App Tokens

Each app built on Elata can have its own token. These app tokens act like local currencies for individual apps, while still plugging into a shared, protocol-wide economic system powered by the ecosystem native token, $ELTA. That means every app can build its own mini-economy to access, rewards, tournaments, and unique items without reinventing all the crypto and game-theory from scratch.

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What are App Tokens?

An app token is the token for a single app in the Elata ecosystem. App tokens are separate from $ELTA (the main ecosystem token), and are used inside the corresponding app for things like access, rewards, perks, and events. Additionally, App tokens are purpose-built to give users and builders a way to share in the upside as the app grows.

You can think of it like this: $ELTA is the default currency for the whole Internet of Brains, and App tokens are “local currencies” for specific apps built on top of it.

Why app tokens exist

In most apps today, early users, power users, and community members don’t have a clear way to share in the value they help create. Everything accrues to individual companies, which are especially suceptible to moral hazard. App tokens exist to fix that.

For users, an app token is:

• A way to unlock features and membership in the app you like.
• A way to earn “supercharged” rewards when the app is active and used a lot.
• A way to signal commitment (“I’m really in this community”) instead of just being a free user.

As a builder, an app token gives you:

• A ready-made economy you don’t have to design from scratch.
• A transparent way to raise interest and liquidity around your app via a bonding curve.
• Built-in tools for staking, rewards, items/passes, and tournaments wired to your token.

For long-term ELTA holders and stakers, app tokens are:

• A demand engine for ELTA (every app launch and all bonding-curve trading use ELTA).
• A revenue engine feeding protocol fees into the shared RewardsDistributor (70/15/15 split to app stakers, veELTA stakers, and treasury).

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Lifecycle of an App Token

This section walks through what happens from “no app” to “live app with a running token.”

1. Launching an app token (with an app)

   A developer uses Elata’s AppFactory module to create a new app:

   1. They pay 110 $ELTA to the protocol:
      • 100 $ELTA seeds app token liquidity.
      • 10 $ELTA is a creation fee to the Elata treasury.
   2. The protocol deploys:
      • An AppToken contract with 1,000,000,000 tokens.
      • An AppBondingCurve for fair price discovery.
      • Module hooks so staking, items/passes, rewards, and tournaments can be added.

   The initial supply is split between a creator bucket (treasury + auto-staked portion) that aligns the builder with long-term success, and the bonding curve, where the public can buy tokens directly.

2. Buying in via. the Bonding Curve

   Those who want the token at this early stage must buy it from the bonding curve using $ELTA.

   The more people buy, the higher the price moves, and the purchase is executed from a smart contract with transparent rules, not the team.

   

   There is a 1% trading fee on each trade, which gets routed into the protocol’s revenue system.

   For the first 6 hours of a launch, early access can be Point-gated:

   • Only users with 100+ Elata Points (non-transferable poitns earned via active engagement) can buy during this window.
   • After that, the sale opens to everyone.

   This rewards people who’ve already contributed to the ecosystem and reduces bot/sniper behavior.

3. Facilitating in-app experiences

   Once the app is live, it can be used for a plethora of different activities, including:

   • Access & membership: stake a certain amount or hold specific passes to unlock features.
   • Items & passes: buy in-app passes, upgrades, badges, or memberships via the AppAccess1155 module (100% of tokens spent on these purchases are burned).
   • Tournaments & events: pay entry fees for competitions, challenges, or sprints.
   • Seasonal rewards: receive token distributions through EpochRewards based on in-app behavior.
4. Earning & Rewards

   You can stake your app tokens into the app’s AppStakingVault for:

   • You receive stake-shares (non-transferable) that represent your share of the staking pool.
   • As the app generates fees (trading, transfer, tournaments, etc.), 70% of protocol revenue is shared with app token stakers in ELTA and app tokens.
   • The app creator can also use their token treasury to fund EpochRewards—time-boxed reward rounds for active users.

   Staking is how you go from “I have some tokens” to “I’m earning yield from real activity.”

