Toronto-based artificial intelligence (AI) and Web3 startup Bagel Network has closed a $4.18-million CAD ($3.1-million USD) pre-seed funding round as it looks to launch its machine learning (ML) data network.

The round was led by CoinFund, with participation from Protocol Labs, Borderless Capital, Maven11 Capital, Graph Paper Capital, and Breed VC.

“We envision a future where high-quality, planet-scale machine learning data is trustlessly accessible to both humans and artificial intelligence.”

Bidhan Roy

“We envision a future where high-quality, planet-scale machine learning data is trustlessly accessible to both humans and artificial intelligence.”

Founded in 2023 by CEO Bidhan Roy, Bagel Network is developing a marketplace where machine learning engineers, researchers, and artificial intelligence (AI) agents work together to build, trade, and license datasets.

ML requires computers to be trained and make decisions from large datasets. ChatGPT, for example, was trained on 570 gigabytes of text data, equal to 300 billion words. However, according to Bagel Network, much of the data used to train ML models is owned by large corporations.

“Despite the valiant efforts by big tech firms to aggregate training data, our datasets remain fragmented across sectors, access models, and private big tech silos,” Roy said in a blog post this month. “We desperately need unified platforms enabling the seamless flow of data between individuals, companies, and AI agents in a privacy-preserving manner.”

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Bagel Network also has a decentralized component. According to Roy’s blog, the platform uses zero-knowledge cryptography to ensure data integrity and privacy. According to reporting from The Block, the startup has already begun onboarding undisclosed data partners to the network.

“We envision a future where high-quality, planet-scale machine learning data is trustlessly accessible to both humans and artificial intelligence,” Roy said in a statement. “By transforming the data economy with incentivized, privacy-preserving mechanisms, we will catalyze significant advancements in AI.”

The new capital will be put toward Bagel Network’s internal operations by growing its team, which currently sits at five people, according to The Block, as well as the development of its data ecosystem.

Feature courtesy Unsplash. Photo by Markus Spiske.