How a16z-backed DATA is rethinking its blockchain strategy after $30 million Sui deal - Cryptonews.net
$DATA, formerly Story Protocol, is shutting down its blockchain and moving to Sui after securing a $30 million investment from the network's foundation.
The Bellevue, Washington-based startup raised $140 million before deciding to abandon its blockchain. The company had spent years trying to bring intellectual property onchain but found changing how the world's IP is licensed was harder than expected.
We were trying to boil the ocean, and it was a very saturated and entrenched ocean.
Strategic Shift
$DATA Foundation rebranded from Story Protocol in June, shifting its focus to the AI training data market. The original plan when founded in 2022 covered music royalties, patents and trademarks, allowing owners to register IP on blockchain and set usage terms.
Many industries already had established systems, while large rights holders showed little interest in permissionless licensing. The company realized it was spreading itself too thin across different types of intellectual property.
Narrowing Focus
The team questioned whether maintaining an entire blockchain made sense when most work centered on a single product: Trace, a registry that records training data origins, contributors and usage rights.
Running a blockchain involves significant costs including engineers, validators, audits and infrastructure providers. The company decided to focus its energy on the protocol, product and Trace rather than maintaining its own L1 blockchain.
New Direction
The move to Sui represents a significant strategic pivot for the company. By leveraging Sui's infrastructure, $DATA can focus on developing its Trace product while avoiding the operational burden of maintaining its own blockchain.
The $30 million investment from Sui's foundation provides the resources needed for this transition. The company will now concentrate on tracking the origins and usage rights of data used to train artificial intelligence models, a more focused approach than its original broad IP strategy.
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