Ctrl K

Level 1How Bittensor works10 lessons
Subnets, the people in them, and the chain that pays them.
Level 2Your wallet9 lessons
The keys that own your TAO, and how to keep them safe.
Level 3Staking8 lessons
Backing a validator with your TAO, and what it earns.
Level 4Subnets5 lessons
Who runs a subnet, who joins it, and how ownership can change.
Level 5Emissions7 lessons
Where new tokens come from, and who receives them.
Level 6Subnet lifecycle4 lessons
How subnets start, how they end, and what it means for the people holding their alpha.
Level 7Root4 lessons
How staking on root earns, since Root Reborn.
Level 8How rewards are decided5 lessons
How validators' scores turn into payments.
Level 9Validators5 lessons
What validators do, how they qualify, and what to look at when choosing one to stake with.

Using your keys

If you hold and stake TAO but do not mine or validate, you mostly use your coldkey.

You will still meet hotkeys. When you stake, you choose a validator by its hotkey, and your stake is recorded against it.

One coldkey can have many hotkeys, and both kinds of address start with 5. That is why it matters to send funds only to a coldkey address.

Keys can be replaced if you need to, but not instantly. Moving a wallet to a new coldkey takes 36,000 blocks, about 5 days, and costs a small fee. Plan ahead rather than waiting until you need it urgently.