to active curators. Instant Rewards allow users to earn $BOTTO directly while curating.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Botto is an autonomous AI artist that continuously creates original visual artworks in perpetuity, with creative direction influenced by community voting from over 15,000 human trainers. Artworks are minted as NFTs on Ethereum and sold via auctions, with 40% of auction revenue distributed weekly in $BOTTO tokens to active curators. The companion Botto Studio platform enables community members to vote, curate, stake tokens, and participate in decentralized governance through BottoDAO.

Product overview

Botto is a decentralized autonomous AI artist governed by the community, consisting of two main components: the Botto artist (the core autonomous creative entity) and Botto Studio (the community governance and curation platform). The Botto artist continuously creates original visual artworks that are sold to sustain operations, while Botto Studio enables community members to vote on, curate, and influence the artist's output, earning rewards through active participation and staking in the token economy.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Botto Studio: Community platform where users can collaborate and shape the future of Botto, vote and comment on artworks, and earn rewards in $BOTTO token.
• BottoDAO

Products and services

• Botto (Decentralized Autonomous Artist) An autonomous AI artist that continuously creates original visual artworks in perpetuity. Community members train Botto through voting and feedback, influencing the theme, style, and imagery of each creation. The artist's award-winning practice has been exhibited internationally and artworks are sold as NFTs on Ethereum to sustain operations. Target audience: individual art collectors, NFT enthusiasts, DAO participants, and AI-art researchers.
• Botto Studio A community platform where users collaborate and shape the future of Botto. Features include voting on top contending artworks, commenting on creations, staking $BOTTO tokens, and earning rewards (Active Rewards distributing 40% of auction revenue weekly, plus Instant Rewards for active curating). Also includes the Memory knowledge graph exploration tool. Target audience: $BOTTO token holders, community curators, and DAO participants.
• Mirror Stages Collection A curated collection of AI-generated artworks exhibited at Art Basel Hong Kong in 2024, providing cultural and exhibition context for Botto's autonomous artistic practice.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over $3.5 million in cumulative art sales within two years of operation
• +2 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability4 records

Feature3 records

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• MakersPlace: Curated NFT art marketplace emphasizing rare digital artworks and artist legitimacy. Comparable distribution and buyer base to Botto's auction channel for high-end AI-generated art collectors.
• Art Blocks: Premier generative-art NFT platform where artists algorithmically produce collections. Closely comparable to Botto: both center on programmatically generated visual art sold via auction with community curation, though Art Blocks curates external artists rather than running a single autonomous AI.
• Obvious (Art Collective): Paris-based AI art collective whose GAN-generated portrait sold at Christie's for $432K. Direct peer to Botto in the AI-generated fine-art narrative, though Obvious is a human collective rather than a decentralized autonomous entity.
• SuperRare: Curated NFT art marketplace for one-of-one digital artworks. Similar premium positioning, auction mechanism, and collector audience as Botto's high-end sales channel.
• Refik Anadol Studio: AI-art studio producing large-scale generative visual installations exhibited internationally. Direct creative peer to Botto's autonomous AI artist, sharing exhibition venues (e.g., Art Basel-level shows) and institutional collector access.
• Async Art: NFT platform for programmable and generative digital art with community-influenced master/layer pieces. Comparable to Botto in combining generative art mechanics, NFT auctions, and artist/community co-creation.

Broad incumbents

• Midjourney: Mass-market generative AI image tool with millions of users. Not a direct art-market competitor, but defines the baseline accessibility of AI imagery that Botto must differentiate against on curation, provenance, and community.

Emerging players

• Foundation: Community-governed NFT art marketplace where creators and collectors are onboarded via invite. Overlapping audience with Botto's crypto-native NFT collectors, though broader in scope beyond AI-generated work.
• Nifty Gateway: NFT marketplace owned by Gemini, focused on curated drops from established and digital-native artists. Comparable buyer base and auction mechanics for premium AI art; partial overlap with Botto's collector pool.

Regional players

• Le Random / Bitforms (digital art gallery): Digital art gallery and exhibition platform with strong institutional following for generative and AI-based art. Adjacent peer in legitimizing AI/digital art for traditional collectors alongside Botto's Art Basel Hong Kong exposure.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/BottoDAO
• Instagraminstagram.com/bottoproject
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bottoproject

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors3 records

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Botto