Bittensor is not one network doing one thing. It is a set of independent markets — subnets — that all draw from the same pool of TAO emissions. Each subnet picks a task, defines how to score it, and pays out to whoever scores best.

The three roles

  • Miners do the work. On an inference subnet that means answering prompts; on a forecasting subnet it means submitting predictions; on a compute subnet it means serving GPU cycles.
  • Validators score the work. They send challenges, grade the responses, and publish weights saying which miners deserve what share.
  • Delegators (most TAO holders) stake TAO behind a validator and receive a cut of that validator's emissions. You do not run hardware; you are choosing which validator and which subnet to back.

Every subnet has a number: its netuid. Netuid 1 is the original text-prompting subnet. Netuid 64 is Chutes. When you see "SN8" or "subnet 8", that is the netuid, and it is the only unambiguous identifier — names change, numbers do not.

Where the money comes from

TAO issuance is fixed and halving-based, like Bitcoin. Every block, new TAO is minted and split across subnets according to how much the network collectively values each one. Inside a subnet, that budget is split again between miners, validators, and the validators' delegators.

So a subnet's emission share — the percentage of total network issuance it captures — is the single most important number about it. A subnet with 5% of emissions is receiving 5% of all new TAO. That share is set by consensus and it moves.

Alpha tokens and why subnets have prices

Since the dTAO upgrade, each subnet has its own token — usually called its alpha token. When you stake TAO into a subnet you receive that subnet's alpha; when you unstake you convert back. The exchange rate between TAO and a subnet's alpha floats in a pool, which is why every subnet now has a price chart at all.

This is the part newcomers underestimate. Your return from delegating has two components: the emissions you earn, and the change in the alpha token's price against TAO. A 28% APY on a subnet whose alpha fell 20% against TAO is a losing trade measured in TAO.

What "good" looks like

  • A scoring method that is hard to game — ideally one with objective ground truth (settled prices, benchmark pass rates, verified uptime) rather than subjective quality judgement.
  • A stable or rising emission share over months, not days.
  • Enough validators that no single operator failing takes the subnet down.
  • Real turnover relative to market cap, so you can actually get out.

Next: read how staking and delegation mechanics work, then use the calculator to see what a given APY actually compounds to over your holding period.

TAO Compound is an analytics tool, not financial advice. Subnet figures referenced above come from the sample data set in this build; the live TAO price shown elsewhere on the site is from CoinGecko.