Linux Foundation launches effort to quantify AI returns

The Linux Foundation launched the Tokenomics Foundation, which it tasked with defining the metrics to measure AI value and total cost of ownership.

According to The Linux Foundation, the new tokenomics effort will aim to create open, vendor-neutral standards, benchmarks and best practices to focused on AI economics.

To date, the economics of AI and returns on investment have been murky. The AI landscape is littered with vanity metrics such as tokenmaxxing that have little to do with business outcomes. As enterprises blow through AI budgets, it's not surprising that there's a bit of a backlash over the economics.

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Although the Tokenomics Foundation is just getting started the group hopes to do the following:

• Create a shared language and measurement of AI value metrics.
• Deliver AI Value Frameworks to measure business impact.
• Define the full cost of AI.
• Measure and deliver token cost telemetry.
• Determine what AI actually costs and the value of intelligence.

The effort aims to look at the entire supply chain including the energy and capital used to create tokens, AI servers, consumption and outcomes. Adjacent costs to AI include compute, storage, databases and engineers as well as tokens.

Founding members include key enterprise players, but lack backing from the likes of OpenAI, Anthropic, Microsoft and others. Founding members include Accenture, BNY, Broadcom, Calero, Cast.ai, DoiT, Finout, Flexera, GoDaddy, Greenpixie, Hitachi, IBM, JPMorganChase, Kion, Lenovo, Nebius, North Cloud, Oracle, Pay-i, Pointfive, Revenium, SAP, ServiceNow, SHI, Stacklet, Vantage, WWT, XOsphere and Yarken.