Permission platform Technical Whitepaper

Abstract

For decades, personal data has been the lifeblood of the internet, yet individuals have been systematically excluded from its immense value. Big Tech platforms have amassed fortunes by exploiting user data without meaningful consent or compensation, fostering widespread distrust and regulatory backlash. This unsustainable paradigm is now at a breaking point, driven by the explosive growth of Artificial Intelligence.

The rise of AI has illuminated a critical flaw: AI systems, from sophisticated generative models to precision personalization engines, are ravenous for human-generated data. However, the vast majority of this data was never explicitly authorized for AI use, leading to a global reckoning:

AI needs permission.

At the same time, marketers are losing access to data, facing mounting regulatory constraints, and struggling to personalize experiences without trusted, high-quality signals. The urgent demand for permissioned, verifiable data is escalating, but the necessary infrastructure has yet to emerge.

Permission is building that infrastructure.

We present a bold vision for a data economy where individuals are not just data subjects, but sovereign owners of their digital footprint. In this future, individuals possess unequivocal control over their data's usage, are actively engaged in its activation, and are financially rewarded - both directly and passively - when their data powers marketing campaigns or fuels AI-driven workflows. This model transcends traditional data monetization; whether searching for a product, contributing to a survey, connecting a digital wallet, or allowing preferences to guide AI-powered creative generation, users can participate in value creation without the complexity of becoming data brokers.

Central to this transformative model are Permission Agents (also referred to as identic agents): intelligent, AI-powered assistants that represent and advocate for individuals in the burgeoning agentic economy. These identic agents are the linchpin, negotiating granular consent, activating data-driven campaigns, and programmatically ensuring users are compensated when their data is leveraged. For marketers, this translates into unprecedented access to a new stratum of high-quality, zero-party data that is inherently accurate, explicitly permissioned, and optimally primed for AI activation.

This entire ecosystem seamlessly operates through the Permission Marketplace, a transparent and rewardable platform where data activations are not clandestine events but verifiable transactions, all facilitated by the ASK token. The ASK token precisely aligns the incentives of individuals and marketers, fostering a virtuous cycle of trust and value.

This isn’t some complex future promise of data monetization. It’s a functional, modular system designed for today’s AI-native world - where individuals don’t just regain control, they participate in the upside.

Permission defines a new standard: one where ownership, agency, and reward are not abstractions - but the foundation of the internet’s next chapter.

Introduction & Background

The global digital economy runs on personal data, but the value has long been captured by platforms, not people. Over the past two decades, a handful of companies have centralized the collection and monetization of individual data, turning behavior, preferences, identity, and attention into corporate profit.

This imbalance created a multibillion-dollar surveillance economy. In 2023 alone, Meta generated over $130 billion in ad revenue by monetizing user data, none of which was shared with the individuals who created that value. The result is rising public distrust, mounting regulatory pressure, and systemic shifts in how data can be collected and used.

Governments are responding. From GDPR and CCPA to Apple's App Tracking Transparency, the message is clear: permission is no longer optional.

At the same time, artificial intelligence has become the dominant force shaping digital engagement. It powers everything from product recommendations to personalized ads to brand voice generation. But AI systems are only as good as the data that feeds them.

Most of the data that feeds AI systems is scraped, outdated, unverifiable, or captured without consent. Leading voices from OpenAI, Google, and Stability AI have acknowledged that provenance, permission, and payout are foundational to sustainable AI adoption.

Meanwhile, marketers are caught in a tightening vise. They are losing access to data, constrained by regulations, yet still need to deliver hyper-personalized, performance-driven campaigns. At the same time, ad networks are plagued by click fraud and bot traffic, which inflate costs and obscure performance. Brands don’t know who their users are, which makes personalization, measurement, and compliance nearly impossible.

What’s needed is not another patchwork workaround. What’s needed is a new model - one that starts with the individual.

Permission was founded to build that model.

We believe that:

• Individuals should own and benefit from their data
  
• Marketers should be able to access permissioned, high-quality data that performs
  
• And the systems that connect them must be transparent, secure, and designed for the age of AI
  

We believe permission isn’t just a legal formality. It’s a strategic advantage. And in the era of AI, it’s the foundation for trust, performance, and scale.

The Permission Solution

Permission is building the infrastructure for a permissioned data economy - where individuals are represented by agents, value exchange is built-in, and every AI activation starts with consent.

