DATA Network, previously known as Story, is shutting down its own blockchain and migrating to the Sui network. The move comes with a $30 million investment from the Sui Foundation, the project announced on Monday. The decision marks a shift from operating an independent blockchain to leveraging Sui's existing infrastructure, including Walrus, a decentralized storage platform that will serve as the default storage layer for DATA Network's applications.
The project's Trace registry, which tracks the origin and licensing rights of AI training data, will also join the Sui ecosystem. Launched in June, Trace has already registered over 270 million data entries. The DATA Network team explained that maintaining a separate blockchain for a single use case was costly, requiring validators, network security, and infrastructure. By integrating with Sui, they avoid rebuilding storage and access control systems already available in Walrus and Seal.
The migration follows DATA Network's rebrand from Story Foundation in June, when it pivoted from intellectual property licensing to building a full-stack AI training data platform. The existing DATA Network chain will continue operating until the upgrade is complete, with a detailed timeline and transition plan to be published before the migration. The team emphasized that the $30 million investment from Sui Foundation was a separate part of the partnership and did not directly influence the decision to migrate.