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100M AZTEC delegated to the operators who make the network stronger
The Aztec Network is run by a decentralised set of sequencer operators. They propose and attest to blocks, keep the network live through upgrades, and are the first to respond when something goes wrong. Today the Aztec Foundation is launching the Foundation Delegation Program to back the operators who go beyond running nodes.
The Foundation will delegate 100M AZTEC from its holdings to a cohort of sequencer operators. Each selected operator receives 5M or 10M AZTEC for a six-month cohort and earns the standard commission on that stake, just as they would on any other delegation.
In return, every operator commits to one concrete contribution to the network or the ecosystem. That could be public infrastructure such as snapshot services, bootstrap nodes, RPC endpoints and a governance dashboard; running a testnet sequencer to catch issues before they reach mainnet; or supporting ecosystem apps through distribution and hands-on UX testing. Operators can also propose their own ideas.
The program is open to sequencer operators only, with at least three months running sequencers on mainnet, at least 1M AZTEC staked and a strong track record: at least 95% of attestations and 95% of proposals landing on Ethereum over the last 90 days. To spread stake more widely across the network, the five largest operators by stake are not eligible.
Applications are reviewed by a panel from the Foundation and Aztec Labs, against public criteria: the contribution proposed, performance, how much the operator adds to the network's decentralisation, and their track record in the community.
Any stake added to the network shares in the same rewards, so the program is deliberately sized to keep staking yields attractive for everyone else who stakes AZTEC. The Foundation will resize its delegation at the start of each cohort: as more of the community stakes, the Foundation steps back.
The Foundation also keeps the governance voting power on its delegated stake and does not vote with it, so the program doesn't shift influence over network upgrades.
Each cohort runs for six months. At the end, every delegation is reviewed against the operator's commitment and performance. Delegations that aren't delivering move to other operators in the next cohort.
Operators can apply here. If you run a sequencer on Aztec and want to help build the network, we'd love to hear from you.
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