We call this model permissioned value exchange, and it rests on four integrated components:

1. Permission Agents: AI-Native Consent and Activation

At the core of Permission is a new kind of intelligent agent - one that represents the individual in digital interactions.

Permission Agents are AI-powered assistants that manage consent, negotiate data use, and facilitate rewardable experiences. These agents act in the user’s interest, surfacing relevant marketing opportunities, enabling personalization, and ensuring compensation for participation.

Agents don’t just passively hold permissions, they actively drive data activation. They power dynamic personalization, coordinate creative generation, and help optimize campaigns. For marketers, this means access to a living, permissioned data layer that evolves in real time.

These agents are designed to be interoperable with brand systems, marketing platforms, and - soon - other agents across the open web.

2. A2A Protocol: Interoperability in the Agentic Web

As we transition into an agent-powered internet, interoperability is essential.

Inspired by the A2A (Agent-to-Agent) protocol first proposed by Google and others, Permission is building agents designed for cross-agent communication. In this future, a marketer’s campaign agent might request creative input, targeting data, or consent from a user’s Permission Agent - who will verify, approve, and log the transaction on the user’s behalf.

This cross-agent future enables:

• Frictionless value exchange
  
• Verifiable, programmatic consent
  
• A fluid and privacy-respecting marketing ecosystem
  

Permission Agents are built for this interoperable architecture - positioning Permission as a foundational layer in the emerging agentic economy.

3. The Permission Marketplace: Where Data Becomes an Economic Asset

The Permission Marketplace is where consented data is discovered, requested, and activated.

In the Marketplace, marketers launch campaigns that interact directly with user agents - requesting surveys, preferences, behaviors, or creative engagement. These activations can be:

• Active (e.g., a user answers questions, connects a wallet, or opts into a brand experience)
  
• Passive (e.g., a user’s data is used to train an AI marketing model; for example, to generate copy, optimize a campaign, or build a lookalike audience)
  

Each activation is treated as a transparent, traceable transaction - compensating users and fueling AI performance.

This turns consent into a unit of exchange, and data into a liquid, permissioned asset.

4. The ASK Token: Incentivizing Trust and Participation

The entire system is powered by ASK, a utility token that underwrites reward distribution, consent tracking, and economic alignment across all actors.

• Marketers purchase ASK to engage users and activate campaigns
  
• Users earn ASK when their data is accessed or when their Permission Agent participates in an AI workflow
  
• Agents facilitate each ASK interaction on-chain, such that all transactions are logged and verified
  

ASK transforms consent from a static checkbox into a dynamic, programmable incentive system. It brings liquidity to data permissions and value to participation - fueling a virtuous cycle of trust and activation.

Together, these components form a new kind of infrastructure for AI marketing.
One that gives individuals control, gives marketers performance, and gives AI systems a trusted foundation to build on.

The Permission Platform

The infrastructure for agentic, consent-driven value exchange

The Permission Platform is the foundational infrastructure that powers a new kind of data economy - one where users are represented by intelligent agents, every data activation begins with consent, and value flows programmatically via the ASK token.

It is composed of interoperable components:

• Permission Agents that manage user consent and negotiate on their behalf
  
• An omnichain token architecture that enables real-time, cross-chain rewards
  
• A suite of developer tools and APIs that make integration simple and composable
  
• Built-in support for data privacy, consent traceability, and auditability
  

The platform is designed for the agentic web: decentralized, user-sovereign, and programmable from the ground up. It doesn't just support applications - it enables an entire permissioned data economy where individuals can participate in the upside of their data.

Together, these components enable a true two-sided marketplace for data: marketers bring demand, users bring supply, and Permission Agents orchestrate trusted, rewardable interactions in between.

The Permission Marketplace: Distributed Demand for the Agentic Web

The Permission Marketplace is not a singular destination - it is a distributed demand network, designed to feed user agents with permissioned brand offers, wherever users engage online.

Rather than confining interactions to a single app or platform, Permission surfaces demand through a modular architecture: browser extensions, SDKs, media experiences, and a live web app. Each becomes a node in the marketplace, delivering opportunities for data activation - all filtered and managed through Permission Agents.

A Unified Demand Layer for Agents

• Marketers create campaigns via Permission Connect, a self-serve platform that lets them fund campaigns in ASK, define target audiences, and configure reward models.
  
• Campaigns are broadcast across surfaces - web app, browser, SDK, mobile, embedded APIs - and picked up by Permission Agents based on user permissions and preferences.
  
• Agents act as real-time brokers, deciding which offers to present and initiating smart-contract-based rewards upon activation.

