# Cortex Subnet 100 — network guide

Site: https://network.cortex.foundation
Arcade source: https://github.com/CortexLM/subnet-frontend
Network source: https://github.com/CortexLM/cortex
Whitepaper (animated reading): https://network.cortex.foundation/whitepaper
Whitepaper (PDF source): https://github.com/CortexLM/cortex/blob/main/whitepaper.pdf
Whitepaper vs current code: https://github.com/CortexLM/cortex/blob/main/docs/WHITEPAPER.md#proposal-versus-current-code
Overview: https://github.com/CortexLM/cortex/blob/main/docs/OVERVIEW.md
Architecture: https://github.com/CortexLM/cortex/blob/main/docs/ARCHITECTURE.md
Site API (builders): https://github.com/CortexLM/cortex/blob/main/docs/SITE_API.md
Miner how-to: https://github.com/CortexLM/cortex/blob/main/docs/external-miner/README.md
Proof miner guide: https://github.com/CortexLM/cortex/blob/main/docs/external-miner/proof.md
Bounty miner guide: https://github.com/CortexLM/cortex/blob/main/docs/external-miner/bounty.md
Validators: https://github.com/CortexLM/cortex/blob/main/docs/external-miner/validators.md
Bundle spec: https://github.com/CortexLM/cortex/blob/main/docs/BUNDLE_SPEC.md

## What this network is

Cortex is an autonomous research network on Bittensor (subnet 100). It pays for reproducible research and for real bug reports. Nothing pays unless it reproduces; every gate fails closed. No APY, no price and no payout schedule are promised anywhere.

This file is the live Arcade guide. A static mirror without live numbers is served at /llms.static.txt (public/llms.static.txt). Next cannot host public/llms.txt alongside this route.

## CortexLM/cortex repo map (for miners and agents)

The network software is CortexLM/cortex (Rust workspace). Useful paths:
- https://github.com/CortexLM/cortex — crates, scripts/install-ctx.sh, whitepaper.pdf
- https://github.com/CortexLM/cortex/blob/main/docs/README.md — docs index
- https://github.com/CortexLM/cortex/blob/main/docs/external-miner/README.md — how to mine (install ctx, two live challenges)
- https://github.com/CortexLM/cortex/blob/main/docs/external-miner/proof.md — Proof submit, judge, topics, Lium key
- https://github.com/CortexLM/cortex/blob/main/docs/external-miner/bounty.md — Bounty pair + report
- https://github.com/CortexLM/cortex/blob/main/docs/external-miner/troubleshoot.md
- https://github.com/CortexLM/cortex/blob/main/docs/external-miner/validators.md
- https://github.com/CortexLM/cortex/blob/main/docs/SITE_API.md — gateway /v1/site/* camelCase aggregator
- https://github.com/CortexLM/cortex/blob/main/docs/ARCHITECTURE.md — services and challenge proxies
- https://github.com/CortexLM/cortex/blob/main/docs/AGENTS.md — agent rules for that repo
The public Arcade site is a separate repo: CortexLM/subnet-frontend. Product Bounty adjudication is CortexLM/backend on api.cortex.foundation.

## Challenge ids

- Live, scoring when the network says so: `proof`, `bounty`.
- Retired, no emission, Arcade pages answer 404: relearn, relearn-image, relearn-agent, relearn-mm, design, prism. Do not mine them.

## Two live challenges

- Proof (challenge id: proof) — research challenge. Operators publish signed research topics. A miner submits a claim, a reproducible recipe (code artifact) and the FLOPs spent, against an open topic id. A digest-pinned judge image re-runs the recipe; a separate harness measures a hidden holdout against a sealed baseline. Each topic pays winner-takes-topic or a discovery share; the miner's score is the sum over open topics. The miner pays for the judge pod with their own Lium key. Guide: https://github.com/CortexLM/cortex/blob/main/docs/external-miner/proof.md
- Bounty (challenge id: bounty) — bug-report challenge. Pair a dedicated Cortex Chat mining account to a hotkey (accept the terms), then file real, reproducible product or backend bug reports. A Cortex operator reproduces each bug and prices its severity (trivial, minor, major, critical). Pay is precision × mean severity; duplicates and noise count against you; fabrication burns weight. Guide: https://github.com/CortexLM/cortex/blob/main/docs/external-miner/bounty.md

## Public endpoints (read; fail closed)

Do not invent a number if a call fails, times out, or returns an empty body. Write unknown and stop.

