How DTON is funded
One grant comes first. Investor capital follows, only after the grant has produced checked evidence.
For funders and grantors
DTON seeks a $1M Catalyst Grant, a non-dilutive award, for a six-month Foundation Readiness Program.
The program verifies DTON’s evidence, secures the title to what DTON owns, reviews the platforms already running, specifies what the pilot needs, assesses Austin and Benin City in depth, and sets up governance and the first team. It buys no equity and funds no vehicles, stations or construction.
Four versions, one proposal
The company, the intellectual property, the architecture and the budget are the same in every version. What changes is what the version leads with, so that each funder sees the case in its own terms.
- Development Grant: for development agencies, development banks and climate funds.
- Technology R&D: for science, energy and technology programs.
- Infrastructure Feasibility: for trade and development agencies and infrastructure project-preparation programs.
- Project Preparation: for project-preparation facilities and development-finance institutions.
These are the kinds of funder each version is written for. They do not mean that any institution has an open call that matches or that any award is expected.
For investors
After the Grant, DTON plans an Inception Capital round to build and prove the pilot, and a later Series A that depends on the pilot’s evidence.
The Grant is separate from both. It makes them safer to fund by producing checked evidence, clean title and working controls. Terms are shared only with qualified investors, on request and under confidentiality.
The VSM market is intended for VSM investors, individual and institutional, subject to the law of each country.