On October 12, Sui Foundation announced an investment of $30 million in DATA Network, becoming its largest institutional holder. Meanwhile, the AI training data protocol is preparing to move to the Sui platform and shut down its independent blockchain.
Sui Foundation confirmed the agreement in an official statement with the DATA Foundation, explaining that under the partnership the DATA Network and its Trace registry will be integrated into Sui's blockchain infrastructure. The existing DATA token will be converted at a ratio of 1:1, and Walrus will become the default storage platform for applications managed by the DATA Foundation.
Both organizations said the existing network will remain operational until the transition is complete. They have not yet announced a migration date, but plan to publish a detailed schedule and instructions for token holders before the update begins.
Under the agreement, Sui Foundation will become the largest institutional investor in DATA Network, joining existing shareholders PIP Labs and the DATA Foundation. The investment is part of a strategic partnership designed to provide Sui with infrastructure for AI training data.
Currently, DATA Network uses its own blockchain, which supports applications involved in searching, tracking, and licensing training information for artificial intelligence systems. Once the planned migration is complete, DATA Network will operate as a native protocol on Sui.
The standalone blockchain will be decommissioned, relieving the DATA Foundation of the need to maintain a separate network for the applications it supports.
According to the joint statement, DATA tokens will be converted to Sui at a one-to-one ratio. For every DATA token held, its owner will receive one DATA token in the new network.
Foundation representatives said token holders will retain economic benefits and governance rights at least equivalent to the existing terms. Locked tokens and existing vesting schedules will be transferred unchanged in accordance with the announced plan.
However, the organizations did not disclose the investment valuation, the exact number of tokens included in the Sui Foundation's stake, or the financial structure of the deal. The announcement did not specify whether the entire $30 million amount had already been transferred. Sui Foundation and DATA Foundation said they would publish additional information about the holder transition before the migration begins.
Meanwhile, Sue Lee, chairman of the board of Poseidon and CEO of PIP Labs, will join Sui Foundation as a strategic advisor. Lee previously played a key role in developing Story Protocol, which later became DATA Network. His appointment as advisor was announced alongside the closing of the investment and technical partnership.
DATA Network plans to shut down its independent blockchain
The planned migration of DATA Network followed a major change in the project's business strategy earlier this year. In June 2026, Story Protocol rebranded as DATA Foundation, shifting its focus from general intellectual property licensing to AI training data.
The transition involved renaming the original IP token to DATA and introducing a dedicated network for managing data ownership rights, licensing, and payments.
The project had difficulty attracting major intellectual property owners, as they wanted tighter control over their content and licensing agreements. Subsequently, the DATA Foundation focused its resources on infrastructure for collecting and verifying information used to train artificial intelligence models.
In its statement dated 25 June, the organization clarified that the new direction would focus on providing AI developers with access to licensed information, as well as tracking participant rewards.
The agreement concluded in October takes the restructuring further, moving the protocol from an independent blockchain to an outsourced one. The DATA Foundation said its existing network will continue processing transactions until the migration to Sui is complete. The organizations have not yet announced a date for shutting down the original blockchain.
They did not specify whether exchanges, custodians, or other service providers would automatically carry out the token transfer. At this stage, no mandatory actions for token holders have been announced. The migration will require further technical and operational updates, and the foundations have committed to publishing instructions before implementation begins.
According to the official statement, this step will preserve the existing DATA governance mechanisms and economics for token holders, while transferring protocol governance to Sui.
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