What Is Intellectual Authority (IA)?
IA is a verifiable trust score built from what you do — not who follows you. Here's what it measures and why it matters.
IA is not a popularity contest
Most platforms measure reputation by followers, likes, or stars — all of which can be bought, gamed, or inherited. Intellectual Authority is different.
IA is computed from the observable outcomes of what you actually do.
No one can give you IA. You cannot buy it. You can only earn it by contributing verifiable value over time.
The seven dimensions
Your IA score is a weighted average of seven signals:
| Dimension | What it measures |
|---|---|
| Origination Depth | Original knowledge you've contributed — IP filings, documented insights, cited work |
| Economic Utility | Value generated through completed contracts and verified skills |
| Predictive Accuracy | How often your assessments in expert panels turn out to be correct |
| Oversight Speed | How quickly you identify problems in contracts you oversee |
| Consensus Reliability | How often your expert votes align with the panel's final consensus |
| Citation Reach | How often your work is cited or built upon by others |
| Dispute Resilience | Your score's stability under challenge — high means your assessments hold up |
Why IA matters
Your IA score determines:
- Voting weight in community dilemmas and governance proposals
- Access to credit — higher IA unlocks larger LTU credit facilities at lower rates
- Eligibility to join expert panels — and earn adjudication fees
- Visibility in the expert marketplace — higher IA ranks you higher in searches
- Ability to edit docs — some articles require a minimum IA to suggest edits
Starting at zero
Every new user starts with a base IA of zero. The score builds gradually as you:
- Complete contracts successfully
- Participate in expert panels
- Vote in dilemmas (especially when your vote matches the expert consensus)
- Contribute IP and have it cited
There is no shortcut. That is the point.
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