Latest Updates on Subnet 125: Much More to Come

By: @CryptoZPunisher

The momentum around Subnet 125 – 8Ball is accelerating, and Barbarian has shared an important update with the community on the MANTIS group. Below is his full message, followed by additional context and an open question that could shape how we understand 8Ball’s future.

Join us:

t.me/mantiscommunity

Barbarian’s latest message:

8ball125.com / Prediction Markets functional, USDC.e is collateral, Polygon PoS, Open Alpha. Launch of the subnet code that will provide us with deep liquidity is going to be around the ~20th. The code for this is ready, functional, and tested now. Due to upcoming travel I’m postponing as I would not want to be unable to assist validators and miners in the initial setup. Consider this a preview, until 125 is running and incentivizing market making order books will dry up quickly. We are going to be updating the website incredibly heavily over the next few weeks. It will likely be unrecognizable before the halving. Let me know what bugs you encounter, how you recommend changing the website, what markets you want to see, etc. Cheers to all! This is the beginning of the beginning of 8Ball! Bittensor will soon have a native prediction market.

A Native Prediction Market for Bittensor

With this announcement, 8Ball enters Open Alpha, using USDC.e as collateral and deployed on Polygon PoS. The subnet launch, which will introduce deep liquidity and a more robust incentive system, is now planned for around October 20.

Barbarian confirmed that the code is already complete and tested, but the official deployment is slightly delayed due to upcoming travel, he wants to ensure he can personally support validators and miners during the initial setup.

Until the subnet is fully operational, order books may remain thin, as proper incentives for market-making are not yet active. However, major website updates are planned in the coming weeks, and Barbarian expects the platform to look entirely different before the next halving.

The message concludes with an invitation to the community to report bugs, suggest website improvements, and propose new prediction markets. As Barbarian put it: “This is the beginning of the beginning of 8Ball.” Bittensor is on track to gain a native, decentralized prediction market.

Community question: 8Ball vs Polymarket?

During the discussion, a community member raised an important question:

“What differentiates 8Ball from Polymarket from a user point of view?”

Here’s my personal hypothesis based on the information we have so far, but it’s important to note that only Barbarian can confirm whether this analysis is accurate.

My hypothesis: why 8Ball is different from Polymarket

At first glance, both 8Ball and Polymarket are prediction markets. But they diverge in fundamental ways that matter to users:

1. Decentralization and ownership: Polymarket operates as a centralized frontend on top of a blockchain. Users trade but do not participate in the network itself. 8Ball, by contrast, is a fully decentralized subnet on Bittensor, users can become miners, validators, or liquidity providers, helping power the system and sharing in its value.

2. Incentives and profitability: Polymarket’s fees flow to the platform. 8Ball’s design ensures miner emissions can never exceed collected fees, guaranteeing profitability from day one and aligning incentives between traders, miners, and validators.

3. Market scope and openness: Polymarket lists curated, event-driven markets. 8Ball plans broader horizons, including long-term macro predictions and a dedicated “1984” section exploring freedom of speech, censorship, and state overreach.

4. AI integration: Polymarket relies solely on human speculation. 8Ball will leverage AI-generated predictive signals from MANTIS (SN123) to enhance market accuracy and liquidity.

5. User participation beyond trading: Polymarket users trade or provide liquidity. 8Ball users can also run validators, deploy predictive models as miners, or help shape market creation itself.

In short:

• Polymarket is a platform you use.
• 8Ball is an ecosystem you help power, and profit from.

Conclusion: the early days of something bigger

The journey of Subnet 125 is just beginning. The platform is already functional, the incentive engine is nearly ready, and a major wave of updates is coming before the halving. The upcoming weeks will likely define the future of prediction markets inside Bittensor.

8Ball isn’t just about speculation, it’s about building a decentralized intelligence layer for forecasting the future. And while many details are still to be revealed, one thing is clear: much more is coming.

LINKS:

@Barbarian7676

8Ball – Prediction Markets