This ensures that every data activation - passive or active - begins with consent, routes through an agent, and ends in value distribution.

Marketplace Surfaces

• Web App
  The first-party surface where users can explore and engage with offers directly. The web app acts as the primary onboarding experience, presenting brand opportunities in a clear, centralized interface while Permission Agents manage consent and rewards in the background. It also serves as a core channel for collecting zero-party data - as users voluntarily share their interests, preferences, and intent with Permission and the featured brands in exchange for ASK.
  

• Browser Extension
  The Permission browser extension allows users to earn ASK for declaring data as they browse - with consented insights powering real-time personalization and ad engagement.
  
  
• Media Experiences
  Surfaces like PermissionTV will allow users to earn by engaging with branded content, opt-in video ads, or gamified media experiences.
  
  
• SDKs & Embedded Plugins
  These tools will allow third-party sites - publishers, retailers, apps - to integrate ASK rewards and permissioned data flows directly into their own environments.

Across all surfaces, Permission Agents remain the gatekeepers. They orchestrate consent, log transactions, and ensure that when data is used, value flows to the user.

Why It Works

By abstracting the marketplace from any single surface, Permission aligns with the agentic architecture of the future internet - where individuals own their data and agents negotiate on their behalf. The marketplace becomes the demand engine. Agents become the distribution layer. And the user remains at the center.

The Decentralization Imperative

Building toward a user-governed, protocol-driven future

While the Permission Platform is live and operational today, its long-term trajectory is toward full decentralization - where the rules of engagement, incentive design, and governance are shaped by the stakeholders who power it.

ASK token holders already have governance opportunities, including the ability to propose and vote on key protocol changes - such as introducing new earning formats, adjusting reward models, or modifying fee structures. Over time, governance will expand further to include parameters for campaign logic, staking mechanics, and permission standards - enabling deeper community influence over the evolution of the protocol.

To support this transition, Permission has incorporated a Swiss-based Association. The mission of the Permission Association is to develop, empower and expand the Permission Platform in a decentralized, independent way. The Permission Association is an independent, non-profit entity responsible for guiding core technology decisions in alignment with the ecosystem’s values. Members of the Association can participate directly in governance by passing resolutions that shape the Permission Platform’s future - from technical standards to strategic direction. Permission’s goal is to further increase the level of decentralization in the future by increasing the number of Members within the Permission Association.

This model ensures that decentralization is not just aspirational, but structurally embedded. Control of the ecosystem will progressively migrate to a globally distributed network of users, developers, advertisers, and Association Members - all aligned through shared ownership of the ASK economy.

Decentralization is not a feature. It’s a foundation - for trust, transparency, and resilience in a world where data sovereignty must be earned, not assumed.​

Users: Earning with Agency

Permission empowers individuals to take control of their data and earn from it - not through disruption of their experience, but through agent-mediated engagement that respects privacy, rewards attention, and reinforces trust.

When users opt in to share data with participating brands, their Permission Agent ensures consent is logged, usage is transparent, and ASK is earned. The more a user engages - whether through browsing, brand interactions, or voluntary data enrichment - the more value they can unlock. As the ecosystem expands, users will increasingly be able to connect data from third-party platforms, building a richer, more personalized data store under their control.

Importantly, users are not just passive participants in this economy. By holding and using ASK, they gain access to brand promotions, premium content, loyalty incentives, and - over time - deeper participation in the governance of the protocol. Eligible holders can propose or vote on changes that affect how rewards are distributed, how campaigns operate, or how the Permission ecosystem evolves.

To preserve the integrity of this system, Permission includes a reputation engine - the Permission Score - which helps ensure that data activations reflect genuine interest and intent. Designed to reward authentic behavior and discourage manipulation, the Permission Score protects both users and brands by reinforcing a fair and trusted value exchange.

In a world of opaque tracking and exploitative targeting, Permission offers something radically different: transparency, consent, and real earning power - with no need to change how users engage with the web, only who benefits from it.

Platform Infrastructure

Blockchain Technology

To realize a truly decentralized, user-centric data economy, ASK must be chain-agnostic, interoperable, and accessible across ecosystems. Permission has evolved its infrastructure accordingly.

Originally launched on a proprietary Ethereum-based chain using Proof of Authority (PoA), ASK later migrated to Polygon, enabling lower fees and higher scalability. However, as the Web3 stack matured and the need for seamless composability across ecosystems became clear, we made a foundational upgrade: ASK is now omnichain.

