Reward Mechanisms
This document details how contributors earn tokens and how token holders benefit from API usage.
Token Distribution & Benefits
There are two ways value flows to participants:
- Performance Rewards: Contributors earn new tokens for improving models
- API Fee Benefits: Token holders benefit from price appreciation as API fees increase reserves
Important: There are no staking rewards, dividend distributions, or governance token rewards currently available.
1. Performance Rewards
Rewards for improving model performance:
Reward Calculation
Reward = DeltaOnes * Tokens_Per_DeltaOne
Where:
- DeltaOnes = Number of percentage points of improvement (1 DeltaOne = 1% improvement)
- Tokens_Per_DeltaOne = Fixed number of tokens awarded per DeltaOne
Example:
Baseline Performance: 75% accuracy
New Performance: 82% accuracy
Performance Improvement: 7%
Tokens per DeltaOne: 100 tokens
Reward = 7 DeltaOnes * 100 tokens = 700 tokens
2. API Fee Benefits
API usage generates fees that benefit token holders indirectly:
Fee Distribution via UsageFeeRouter
The UsageFeeRouter contract splits API usage fees two ways:
- 20% to AMM Reserve: Deposited as USDC, increases token price
- 80% to Infrastructure: Covers operational costs (compute, hosting, bandwidth)
Note: These are NOT direct rewards to token holders. Instead, the 20% increases the USDC reserve backing all tokens, which raises the token price proportionally.
How It Benefits Token Holders
When API fees are deposited to the AMM reserve:
Reserve increases: R → R + Fees (20% of API fees)
Supply unchanged: S → S
Price increases: P = R / (w × S)
Example: $10,000 API fees → $2,000 to reserve (20%) → ~2% price increase for all holders
This is NOT:
- Staking rewards
- Dividend payments
- Direct distributions to holders
- Governance token rewards
Distribution Mechanisms
1. Performance Distribution
The TokenManager contract handles performance-based rewards:
function mintForImprovement(
bytes32 modelId,
uint256 improvementBps,
address contributor
) external onlyVerifier {
require(improvementBps > 0, "No improvement");
uint256 reward = calculateReward(improvementBps);
_mint(contributor, reward);
emit ImprovementRewarded(modelId, contributor, reward);
}
Key components:
DeltaOneVerifier: Validates performance improvementsTokenManager: Mints and distributes rewardsModelRegistry: Tracks model performance and token addresses
2. API Fee Distribution
The UsageFeeRouter contract routes API usage fees:
function distributeFees(
bytes32 modelId,
uint256 totalFees
) external onlyFeeCollector {
uint256 ammAllocation = (totalFees * 2000) / 10000; // 20%
uint256 infrastructureAllocation = totalFees - ammAllocation; // 80%
// Deposit to AMM reserve (increases token price)
HokusaiAMM(ammAddress).depositFees(ammAllocation);
// Send to infrastructure
USDC.transfer(infrastructureAddress, infrastructureAllocation);
}
Key Insight: 20% of API fees increase USDC reserves without minting tokens, creating price appreciation for holders.
Vesting Schedules
1. Performance Rewards
- 3-month cliff period
- Early withdrawal penalty
2. Liquidity Rewards
- Immediate distribution
- Bonus for longer commitments
Reward Parameters
1. Performance Parameters
- Minimum improvement threshold: 10 bps (0.1%)
- Maximum reward per improvement
- Cooldown period between improvements
2. Liquidity Parameters
- Base reward rate
- Bonus multipliers
- Lock-up periods
Monitoring and Analytics
1. Reward Metrics
- Total rewards distributed
- Reward distribution by type
- Vesting status
2. Participation Metrics
- Active contributors
- Liquidity providers
3. Impact Metrics
- Model improvements
- Protocol growth
- Community engagement
Next Steps
- Review Token Value Mechanics
- Understand DeltaOne Calculations
- Learn about Smart Contracts
For additional support, contact our Support Team or join our Community Forum.