# Use TON staking rewards to pay for AI > Not yet. Gatewayz yield-as-inference supports only ADA today, and TON is on the coming list. The plan is to turn TON staking rewards into the same kind of AI inference discount. TON has no per-holder delegation in the protocol: holders stake by moving TON into pool smart contracts, which is a different custody model from Cardano. **In one line:** TON is coming, not live: staking on TON means moving funds into a pool contract, so custody is the main design question. You cannot use TON staking rewards to pay for AI on Gatewayz yet: TON is a coming asset, and the program runs on ADA only. The plan is to turn TON staking rewards into the same kind of [inference discount](/yield/glossary#inference-discount-balance) ADA holders get, keeping custody with the holder as far as TON allows. That is the hard part: TON has no per-holder delegation built into the protocol, so staking means transferring TON into a pool smart contract. **Pre-launch.** The program is built and switched off on mainnet. A working demo runs on Cardano's preprod testnet with test ADA, by invitation. Not available to US or Canadian persons. Every participant must confirm they are not a US or Canadian person before linking a wallet. ## Key takeaways - TON is not live in yield-as-inference, and no launch date is set. - TON has no protocol-level delegation for individual holders; they stake through smart contracts instead. - The options are liquid staking pools, single-nominator pools for large holders staking only their own funds, and nominator pools. - Staked TON is transferred into a pool contract, unlike ADA, which never leaves your wallet. - TON has [slashing](/yield/glossary#slashing): fines come out of frozen validator stake, and in a nominator pool nominators share whatever the validator's balance does not cover. ## How does native TON staking work? Holders stake through smart contracts, because TON has no per-holder delegation built into the protocol. There are three kinds: - **Liquid staking pools**: deposit TON and receive a wrapped token in return. - **Single-nominator pools**: for large holders staking only their own funds. - **Nominator pools**: pools that nominators join, where the validator's own balance absorbs penalties first. In each case, TON is transferred into a pool smart contract. A single-nominator pool keeps the owner's cold wallet separate from the validator's hot wallet, so the owner can recover the stake. That is the closest of the three to [non-custodial](/yield/glossary#non-custodial) staking, and it is built for holders staking only their own funds. Rewards are earned per validation round and split by the pool contract after the validator's share. ## How long does it take to unstake TON? It depends on the pool. Validator stake stays frozen for the validation round plus a hold period, both set by network configuration and changeable. Withdrawals from a pool are paid at once if the pool has enough liquidity, and are otherwise queued. The nominator-pool docs recommend a minimum nominator stake of 10,000 TON. Slashing applies. Approved fines come out of frozen validator stake. In a nominator pool, the validator's balance absorbs penalties first, and any remainder is shared proportionally by the nominators. ## How does TON staking compare with ADA delegation? The difference is custody. ADA delegation moves nothing; TON staking moves funds into a contract. | | TON (pool contracts) | ADA (Cardano delegation) | | --- | --- | --- | | Custody | Transferred into a pool smart contract; single-nominator pools let the owner recover the stake | Stays in your wallet; delegation moves nothing | | Lock-up / unbonding | Frozen for the validation round plus a hold period; pool withdrawals immediate if liquid, otherwise queued | None; spend or switch pools at any time | | Minimum | 10,000 TON recommended for a nominator pool | None in the sources we checked; a one-time 2 ADA stake address deposit, refunded on deregistration | | Slashing | Yes: fines from frozen stake; nominators share what the validator's balance does not cover | None | | Reward cadence | Per validation round, split by the pool contract after the validator's share | Every 5-day [epoch](/yield/glossary#epoch); first rewards about 15 to 20 days after delegating | For the general trade-off, read [Non-custodial vs custodial staking](/yield/learn/non-custodial-vs-custodial-staking). ## What would Gatewayz need to support TON? A pool contract for holders to stake through, a way to link a TON wallet to a Gatewayz account, and a way for Gatewayz to receive the rewards it converts. On Cardano the rewards arrive as the pool's fees; on TON the comparable piece is the validator's share of each round. The real question is custody. Every TON staking route moves funds into a contract, so a TON version of this program would ask holders to trust a contract in a way the ADA program never does. The single-nominator design keeps recovery with the owner but is meant for large holders staking their own funds; nominator pools carry a 10,000 TON recommended minimum and shared slashing; liquid staking adds a wrapped token. Each is a real trade-off, not a detail. As the [Risks](/yield/risks) page says, any asset that uses contracts will list its contract risk on its own page, so this page would set that out before TON went live. Accounting would follow the [ADA model](/yield/how-it-works): discount calculated only from rewards Gatewayz has actually received, never in advance. ## What can I use today? ADA. It is the one asset the program supports: you [delegate](/yield/glossary#delegation) from your own wallet, your ADA never moves, and rewards become an inference discount. The program is pre-launch, with a working demo on Cardano's preprod testnet by invitation, and is not available to US or Canadian persons. See [ADA](/yield/assets/ada) and [all assets](/yield/assets). ## Join the TON waitlist Waitlist sign-ups tell us which coming asset holders want next. Join the TON waitlist at https://www.gatewayz.ai/yield/assets/ton. ## Frequently asked questions ### Can I use TON staking rewards to pay for AI on Gatewayz today? No. TON is a coming asset and no launch date is set. Today the program supports only ADA, and it is pre-launch. ### Can I delegate TON without moving it? No. TON has no per-holder delegation built into the protocol, so staking means transferring TON into a pool smart contract: a liquid staking pool, a single-nominator pool or a nominator pool. ### What is the minimum to stake TON in a nominator pool? The TON nominator-pool docs recommend a minimum nominator stake of 10,000 TON. ### How long does it take to withdraw staked TON? It depends on the pool. Validator stake stays frozen for the validation round plus a hold period set by network configuration, and pool withdrawals are paid at once if the pool has enough liquidity or are queued if not. ### Can staked TON be slashed? Yes. Approved fines come out of frozen validator stake. In a nominator pool, the validator's balance absorbs penalties first, and nominators share any remainder in proportion to their stake. ## Sources - [TON docs: Staking overview](https://docs.ton.org/ecosystem/staking/overview), as of 2026-10-27 - [TON docs: Nominator pools](https://docs.ton.org/ecosystem/staking/nominator-pools), as of 2026-10-27 - [Cardano.org: Stake your ada on Cardano](https://cardano.org/stake-pool-delegation/), as of 2026-10-27 - [Cardano.org Glossary: Stake Address Deposit](https://cardano.org/glossary/stake-address-deposit/), as of 2026-10-27 - [Cardano Docs: Cardano node (Slots and epochs)](https://docs.cardano.org/about-cardano/learn/cardano-node), as of 2026-10-27 ## Related - [Which crypto assets can pay for AI inference?](https://www.gatewayz.ai/yield/assets) - [Stake ADA without giving it up, and pay for AI with the rewards](https://www.gatewayz.ai/yield/assets/ada) - [Non-custodial vs custodial staking](https://www.gatewayz.ai/yield/learn/non-custodial-vs-custodial-staking) - [The risks of ADA delegation with Gatewayz](https://www.gatewayz.ai/yield/risks) --- Discounts are a share of staking rewards Gatewayz actually received, can change at any time, and are not a guaranteed return. Not available to US or Canadian persons. Every participant must confirm they are not a US or Canadian person before linking a wallet. Not investment, legal or tax advice. Figures as of 2026-10-27. Updated 2026-10-27. Canonical page: https://www.gatewayz.ai/yield/assets/ton