Basic Attention Token (BAT) is a cryptocurrency token founded by Brave Inc. for their web browser Brave. The creators of BAT wanted to improve the way advertising is conducted on digital platforms today. They observed the current trends being unfavorable to users, advertisers, and even publishers. Users are overburdened with ads on generic browsers, and there is a risk of powerful and dangerous malware. Further, advertisers do not have proper targeting methods and fail to deliver essential information sufficiently as the online platforms are mostly monopolized2. Even mainstream publishers faced a dramatic decline in their ad revenues as platforms like Google and Facebook charge a hefty fee on advertising revenue. Hence, BAT is a utility token used as a unit of account between advertisers, publishers, and users on the Brave platform. It is an innovative token fuelled by a blockchain-based digital advertising approach.

According to the whitepaper, the primary component of BAT is Brave. It is a fast, privacy-focused, open-source browser that can block third-party ads and trackers. In addition, it has a built-in ledger system that measures user attention for every ad (user reach) and rewards publishers accordingly. It also compensates browser users for their attention while protecting their privacy. Thus, BAT is a payment system that rewards and protects its users while offering better incentives to advertisers and a higher yield to publishers. Also, according to the website, the Basic Attention Token will directly measure, exchange, and verify user attention. 

Emphatically, if a user wants to earn BAT, they can select to view ads in their browser settings. Also, advertisers have to buy ads with BAT, which are then forwarded to publishers (for hosting) and browser users (for viewing). Presently, the advertising budget is undertaken only in Basic Attention Tokens, which advertisers can acquire from various third-party crypto exchange platforms. Of the budget, Brave gets a small commission, and the rest is distributed among publishers and users. Token holders can also use their BAT tokens for premium content and services on the Brave browser or tip them to publishers of their choice. For publishers who want to avail their BAT tips, they are to be verified first. By registering as a verified Brave publisher, content creators can receive tokens and even exchange them for any other currency they like. There are a number of verified Brave publishers, like The Washington Post, The Guardian, Nomics.com, Archive.org, SourceForge, and many others. Interestingly, one of the main distinguishing features of BAT and the Brave browser system is its capacity to reward users outside the network as well. The system includes websites and individual users on Twitter. Such users can then securely sign up to the platform to collect the rewards they have accumulated.

Basic Attention Token is the creation of Brendan Eich and Brian Bondy, two highly recognized individuals in the world of internet browsing software. Brendan Eich is the CEO of Brave Software, Inc., the company behind the Brave browser and Basic Attention Tokens. Before releasing Brave, Eich was the founder and CTO of one of the world’s most popular browsers, Mozilla and Mozilla Firefox. He also contributed to the invention of JavaScript in 1995. 

Brian Bondy is the CTO of Brave and Basic Attention Token. Bondy is an experienced engineer with previous work experience as a senior software engineer with Mozilla, a software developer at Corel Corporation, and the software development lead at Khan Academy. 

The Basic Attention Token team consists of 16 members, many from the background of research, development, or engineering. Brave Inc. has its headquarters in San Francisco. Brave Software was founded in 2015, followed by the launch of the Brave browser in 2016 with its key feature of blocking ads and trackers. The Basic Attention Token was officially launched on May 31, 2017, when BAT became one of the fastest sell-out initial coin offerings (ICOs) of all time. The platform was able to raise a total of $35 million in under a minute. One billion BAT tokens were successfully sold, and an additional 500 million were retained by Brave Inc., making a total of 1.5 billion tokens. Since then, it has enhanced the advertising experience of users through the attention-based system and gained popularity through its Brave Rewards program. In 2020, the United Kingdom, Canada, and the United States held the most active advertising campaigns. Also, the BAT project is supported by numerous investors that include Propel Venture Partners, Founders Fund, Pantera Capital, Foundation Capital, DCG, and many others.

Basic Attention Token (BAT) is an ERC-20-based token. That means it was built on the Ethereum blockchain. Similar to any ERC-20 token, BAT is secured by the rigorously tested proof-of-work (PoW) consensus method supported by the Ethereum miner network. The PoW consensus algorithm ensures only valid transactions are finalized. In contrast, the Ethereum mining network ensures that all BAT transactions cannot essentially be undone once confirmed.

In addition to purchasing BAT tokens, BATs can also be acquired in a few other ways: 

Also, to withdraw BAT, one will need to sign up with Uphold. Uphold is a custody service of Brave that acts as the token wallet of BAT.

BAT comes with a maximum total supply of 1.5 billion tokens. Almost all of this supply is in circulation currently. As a result, BAT can be considered diluted.

Basic Attention Token can currently be traded on many popular cryptocurrency exchange platforms. Coinbase & Coinbase Pro support the trading of BAT tokens.