Announcing the FLOPs Founders Fund
1% alignment for each DeAI protocol founder we partner with
FLOPs is not a competitor. We're the Foundry of DeAI: an early‑mining style accumulator + amplifier for decentralized training.
To strengthen alignment across the ecosystem, we're launching the FLOPs Founders Fund—a standing offer of 1% of FLOPS total token supply to each partner protocol's founder(s) we work with and actively mine. This creates a virtuous cycle: we back founders building the rails of decentralized training; founders help us open and optimize rounds; the space grows—everyone compounds.
Why a Founders Fund?
Decentralized training is accelerating but still early. The space needs:
- Aligned incentives between protocol teams and the neutral aggregator that's bringing demand, tooling, and research.
- Tight feedback loops so protocol design, liquidity, and usage evolve together—not in silos.
- Visible dedication to the entire category, not just one chain or one protocol.
The Founders Fund formalizes this alignment. It complements our other treasury programs—Research Grants (fund the frontier) and Tipping (reward real users)—with a clear founder‑level partnership that says: we're here to help you win and to raise the ceiling for everyone.
What we're offering (in plain English)
- 1% of FLOPS total supply to each partner protocol's founder(s).
- Allocation is to the founder set for that protocol (distributed internally by the team), not to a corporate entity.
- Standard vesting (recommended): 36 months, quarterly unlocks, with a short initial cliff—designed for long‑term alignment.
- Hands‑on support from the FLOPs team to open, mine, and analyze rounds; publish explainers and visuals; and route grants to contributors building on your protocol.
- Public commitment: a co‑authored announcement + dashboard card on flops.gg tracking the partnership and progress.
Rationale: We already act like a neutral "early miner" across DeAI protocols. A founders fund is the cleanest way to hard‑code alignment while we allocate compute and capital intelligently—exactly what a foundry should do.
What we ask in return
We keep this simple and practical—tailored per partner—but expect the spirit of the partnership to look like this:
1. Active collaboration on rounds
Coordinate on timing, caps/minimums, and contribution formats; make it easy for FLOPs and our community to participate.
2. Mechanism clarity & feedback
Share details (public or embargoed) so we can model flows, visualize incentives, and recommend improvements.
3. Data for learning
Basic, privacy‑respecting metrics so we can study outcomes, tune future allocations, and publish transparent post‑mortems.
4. Community touchpoints
Join Spaces, AMAs, and explainers; help us educate the market on how your protocol works and why it matters.
5. Long‑term alignment
Founders accept the vesting terms and treat the allocation as governance alignment, not short‑term liquidity.
The virtuous cycle (how it compounds)
Where the allocation comes from
- Near‑term, the founders fund uses the team/incentives allocation that unlocks linearly (our operational pool).
- Longer‑term, we expect governance to ratify and scale the program once the governance treasury is live.
- Quarterly operations cadence: like our other treasury programs, we batch distributions/vesting quarterly (Q1, Q2, Q3) for simplicity and transparency.
Safeguards & transparency
- Vesting + cliffs to align time horizons; no "instant unlock" allocations.
- Public ledger of partner protocols, vesting schedules, and remaining balances.
- No exclusivity: we remain a neutral aggregator; partners are free to collaborate widely.
- Conflicts disclosed; core decisions documented.
- Program reviews each quarter to tune sizes, pacing, and criteria as the market evolves.
Who qualifies?
- Training, inference, data, or coordination protocols with credible mechanisms and real users (or a clear path to them).
- Teams open to co‑design, measurement, and public education—we want to show the world how your system works.
- Preference to protocols where FLOPs (and our community) can participate meaningfully in rounds or usage.
Early examples we're exploring include protocols like Nous, Prime, Pluralis, Gensyn, and Ambient (status varies by permissionlessness). We'll expand as more teams open rounds and tooling stabilizes.
How to engage (founders)
How this fits with Grants & Tipping
- Research Grants: fund the frontier—training algorithms, schedulers, proof‑of‑compute, data/IO, and open‑source models that make your protocol stronger.
- Tipping: reward real users of DeAI protocols (including yours) with FLOPS; amplify early adoption and deepen the index‑style association between FLOPs and the entire category.
Together with the Founders Fund, these programs make FLOPs a catalyst for decentralized training, not just an observer.
FAQ
Why 1% per partner?
It's big enough to matter to founders, small enough to scale across many partnerships, and simple to communicate. The intent is alignment, not control.
Is it 1% per founder or 1% per protocol?
Per protocol team (the founding set) to apportion internally. (We'll list recipients transparently.)
Is there vesting?
Yes—standard vesting (e.g., 36 months, quarterly unlocks, short cliff) to ensure long‑term skin in the game.
Does this make FLOPs a VC?
No. FLOPs remains a neutral aggregator that allocates compute and capital to grow the entire DeAI category. Some partnerships may include separate commercial arrangements later, but the Founders Fund is alignment‑first.
Will this crowd out Grants and Tipping?
No. The Founders Fund sits alongside Grants and Tipping. We publish a public ledger so everyone can see how each program is resourced.
What about governance?
As the governance treasury comes online, we'll present program updates and let the community ratify expansions or parameter changes. We set the compass; the community confirms the direction.
Is this investment advice?
No. FLOPS Token is for governance and value mechanisms; Credits reflect compute exposure. Do your own diligence.
Call to action
FLOPs exists to make decentralized training inevitable. The Founders Fund is how we formalize alignment with the people building it. Let's mine the open future—together.