Governance dispute? Request soris a decentralized network dedicated to artificial intelligence (IA). Last month, its token TAO has seen an impressive risepropelling the project to the forefront. However, the projectCovenant AI just announced son départ of the network, due to governance problems, the latter being judged Too Centralized.
- The Covenant AI project left the Bittensor network, accusing governance that was too centralized.
- Jacob Steeves, founder of Bittensor, has denied any ability to exert disproportionate control over the network.
Covenant AI quitte le réseau TAO à causes d’une gouvernance « trop centralsée »
It is in particular through a press release published on X, this April 10, 2026, that the teams ofCovenant AI announced their départ of the network Request sor. As a reminder, Covenant AI is an artificial intelligence model deployed on the Subnet 3 de Bittensor.
In their announcement, the teams point to afailing governance on the Bittensor network. Indeed, according to Covenant AI, the TAO network is far from being as decentralized as it seems. Thus, there would be too muchconcentration of power in the hands of a few key players. Particularly in those of Jacob Steevesthe founder of Bittensor.
“We cannot in good conscience continue to develop on a network where the fundamental assertion we are making to our investors – that this infrastructure is decentralized and permissionless (permissionless) – is contradicted by the reality of how the network is actually governed. (…) It is therefore with deep frustration that we announce the departure of Covenant AI from the Bittensor network.”
Extract from the Covenant AI press release
Bittensor and Jacob Steeves respond to accusations
Suite à ces accusations, Jacob Steeves insisted on providing his version of the facts. Regarding the suspension of broadcastsTowards the Covenant AI subnets (which motivated the latter’s departure), the founder of Bittensor explains that he has “step to capacity to suspend broadcasts” and that he “has no privileges beyond those enjoyed by ordinary TAO holders.”
Similarly, Jacob Steeves announced on X that:
“This will give rise to the first subnets on Bittensor that will operate headless (headless) and like real commodities.
Covenant AI’s departure reveals current limitations of governance of Bittensor and questions its real decentralization. If Jacob Steeves sees this event as the start of a new era of autonomous subnets, it will be necessary to prove that the network can function without a few key players being perceived as holding disproportionate power. This affair constitutes a major test for the credibility of the project in the decentralized AI ecosystem.