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Economics of App Tokens

Creating sustainable economics is at the heart of app tokens’ mechanism design: how value flows and why the design works.

Economic goals

The app token design is trying to achieve a few simple goals:

1. Reward long-term participants, not just short-term traders.
2. Tie token value to real app usage, not pure speculation.
3. Make the protocol sustainable, with fees coming from real activity instead of printing new tokens.

There are four main value sources behind app tokens:

1. Trading volume on the bonding curve

• Every trade on the bonding curve pays a 1% fee.
• That fee is routed through AppFeeRouter**→ ** RewardsDistributor and split:
  • 70%: App token stakers
  • 15%: veELTA stakers
  • 15%: Treasury

If monthly trading volume for one app is 100,000 ELTA, the fee is 1,000 ELTA:

• 700 ELTA goes to app stakers
• 150 ELTA goes to veELTA stakers
• 150 ELTA goes to protocol treasury

2. Transfer fees

Most wallet-to-wallet transfers of the app token pay a 1% transfer fee (default; capped at 2%; governance can adjust).

• 70%: app team & stakers (paid in the app token)
• 15%: veELTA stakers (in the app token)
• 15%: treasury (in the app token)

Transfers between core protocol contracts (bonding curve, staking vault, factory) are automatically exempt, so users aren’t double-charged on normal interactions.

This gives a small “friction tax” to short-term flipping and a steady yield stream to stakers.

3. In-app spending and burns

App tokens are spent inside apps on:

• Items & passes via AppAccess1155 : 100% of tokens spent are burned (destroyed).
• Tournament entry fees: a default 1% of the entry pool is burned on finalization.

After finalizeMinting() is called on the AppToken, no new tokens can ever be minted. Supply can only go down due to burns.

So real usage (people buying passes, playing tournaments) directly creates deflationary pressure on the token.

4. App launch fees & ELTA demand

• Every new app launch requires 110 ELTA.
• All bonding-curve trades are paid in ELTA.

This demand for ELTA, driven by many app tokens, helps ELTA accrue value via:

• Protocol revenues (via. RewardsDistributor).
• Real yield to veELTA stakers.

4.3 How rewards are shared (70/15/15)

All protocol revenue (ELTA or app tokens) that comes from:

• Trading fees
• App fees
• Tournament rake
• Other protocol-level charges

is routed through RewardsDistributor and split:

• 70% → App token stakers (via AppRewardsDistributor).
• 15% → veELTA stakers.
• 15% → Treasury for grants, development, and operations. (GitHub)

This split is consistent across revenue sources, which keeps the mental model simple and predictable.

4.4 Deflation and supply dynamics

For each app token:

• Initial supply: 1,000,000,000 tokens (1B). (GitHub)
• Tokens are distributed between:
  • Creator treasury / auto-staked portion. (GitHub)
  • Bonding curve (public).
• Once finalizeMinting() is called:
  • No further minting is allowed.
  • Supply can only stay constant or decrease due to burns. (GitHub)
• Burn mechanisms:
  • 100% of item/pass purchases.
  • 1% of tournament entry pools.

Over time, high usage + consistent burns + no new minting can make the token scarcer, which may benefit long-term holders if demand remains strong.

4.5 Simple numerical example (intuitive, not guaranteed)

Imagine an app with:

• 1B tokens initially.
• In its first month:
  • 100,000 ELTA of trading on the bonding curve (1,000 ELTA in fees).
  • 500,000 app tokens burned on passes/items.
  • 50,000 app tokens burned via tournaments. (GitHub)

Then:

• 1,000 ELTA in protocol revenue gets split:
  • 700 ELTA to app stakers.
  • 150 ELTA to veELTA.
  • 150 ELTA to treasury.
• 550,000 app tokens are permanently removed from supply.

Result: the app stakers earned ELTA for backing the app, and there are fewer tokens in circulation than when the month started.

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5. What You Can Do With App Tokens

Here are common patterns, without locking into one specific use case.