Permission has integrated with LayerZero, a cross-chain messaging protocol, to make ASK a native, omnichain asset. Through LayerZero, ASK can be used, transferred, and earned across multiple blockchains - not just wrapped or bridged, but truly interoperable.

This upgrade allows for:

• Cross-chain execution: Permissioned data activations and ASK reward flows can now originate and settle on different chains, enabling scalable interactions with third-party apps, wallets, or protocols wherever users operate.
  
• Ecosystem-neutral access: Brands, developers, and users on Ethereum, BNB Chain, Arbitrum, Optimism, Avalanche, and beyond can engage with ASK natively - driving wider adoption and utility.
  
• Composable tokenomics: By removing ecosystem lock-in, ASK becomes the most widely usable reward token for permissioned data activation - unlocking integrations in DeFi, social, and AI agents across the Web3 landscape.

This omnichain capability is central to Permission’s long-term vision: ASK is not a token on a chain - it’s the coordination mechanism for value exchange across the permissioned internet.

Data Privacy & Security: Protecting Consent at Every Layer

At Permission, privacy is not a feature - it is a founding principle.

We believe individuals must have full sovereignty over their data: what is shared, with whom, and under what terms. Our architecture is designed to enforce this principle across three pillars: data access, identity assurance, and secure storage.

Current Security Architecture

1. Self-Sovereign Data Control

• Each user controls access to their permissioned data via their Permission Agent.
  
• Data is stored in encrypted personal vaults, with AES-256 encryption in flight and at rest.
  
• Access is governed through agent-mediated consent: no advertiser can view or use user data without explicit permission.

2. Identity Verification and Anti-Sybil Protections

• To ensure trust and prevent fraudulent earnings, we combine behavioral heuristics (Permission Score) with optional third-party identity validation.
  
• Only verified individuals can meaningfully earn from the platform, preserving the integrity of the reward system.

3. Key Management & Authentication

• Permission follows a zero-trust, zero-knowledge architecture for secrets management.
  
• Private keys are provisioned at registration and protected via vault systems with multi-factor authentication (MFA) for access.
  
• OIDC-compatible login ensures federated but privacy-preserving access across surfaces.

4. Auditability

• Every data access event is auditable, and every token payout is logged immutably on-chain.
  
• Users will be able to audit when, how, and by whom their data was used - a consent ledger for the AI age.

Future Direction: Toward Zero-Knowledge Privacy

As cryptographic technologies mature, Permission plans to integrate Zero-Knowledge Proofs (ZKPs) to enhance privacy and security without compromising usability.

ZKPs will enable:

• Private consent verification: Prove that a user granted permission for a data usage event without revealing the underlying data.
  
• Secure reputation proofs: Share Permission Scores or behavioral traits without exposing raw history.
  
• Selective disclosure: Allow users to verify attributes (e.g., "in-market for a car") without sharing full profiles.

While ZKPs are not yet production-grade for large-scale, high-frequency consumer applications, we actively monitor progress and plan to modularly integrate zk-enabled primitives as they reach maturity.

Token Economics: Fueling the Permissioned Data Economy

ASK is the economic engine of the Permission Platform - a utility token purpose-built to enable transparent, programmable value exchange between users and marketers. It doesn’t just reward participation. It enforces alignment.

Whenever data is activated - whether through personalization, AI model training, or campaign engagement - ASK flows through smart contracts to compensate all participants. Users earn for the use of their permissioned data. Agents earn for facilitating transactions. Marketers pay in ASK to access permissioned audiences and power AI-driven experiences. Every exchange is auditable, real-time, and tied to consent.

The supply of ASK is fixed at 100 billion tokens, with allocations designed to balance ecosystem growth, protocol development, and long-term alignment:

• A significant share is distributed to users, brands, and developers through structured incentive programs
  
• A portion is reserved for the team, advisors, and ongoing governance
  
• Detailed token issuance schedules are available through Permission’s public dashboard

To support equitable and sustainable user acquisition, ASK’s reward model dynamically adjusts based on market conditions. This ensures that token distribution scales with real network growth - not artificial inflation - and aligns early incentives with long-term value.

As adoption increases and revenue grows through demand-side campaign funding and platform usage, Permission may conduct ASK buybacks using real revenue. These buybacks, while not guaranteed, represent a clear commitment to aligning long-term platform success and reinforcing the flywheel that drives utility, demand, and reward.

