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Vana

VANA · Field entry
AIAIInfrastructure

A blockchain for pooling personal data and selling permissioned access to AI builders

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$0.91131.27%Snapshot · October 20, 2026 · updates live
Market cap
$28.07M
24h volume
$534,872
Rank
#686
Circulating
30.80M VANA
Max supply
120.00M VANA
All-time high
$35.23 December 16, 2024

VANA price chart

7-day snapshot. Chart data from CoinGecko.

What is Vana?

Vana is a layer-1 blockchain, compatible with Ethereum tools, built so people can export their own data, keep control of it, and let apps or AI developers use it with permission. Users can pool data in DataDAOs that earn when the data is used. VANA pays network fees, secures the chain through staking, and is used for governance.

Utility Lens

What Vana actually does

Records who owns personal data and who may use it, so people can share data with apps and AI builders on their own terms.

Real-world usage
earlyData reads and DataDAOs are live and fee-paying, but reported read volumes are still small, and until the 2026 Vega upgrade staking rewards came from token emissions rather than data fees.
Token necessity
essentialVANA is the chain's gas token and staking asset, so the network cannot run without it.
Decentralization
limitedThe Vana Foundation and Open Data Labs drive development, and staking runs through a small number of pools; broader DAO control of the treasury is described as a future step.
Track record
developingMainnet launched in December 2024, making the network under two years old as of October 2026.

How we rate

What it’s used for

People export data such as social or music history, keep it encrypted, and join DataDAOs that pool similar data and receive dataset-specific tokens in return. Apps read that data only with a permission recorded on-chain and, since the September 2026 Vega upgrade, pay a fee for each read. The Vana Foundation reported about 2.9 million verified reads as of late September 2026.

Role of the VANA token:

gasstaking securitygovernancepaymentsbuyback burn

Evidence of real use

  • VANA pays network gas, is staked by validators, is used in governance and is the default payment and trading pair for DataDAO tokens. Source
  • Under the Vega fee model, apps pay one cent per permitted scope read, split 60% to stakers, 20% to buying and burning VANA and 20% to ecosystem development; 2,937,447 verified reads were reported as of September 28, 2026. Source
  • Vana's mainnet and VANA token launched on December 16, 2024 after a testnet the team says had more than 1.3 million users. Source

The AI angle

AI role
data/labeling
What actually happens
Vana's role in AI is supplying training and context data that people choose to share, rather than computing power. DataDAOs pool user data, AI builders pay to read it with permission, and those fees flow to VANA stakers and a token buy-and-burn. How large this market becomes depends on AI companies paying for permissioned data instead of collecting it elsewhere.

AI crypto, explained

How Vana works

Vana splits data from the record of who owns it. The data itself stays encrypted in personal servers or secure hardware enclaves. The blockchain stores ownership proofs, access permissions and quality attestations, so only the owner can change who may read a file. When an app or AI developer wants data, it asks for a scoped permission; the owner grants or revokes it, and the read is logged on-chain.

DataDAOs are the collective layer. A DataDAO, run through a smart contract called a data liquidity pool, gathers one kind of data, such as Reddit or genetic data, and scores each contribution with its own proof-of-contribution rules. Contributors receive the DataDAO's token, which can be traded against VANA. Quality checks happen inside trusted execution environments, so validators can attest to data without seeing it in the clear.

VANA keeps the system running. It pays gas for every transaction and is staked to secure the chain. After the Vega upgrade in September 2026, apps pay a one-cent fee for each permitted data read. The foundation says 60% of fees go to stakers through three staking pools, 20% buys and burns VANA, and 20% funds ecosystem work. It publishes each buyback and burn on-chain.

Key moments

  1. 2024Vana publishes its whitepaper on December 3 and launches mainnet and the VANA token on December 16.
  2. 2025Data Validator Staking replaces DataDAO staking in March, tying rewards to keeping secure data infrastructure online.
  3. 2026The Vega upgrade in September adds per-read data fees, expanded staking pools and a buy-and-burn of VANA.

Supply

VANA has a fixed total supply of 120 million tokens, with 44% for the community, 22.9% for the ecosystem, 18.8% for the team and 14.3% for investors. Team tokens vest over five years and investor tokens over four, each after a one-year cliff, so unlocks continue for several years. Since September 2026, 20% of data-read fees go to buying and burning VANA.

Risks to understand

  • Paid demand for user-owned data is still small, and for much of the network's life staking rewards came from token emissions rather than data fees.
  • Scheduled unlocks for the team, investors and community add supply over several years.
  • Personal data raises legal and privacy questions, and the system's privacy rests partly on secure-enclave hardware working as designed.
  • Other tokens named VANA exist; buying the wrong contract can mean a total loss.

Vana FAQ

What is a DataDAO?

It is a group that pools one type of user data, such as social media history, and negotiates its use by AI developers. Contributors receive the group's own token.

How many VANA tokens are there?

The total supply is fixed at 120 million, released to the community, ecosystem, team and investors on multi-year schedules.

Does Vana store my data on the blockchain?

No. The data stays encrypted off-chain; the blockchain records ownership, permissions and proofs about the data.

Sources

  1. VANA token — Vana documentation
  2. Vana: The First Open Protocol for AI Data Sovereignty — Vana
  3. Introducing Data Validator Staking — Vana
  4. Vana mainnet goes live with $VANA — FinSMEs
  5. Vana Completes Expanded Staking as Part of the Vega Upgrade — CryptoPotato (Chainwire press release)
  6. Vana exchange in the US — Crypto.com US
  7. Vana price — Kraken
  8. Vana price — Coinbase

Last reviewed October 20, 2026. Written by . Utility Lens ratings are editorial judgments, not investment advice. Market data from CoinGecko. Spot an error? Request a correction.

About the author

Dave McNaught has worked in IT since 1999 and founded All Business Technologies (ABT) in 2003, a Boston-area firm providing Managed IT, Cybersecurity, Managed AI, Web Design and App Development. He publishes The Crypto Guide.

Full bio