Economic System Overview
This diagram depicts a summarized view of the AI Arena economy. Details are covered in the following sections.
NFTs
NFTs power the Gaming Competition.
Primary & Secondary Markets
Gamers can purchase NFTs from ArenaX Labs via new drops (primary market). They can also buy & sell NFTs in the Arena Marketplace (secondary market).
Issuance
ArenaX Labs retains full discretion on the issuance rate of NFTs and will be data-driven in our approach. In periods of strong growth, we may be aggressive in raising NFT supply. Conversely, in periods of moderate growth we may slow the pace of supply increase.
New Supply
The primary source of new supply will be new NFT drops via the Arena Marketplace.
NFT Inflation
We will maintain a steady rate of inflation via new NFTs rewarded from the Merging Pool (for more detail visit
Future
In the future, Researchers will be able to list and sell new AI models on the marketplace to power future generations of NFTs.
💧 NFT Sources
🕛 Current
New NFT Drops
Merging Pool Rewards
🔮Future
Research Competition
🔥 NFT Sinks
🕛 Current
NFT Supply is controlled
🔮Future
TBD
Token ($NRN)
Neuron ($NRN) lies at the heart of the AI Arena economic system, helping coordinate and align the incentives of players and stakeholders in the economy.
$NRN is a utility token, and serves as strategic resource within the game. When employed effectively, it helps to maximize a player’s chances of climbing the leaderboard in the Arena.
Details of how $NRNs are earned via the Gaming Competition is described in the section below.
💧 $NRN Sources
🕛 Current
Ranked Battles - Gaming Competition
🔮Future
Ranked Battles - Research Competition
🔥 $NRN Sinks
🕛 Current
Ranked Battles - Gaming Competition - Staking Losses
Merging Pool - Indirect via Points system
🔮Future
Tournaments
Research Competition - Listing Pool
AI Arena ******
Gaming Competition
🪂 Gamers buy NFTs via the Arena Marketplace.
🥊 Gamers train NFTs and prepare for the Arena.
🏟️ Gamers enter NFTs into the Arena to compete on the global leaderboard.
🏆 Rewards take the form of $NRNs and NFTs
Winning NFTs
➡️ To participate in NFT rewards via the Merging Pool, Gamers must:
1️⃣ Stake their NFT;
2️⃣ Preselect the % of Points earned in the current battle to allocate into the Merging Pool.
➡️ The probabilities of winning an NFT depends on the cumulative Points a Gamer allocates to the Merging Pool over time.
➡️ Merging Pool prizes are disbursed at the end of each Round.
⬇️ For a numerical example, see below. Note this is an illustration with hypothetical numbers!
$NRN Prize Pool for Each Round | 100 |
Total Pts Earned by All Players in Each Round Net of Merging Pool Allocations | 1,000 |
NFT Staked by Gamer? | Yes |
$NRNs Staked by Gamer | 1,000 |
Pts allocated to Merging Pool by Gamer | 20% |
Earning $NRN
➡️ Gamers must stake $NRN to earn $NRN rewards through Ranked Battles.
➡️ Rewards are paid out each Round. Reward earned is a function of:
➡️ For more information on how $NRN rewards are calculated, please visit
Round | Pts Earned | Pts Allocated to Merging Pool | Win NFT Prize? | Cumulative Credit in Merging Pool | Claimable $NRN | $NRN Claimed | Ending $NRN |
Start | 1,000 | ||||||
Week 1 | 100 | 20 | No | 20 | 80/1000*100=8 | 8 | 1,008 |
Week 2 | 150 | 30 | No | 50 | 120/1000*100=12 | 12 | 1020 |
Week 3 | 200 | 40 | Yes | 0 | 160/1000*100=16 | 16 | 1,036 |
Research Competition
🔬 Researchers upload trained models to the Research Platform.
🏟️ Researchers enter models into the Arena to compete on global leaderboard.
🪙 In order to earn rewards, Researchers must stake NRNs behind their models.
⭕ Rewards are paid out in weekly cycles, each called a Round. Reward earned is a function of:
1️⃣ Model ranking;
2️⃣ Amount of $NRN staked;
3️⃣ Performance in the arena.
In-Game Items
🔋 Batteries
Currently there is only one in-game asset for sale, called Batteries. NFTs require Voltage to fight in the Ranked Battle arena. Each NFT has 10 Voltage units which are recharged every 24 hours. Each fight in the Ranked Battle arena, expends 1 Voltage unit. This allows for 10 fights a day.
Gamers can purchase up to 10 Batteries a day, to increase their number of fights. All proceeds go to the Arena Treasury.
The price of batteries will be determined once the Gaming Competition is launched.
Arena Treasury
💱 Sources of Capital
The Arena Treasury will be accrue $NRNs in following ways:
- Sale of in-game items
- More to come…
💵 Uses of Capital
The purpose of the Arena Treasury is to deliver long-term value to the AI Arena ecosystem. Capital allocation decisions are initially controlled by ArenaX Labs. Examples of uses include:
- Gaming Competition Rewards
- Researcher Competition Rewards
- Incentive Programs (Various)
- Grants
- Bug Bounties
- Mergers & Acquisitions
- $NRN Buyback and Burn
Value Capture Within the Arena Economy
The AI Arena economy will have a diverse set of stakeholders, including: gamers, researchers, guilds, sponsors, fans, speculators, and investors. Aspirationally, we want to progressively decentralize the platform so that it is beyond any single party’s control. However, we also believe that in the early days of development, projects benefit from the focus and driving energy of a core team. As such, ArenaX Labs will initially control most decisions related to the economy.
The following table outlines which stakeholder group stands to directly benefit from different types of economic activities. It is important to note that this table only highlights the direct beneficiaries. In reality, there are often indirect effects within the economy that create value for all stakeholders. Moreover, stakeholders are often participating in the economy in multiple ways (e.g. NFT owners are most likely also token holders).
Stakeholder | NFT Sales (Secondary) | Researcher Model Sales | $NRN Burn | In-Game Item Sales (e.g. Battery) |
ArenaX Labs | ✅ (Mkt Fee) | ✅ (Mkt Fee) | ||
NFT Owners | ✅ | |||
Researchers | ✅ | |||
Token Holders | ✅ | |||
Arena Treasury | ✅ |