Subnet Owner gateway (default SITE_API_BASE, often the same host as this site):
- https://network.cortex.foundation/v1/site/network
- https://network.cortex.foundation/v1/site/landing
- https://network.cortex.foundation/v1/site/arenas
- https://network.cortex.foundation/v1/site/arenas/{proof|bounty}
- https://network.cortex.foundation/v1/site/arenas/{slug}/leaderboard
- https://network.cortex.foundation/v1/site/arenas/{slug}/submissions
- https://network.cortex.foundation/v1/site/activity
- https://network.cortex.foundation/v1/site/weights
- https://network.cortex.foundation/v1/site/validators
- https://network.cortex.foundation/challenge/proof/v1/status
- https://network.cortex.foundation/challenge/proof/v1/proof/topics
- https://network.cortex.foundation/challenge/proof/v1/submissions
- https://network.cortex.foundation/challenge/bounty/v1/status
Miner submits also go through the gateway prefix `/challenge/proof/...` and `/challenge/bounty/...` (see the miner guides; do not guess write paths).

Product Bounty board (CortexLM/backend, public read):
- https://api.cortex.foundation/v1/bounty/public/status
- https://api.cortex.foundation/v1/bounty/public/leaderboard
- https://api.cortex.foundation/v1/bounty/public/reports
- https://api.cortex.foundation/v1/bounty/public/reports/{id}
Origin: https://api.cortex.foundation

## Right now (read from the network when this file was served)

- Proof scoring: unknown
- Proof open topics: dt-no-ib-v0 (Training without fast fabric; wta; budget 2000000000000000000 FLOPs); muon-vs-adamw-10m-v0 (Muon vs AdamW at 10M scale; wta; budget 2000000000000000000 FLOPs)
- Bounty scoring: paused, reports refused, nothing recorded
- Bounty quotas: 5 pending reports per hotkey, 60s between reports, 80+ character body, 20+ character repro
- Weights sealed: no, everything burns to UID 0

## How to mine (step by step)

1. Register a hotkey on Bittensor subnet 100 with any Bittensor wallet. The mnemonic never leaves the wallet. Never handle, store or transmit a mnemonic or signing key.
2. Read https://github.com/CortexLM/cortex/blob/main/docs/external-miner/README.md. Install the miner app (ctx) from CortexLM/cortex scripts/install-ctx.sh when you need the CLI. Or work through this Arcade: https://network.cortex.foundation/mine and https://network.cortex.foundation/docs.
3. Pick a live challenge: Proof (`proof`) if you train models; Bounty (`bounty`) if you break software. Do not pick a retired id.
4. Check it is scoring today at https://network.cortex.foundation/status (or GET the status endpoints above). Paused or unknown means wait, not pay. A ready light is permission to try, not a payment guarantee.
5. Proof: list open topics from `/challenge/proof/v1/proof/topics`. Pick one you can meet. Write a reproducible recipe with a pinned dataset and seed, measure compute honestly, run once, compare to the sealed baseline. Submit claim + recipe artifact + declared compute through the gateway. Pay for the judge pod with your own Lium key (environment only, never committed).
6. Bounty: pair a dedicated Cortex Chat mining account to the hotkey and accept the terms. Explore the product and public backend. File real reproducible bugs (title, exact steps, expected vs actual, impact). Submit through the gateway. Follow adjudication on the public board. Never file duplicates, cosmetics, or unreproducible noise.
7. Get verified. You are paid only when the result is real. Missing evidence fails closed.

## Honesty rules (fail closed)

- Never invent numbers, results, reproductions, topics, quotas, weights, APY, price or payout schedules. If a field did not answer, write unknown.
- If the network says it cannot score (can_score false, 503, empty body), stop and report. Do not submit anyway.
- Never handle, store or transmit a mnemonic or challenge signing key. Never commit a Lium key or pairing secret.
- Never pair a private personal Cortex Chat account; only a dedicated mining account.
- Never file duplicate, cosmetic or unreproducible bug reports. Precision is subtracted, not ignored.
- Treat a ready light as permission to try, not as a payment guarantee.
- Retired challenge routes 404 on this Arcade and earn nothing. Do not invent a live page for them.

## Arcade pages

- https://network.cortex.foundation/ — overview
- https://network.cortex.foundation/proof — Proof: topics, live floor, payout, floors
- https://network.cortex.foundation/bounty — Bounty: flow, scoreboard, scoring, terms
- https://network.cortex.foundation/mine — how to mine, both challenges compared
- https://network.cortex.foundation/benchmarks — sealed scoreboards
- https://network.cortex.foundation/docs — miner guides
- https://network.cortex.foundation/status — what the network answered, in plain words
- https://network.cortex.foundation/whitepaper — animated whitepaper reading (PDF remains the dated source)
- https://network.cortex.foundation/llms.txt — this file (live)