5.1 Access & membership

Use app tokens to decide who gets what:

• Require a minimum staked balance to access premium features.
• Sell passes or items (via AppAccess1155) that act as tickets, keys, or membership badges.
• Combine both (“you must stake X tokens and own Y pass to access Z feature”). (GitHub)

This is useful for:

• Pro vs free tiers.
• Research tools that should only be accessible to serious users.
• Private communities or advanced experiments.

5.2 Rewards & loyalty

Use EpochRewards to run seasonal or campaign-based reward programs:

• “Season 1” rewards for users who complete certain tasks.
• Special distributions for early adopters or testers.
• Reward sharing with top contributors or research participants. (GitHub)

You fund epochs from the creator token treasury, and users claim based on a snapshot of behavior.

5.3 Gameplay & events

App tokens pair naturally with tournaments and challenges:

• Entry fees in app tokens, prizes paid out from the pool.
• Recurring events: weekly competitions, monthly sprints, etc.
• Hybrid structures: “everyone who completes X gets a slice of the pool,” not only the top 1%. (GitHub)

This works for games, focus sprints, training programs, creative contests, and more.

5.4 Governance & signaling (optional)

Some apps may use staked app tokens as part of governance or signaling:

• Voting on new features or content.
• Deciding which experiments or modules to ship next.

This is optional and app-specific, but the staking vault is governance-ready (ERC20Votes stake-shares). (GitHub)

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6. How App Tokens Fit Into the Elata Ecosystem

6.1 Relationship to ELTA

• ELTA is the main protocol token (governance, base utility, and “real yield” from protocol revenue). (GitHub)
• App tokens are local to one app but generate ELTA revenue through:
  • Bonding-curve trading fees.
  • App-level fees and tournaments. (GitHub)

So:

Builder launches app → uses ELTA → app gets its own token → app activity produces fees → fees flow back to ELTA and veELTA stakers.

6.2 Relationship to XP / reputation

• ElataXP is non-transferable reputation (you can’t buy it). (GitHub)
• XP controls what gets funded (LotPool voting) and who gets early access to certain app launches (XP-gated bonding curve). (GitHub)
• App tokens are transferable capital.

This separation keeps:

• “Who did the work” (XP) separate from
• “Who owns the capital” (tokens).

6.3 Relationship to other modules

App tokens plug directly into:

• AppStakingVault – staking + yield.
• AppAccess1155 – items, passes, and feature gating.
• EpochRewards – seasonal reward campaigns.
• Tournament – competitions and challenges. (GitHub)

Taken together, they make app tokens actually useful in-app, rather than just speculative.

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7. Risks, Expectations, and Good Behavior

7.1 Not a guaranteed investment

App tokens are not guaranteed to go up in value:

• Apps can fail or stagnate.
• Low usage means fewer fees, fewer burns, and weaker token economics.

Treat app tokens as participation tools in an ecosystem—not as guaranteed investments.

7.2 Best practices for users

• Only buy or stake what you understand and can afford to lose.
• Read the app’s own docs, roadmap, and community channels.
• Look at whether the token is actually being used in the app (passes, tournaments, rewards), not just traded.

7.3 Best practices for builders

• Use your app token for real utility: features, access, rewards, and coordination.
• Avoid designing purely speculative “pump” loops.
• Be transparent about how you’re using your creator treasury and how you plan to support the token long-term.

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App Tokens FAQ

Do I need app tokens to use an app?

Not always. Some apps will be usable for free, with the token used for advanced features, passes, or events. Others may require a minimum stake or pass for access—it depends on how the creator designs it.

What’s the difference between ELTA and an app token?

$ELTA is the main protocol token used across the whole ecosystem (governance, launch fees, protocol yield). An app token only relates to one app and its internal economy, but its activity still helps ELTA via fees and demand.

How do I earn from holding or staking?

If you stake an app token, you receive a share of protocol revenue (ELTA and app tokens) that flows through RewardsDistributor, plus any additional app-specific rewards or seasonal distributions. The more the app is used, the more potential revenue flows to stakers.

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