Story Protocol has launched its intellectual property-focused blockchain, enabling users to register, license, and monetize their intellectual property (IP) on-chain. The platform, backed by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), introduces the $IP token, which serves as the gas token for transaction fees and grants voting rights in the platform's governance. The launch coincides with the first unlock event of 25% of the initial 1 billion $IP tokens, with a significant portion allocated to the ecosystem, community, foundation, and initial incentives. Story Protocol aims to create a new standard for the $61 trillion IP asset class, making it programmable, trackable, and monetizable. PIP Labs, the chain's primary developer, has raised $140 million in total funding, including a Series B round led by a16z. According to PIP Labs co-founder and CEO SY Lee, the platform is particularly relevant in the context of data used to train AI models.