What is Bittensor (TAO)?

Who created Bittensor?

Jacob Steeves and Ala Shaabana founded Bittensor and the Opentensor Foundation, the non-profit that has led the network's development. The whitepaper, "Bittensor: A Peer-to-Peer Intelligence Market", was written under the pseudonym Yuma Rao.

The first version of the network, Kusanagi, went live in January 2021. The current main network, Finney, has run since 20 March 2023 on its own blockchain, Subtensor. It is built on Substrate, the same framework PolkadotPolkadot (DOT)A network that connects specialised blockchains, known as parachains, which share security. DOT is the network's cryptocurrency. uses.

No TAO was allocated in advance, not to the founders, investors or staff. All TAO has been created as a reward for work on the network, much as new bitcoin is created through mining.

How does Bittensor work?

Subnets

Bittensor is split into subnetsSubnetAn independent part of a larger network with its own rules and task. In Bittensor, each subnet is a market for one kind of AI work.. Each subnet is an independent market for one kind of work, defined by its owner. In November 2026 the limit was 128 subnets, and every slot was taken.

Each subnet has three roles:

• The owner defines the task and what counts as good work.
• Miners do the work, for example by answering requests with an AI model or providing computing power. This isn't mining as in bitcoin, because the work is AI work, not solving puzzles.
• ValidatorsValidatorA participant on a proof-of-stake network who locks up their own crypto as a stake to create and check blocks in return for rewards. test the work and score the miners.

The validators' scores are weighted by how much TAO they have staked, using a method called Yuma Consensus. The result decides how big a share of the rewards each miner gets.

Think of a competition where judges score the entries and the prize money is split according to the scores. Bittensor runs such competitions all the time, in many fields at once.

Examples of subnets

• Chutes (subnet 64) runs AI models for users and developers, a kind of open cloud service for AI.
• Targon (subnet 4) is a marketplace for GPU computing power.
• Ridges (subnet 62) develops AI agents that write software.

Dynamic TAO

Since 13 February 2025, every subnet has had its own token, called an alpha token. When TAO is staked in a subnet, it is swapped into that subnet's alpha token. New TAO is then shared between subnets according to the prices of their tokens, so the market largely decides which subnets get the most. The change is called Dynamic TAO, or dTAO.

TAO

21 million and the halving

There will never be more than 21 million TAO, the same maximum supplyMaximum supplyThe largest number of units of a cryptocurrency that can ever exist under its rules, such as 21 million for bitcoin. as BitcoinBitcoinThe first and largest cryptocurrency: a digital currency that no single party controls, with a fixed limit of 21 million coins.. A new block is added roughly every 12 seconds. At first, each block created one TAO. On 15 December 2025, when half the maximum supply had been issued, issuance was halvedHalvingThe event roughly every four years when the number of new bitcoin that miners receive for each block is cut in half. to 0.5 TAO per block, or about 3,600 TAO a day.

Unlike bitcoin, the timing of a halving depends on total issuance rather than the number of blocks. TAO that the network takes back out of circulation is subtracted from issuance, so the date of the next halving can't be predicted precisely. It will happen when total issuance reaches 15.75 million TAO. At the start of November 2026, about 11.7 million TAO were in circulation.

What is TAO used for?

• Rewards. Miners, validators and subnet owners share new issuance. The default split is 41% to miners, 41% to validators and stakers, and 18% to the subnet owner. Since October 2026, owners can change the split within set limits.
• StakingStakingLocking up crypto on a proof-of-stake network to help confirm transactions, in return for rewards paid in the same crypto.. TAO holders can delegate TAO to a validator to stake and earn a share of the rewards. This can be done on the so-called root network, where TAO stays TAO, or in a subnet, where it is swapped into alpha tokens whose prices can swing more. Ordinary unstaking has no waiting period.
• Registering subnets. Anyone who wants to start a subnet pays for it in TAO.

Why did Bittensor attract attention?

• Open competition in AI. Anyone can contribute work and be rewarded for it, without striking a deal with a big tech company.
• Familiar tokenomics. A fixed cap, halvings and no pre-allocation are reminiscent of bitcoin, which appeals to many people.
• Investor interest. Grayscale has run a Bittensor trust since 2024. In Europe, an exchange-traded product tracking TAO has been listed on the SIX exchange in Switzerland since November 2025, and listed US companies hold TAO among their assets.

What are the risks?

• A complex system. Subnets, alpha tokens and the reward rules are more complex than for most cryptocurrencies, and the rules change regularly.
• Concentration. A large share of staked TAO sits with a few validators. A study published in 2025 suggested that rewards followed the size of the stake more than the quality of the work.
• Usefulness of subnets. Critics point out that many subnets still produce little real-world use. Supporters reply that the system is designed precisely to steer rewards to whoever delivers the most, and that the network is young.
• Security incidents. In July 2024, attackers stole about 8 million dollars from users after an infected version of a Bittensor software package was published. The network was put into safe mode while it was dealt with.
• Price swings. The price of TAO peaked at about 760 dollars in spring 2024 and has swungVolatilityHow much and how quickly the price of an asset moves up and down. a lot since.

TAO on Myntkaup

On Myntkaup you can buy, sell and hold TAO. Depositing and withdrawing TAO on-chain isn't available yet, but it is planned for later. You can see the price of TAO on the TAO price page.

Closing thoughts

Bittensor is an attempt to build an open market for AI, where anyone can contribute work and be rewarded in TAO. Many people value its fixed supply, its open access and the fact that no single party owns the models.

The system is complex, and the price of TAO swings a lot. Learn about the risks before you buy.