Numeraire (NMR) is a cryptocurrency token associated with Numerai, an Ethereum-based platform that encourages data scientists and developers to create and experiment with machine learning models. The primary objective of Numerai is to introduce decentralization into the field of data science, fostering competition in the creation of effective machine learning prediction models. Unlike traditional hedge funds, Numerai utilizes data and predictions generated by participants in a tournament to engage in stock market activities. The platform seeks to utilize machine learning in its strategies.

Numeraire operates by rewarding data scientists with NMR tokens when their models perform well in the Numerai tournament. As more individuals participate in the tournament and compete, the value of the NMR token may increase. The models submitted for the tournament enable Numerai to actively engage in stock market trading based on the results revealed by the participating projects. This approach to stock trading is one of the ways Numerai differentiates itself. NMR tokens are burned on a weekly basis, as participants who submit losing models and predictions forfeit their stake in the competition.

The primary use case for Numeraire is as a potential reward mechanism for data scientists who participate in the Numerai tournament. The more accurate their machine learning models are in predicting stock market movements, the more NMR tokens they may receive. This encourages data scientists to continually improve their models and contribute to the platform. Additionally, the NMR token can be staked by participants in the tournament, indicating their confidence in their models. If their models perform well, they retain their stake and may receive additional rewards. If their models perform poorly, their staked NMR tokens are burned.

Numeraire was founded in late 2015 in San Francisco by Richard Craib, a graduate of the University of Cape Town and Cornell University. Numerai is known for introducing a cryptocurrency to the market. The platform has since grown to host a global data science tournament. The maximum supply of NMR was initially set at 21 million tokens, but this was reduced to 11 million tokens in 2019. Three million NMR tokens were locked to be released as potential rewards for tournament participants. The Numeraire token did not undergo an initial coin offering (ICO). Instead, Numerai distributed 1 million NMR tokens among platform users with the highest activity statistics.