Running an independent network of validators is required to achieve the following goals:
- Ensuring the incoming messages have a valid structure before being processed
- Structuring the incoming data to be indexed by subgraph
- Ensuring network staking mechanisms filters are decentralized
- Validating ZK Proofs about public record submissions and private license details for permitted queries.
Validators also reduce the cost of operations for data providers, and further decentralize the process of data validation. Therefore emissions from the protocol will reward validator participation until a critical mass of royalties are settled on-chain, at which point data providers will include an inclusion fee for validators to include their incoming registrations in their blob storage.
Becoming a validator
In order to participate and earn $OWN for validation of new incoming records, becoming a validator includes staking $OWN & $USDC. Each month 11 validators are chosen from a pool of applicants. The validators are chosen in an auction process, where the 11 validators who commit to the highest stake (stakes are comprised of 50% USDC and 50% $OWN) are chosen. If a validator is found to be fraudulent, they are slashed.
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