Introducing the Guardians of Growth Staking Bootstrap Program
This post is published on behalf of the Subspace Foundation, which is introducing the Guardians of Growth Staking Bootstrap Program as part of its mission to secure and decentralize the Autonomys Network.
As many of you know, at mainnet domains launch the Autonomys Network will have relatively low transaction volume. Since staking rewards are derived purely from transaction fees and tips, this means that nominators (stakers) and operators will initially see lower returns.
While long-term sustainability will come from organic activity on Auto-EVM and other domains, we want to ensure that network security and decentralization are strong from day one. To bridge this early phase, the Subspace Foundation is implementing a temporary, treasury-funded incentive program.
Why this program exists
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Secure the network at launch: Ensuring that operators are rewarded even before organic fees reach critical mass.
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Encourage nominators to stake early: Holders learn how staking works and begin participating in governance/security.
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Temporary bootstrap measure: This is not a permanent change to network economics - it’s a time-bound subsidy using a small portion of the Foundation’s treasury (~0.5%).
How it works
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The program leverages the existing protocol logic for distributing transaction fees.
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On a regular cadence, the Foundation submits a trivial transaction (a
remark) on the Auto-EVM domain. -
Each transaction includes a tip, paid out exactly like any other user-submitted fee.
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Operators who execute and include these transactions in a block receive their share of the tip.
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Nominators (stakers) of those operators automatically receive their proportional share.
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All staking remains fully non-custodial - nominators retain complete control of their tokens at all times.
- If you’re new to staking, check out our step-by-step guide to staking in the Autonomys docs.
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Until permissionless operators are launched (expected next year), any fees earned by the Foundation’s own operators from this program will be recycled periodically back into the incentive stream, ensuring the incentives go entirely to the community.
This mechanism is implemented using the Operator Reward Distributor, an open-source service built in Node.js/TypeScript that:
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Sends a transaction at a steady interval (e.g. every N minutes).
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Attaches a configurable tip amount.
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Tracks budgets and confirmations in a local database.
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Supports RPC failover to ensure reliability.
This makes the program transparent, reproducible, and fully protocol-aligned.
Key properties
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Rewards are earned exactly like any other network activity - once a transaction with a tip is sent, the protocol automatically distributes it through the standard fee system. No one is deciding who gets what; it’s all handled on-chain.
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The network remains open and verifiable - operators play an important role in block production, but they don’t control the network. All activity can be checked and challenged, ensuring that security is ultimately in the hands of the broader community.
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Predictable but flexible - rewards are intended to flow at a steady, linear pace over ~12 months, with an initial ramp-up in tip size at the start of the program. The Foundation may adjust cadence if needed to reflect network conditions, but the goal is a clear and transparent schedule.
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Time-bound - this is a bootstrap program, not a structural change. It is intended to last for ~12 months, after which operator earnings should be sustained by organic usage.
FAQ
Q: When does the program start?
The ramp-up phase will begin shortly after this announcement, with the goal of aligning closely to the exchange listings.
Q: Where do the funds come from?
From the Subspace Foundation treasury. This program allocates 0.5% of token supply to bootstrap staking incentives. Specifically, the near-term treasury will be used to fund operational wallets. You can find details of the address along with other official wallets in the forum post about them.
Q: How much will I earn if I stake?
There are no yield guarantees. Rewards will depend on (1) the cadence and size of tips funded by the Foundation, and (2) how many other nominators are staking. As more nominators join, each individual’s share naturally decreases.
Q: Isn’t this centralization?
No. The Foundation submits transactions, but the protocol handles distribution automatically. Nominators and operators earn exactly as they would from any normal transaction fee.
Q: How long will this last?
The program is designed to run for ~12 months, with rewards deployed in a steady, linear fashion. The Foundation may make minor adjustments if conditions change, but the total allocation will not exceed 5,000,000 AI3.
Q: What happens once permissionless operators are live?
The program will continue to function as designed. Tips will flow to all active operators and their nominators, permissioned or permissionless. This will make staking incentives even broader and more decentralized.
Q: How will I know what’s been distributed?
All transactions are on-chain and can be audited directly. Anyone can track the flow of tips using block explorers. We’d also love to see a community-built dashboard that makes this even easier to follow - and we’re happy to support contributors who want to build one.
Q: What does this mean for developers?
Developers gain a more reliable base layer from day one. The program ensures operators are rewarded consistently, making the network more stable to build on. The steady flow of tip-based transactions also helps developers see how fees and incentives behave in practice, so they can design their apps against real network dynamics.
Why this matters
This initiative gives nominators a reason to start staking immediately, builds comfort with the staking process, and ensures that operator nodes are rewarded while the broader ecosystem bootstraps.
It is transparent, protocol-native, and temporary. Most importantly, it aligns incentives for everyone - Foundation, operators, nominators, and developers - to grow the Autonomys Network into a secure, sustainable, decentralized platform.