We also envision coupling ASK into our self-serve and marketplace products. We intend to experiment with allowing holders to stake ASK for increased revenue share. For example, if an advertiser chooses to fund their media purchases in ASK, we may allocate a percentage of that purchase to staking rewards, such that ASK holders will be able to benefit directly from protocol revenues and fees generated from Search and other products built on the Permission Platform.

While this is strictly informational and not a solicitation to purchase ASK, our goal is to better visualize and understand the demand for ASK as the number of users and advertisers on the platform grows.

Summary

The era of opaque tracking and centralized data extraction is ending. In its place, a new paradigm is emerging - one where intelligent agents act on behalf of individuals, data sharing is transparent and permissioned, and value flows fairly through programmable incentives.

The Permission Platform is the infrastructure for this future. It empowers users to take control of their data and earn from it, not by changing how they browse or engage, but by changing who benefits. Through Permission Agents, users grant consent, activate campaigns, and receive ASK when their data is used - passively or actively - to power marketing and AI experiences.

For marketers, the platform offers something they’ve long lacked: high-quality, zero-party data with verifiable consent, delivered through a system that is both privacy-compliant and performance-driven. Every engagement is an opt-in. Every signal is trust-based. Every reward is automated.

And because ASK is omnichain, programmable, and governed by its stakeholders, Permission is not just building a product. It’s establishing the foundation for a decentralized, permissioned data economy - one where control, compensation, and compliance are embedded by design.

The agentic web is no longer theoretical. It’s taking shape. And Permission is building the rails to power it.

Disclaimer

Permission has incorporated a Swiss-based Association (“Permission Association”) to further decentralize the Permission ecosystem. Permission Association has contracted with Permission.io Inc., a Delaware corporation, to develop the Permission Platform. Nothing in this Whitepaper constitutes legal, financial, business or tax advice and you should consult your own legal, financial, tax or other professional advisor(s) before engaging in any activity in connection herewith.

This Permission Whitepaper is for information purposes only. Permission does not guarantee the accuracy of or the conclusions reached in this Whitepaper, and this Whitepaper is provided “as is.” The information shared in this Whitepaper is not all-encompassing or comprehensive and does not in any way intend to create or put into implicit effect any elements of a contractual relationship; and Permission and its affiliates shall have no liability for damages of any kind arising out of the use, reference to, or reliance on this Whitepaper or any of the content contained herein, even if advised of the possibility of such damages. In no event will Permission or its affiliates be liable to any person or entity for any damages, losses, liabilities, costs or expenses of any kind, whether direct or indirect, consequential, compensatory, incidental, actual, exemplary, punitive or special for the use of, reference to, or reliance on this Whitepaper or any of the content contained herein, including, without limitation, any loss of business, revenues, profits, data, use, goodwill or other intangible losses.

This Whitepaper or any other associated content does not constitute any advice to buy or sell ASK or any other security or other financial instrument and is for informational, illustration and discussion purposes only.

This Information may not be complete or final, may be estimated, based on predictions and assumptions, subject to change and does not identify all material risks. The offering of ASK has not been registered or approved under any securities, commodity, futures, financial instruments, capital markets legislation, regulation, or ordinance of any jurisdiction. This Whitepaper does not constitute an offer, solicitation, or marketing to the retail public in any jurisdiction where such offering is unlawful. Opinions, assumptions, assessments, statements or the like regarding future events are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are expressed in good faith and based upon a reasonable basis when made, but there can be no assurance that these expectations will be achieved or accomplished. These forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions that may affect actual results of the Permission Platform such as audience growth, user experience, speed of payments to the viewer of advertisements, or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. In some cases you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as “may”, “should”, “could”, “would”, “expect”, “plan”, “anticipate”, “believe”, “estimate”. The Permission Platform and ASK have inherent risks and uncertainties, both general and specific, many of which cannot be predicted or quantified and are beyond the control of Permission.io, Inc. or Permission Association.

Permission.io, Inc. and Permission Association do not make any representation or warranty as to the accuracy or completeness of the information contained in this Whitepaper. Permission.io, Inc. and Permission Association have no obligation to update or keep current any material or projections contained in this Whitepaper. Permission.io, Inc. and Permission Association may be subject to complex and evolving laws and regulations, both foreign and domestic; the Permission Platform may not successfully develop, market and launch the Permission Platform and, even if launched the Permission Platform may not be widely adopted and may have limited users and could be subject to significant competition. Nothing contained in the Whitepaper is or may be relied upon as a promise, representation or undertaking as to the future performance of the Permission Platform or ASK.

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