IO Summit 2024 Keynote: Revolutionizing the AI Computing Industry
Ahmed Shadid, the founder and CEO of io.net, along with other key figures such as Tory Green, the COO, Aline Almeida, the Senior VP of Engineering, Mahar Jilani, the Chief Experience Officer, Gauvrav Sharma, the CTO, Basen Oubah, the Co-founder and CoS, and Hashim Alnabulsi, the Managing Partner of IO.VENTURES, gathered at the 2024 IO Summit to announce three major breakthroughs. They unveiled the world’s largest AI computing network, IOG (Internet of GPUs), and showcased their collaboration with Aptos and Solana. These innovations are set to revolutionize the future of AI, computing, and encryption technologies.
Ahmed Shadid shared io.net’s latest achievements at the summit, emphasizing the importance of computing power and presenting a bold vision: to make accessing GPU computing power as simple and seamless as accessing the internet. io.net is dedicated to building a computing-centric ecosystem, offering a suite of tools and services for building, training, and deploying machine learning models at scale on the blockchain.
As vital partners of io.net, Aptos and Solana provide high-performance blockchain infrastructure and decentralized computing capabilities, supporting io.net in expanding its AI computing network globally. Through decentralized cloud computing solutions, io.net bridges the current gap between computing resource supply and demand, offering lower-cost, higher-performance computing services.
Additionally, io.net introduced the BC8 project, the world’s first fully decentralized end-to-end machine learning model, utilizing io.net’s IOG infrastructure for training and inference. IO.VENTURES, io.net’s investment arm, is also driving the growth of machine learning startups by offering GPU computing power in exchange for equity and token distribution.
Ahmed Shadid, io.net’s founder and CEO, kicked off the summit by introducing io.net’s mission and vision to disrupt the AI computing industry. He expressed excitement about the team’s achievements and their commitment to pushing technological boundaries. Together with the team, he is prepared to revolutionize the AI computing industry and announced three breakthroughs that will change AI, computing, and cryptocurrencies.
In today’s digital world, computing power is the lifeblood driving technological advancements, reshaping our lives with AI, transforming industries, and empowering innovators to create a world we have yet to see. Ahmed posed a simple yet profound question: What if accessing GPU computing power was as simple and seamless as accessing the internet? This question led to the birth of the Internet GPU (IOG), the world’s largest AI computing network. Ahmed believes the world needs fair, democratic, and permissionless access to AI computing.
He further pointed out that in today’s digital age, computing power is not just an asset or commodity; it is equivalent to digital oil. China’s spending on semiconductors has exceeded that on crude oil, highlighting the importance of digital infrastructure. Computing currently consumes 70% of startup funds. io.net is building a computing-centric ecosystem, providing a suite of tools and services for building, training, and deploying machine learning models at scale on the blockchain, all powered by the strength of Aptos and Solana. Users can deploy models for real-time inference or efficiently train and fine-tune models. In short, Io represents the currency of computing power, unlocking computing resources globally like the dollar is the standard for all transactions. io.net aims to be the universal computing exchange medium for large AI startups and enterprises.
Ahmed also mentioned that approximately 90% of global computing resources are idle, scattered across consumer devices, data centers, and crypto mining farms. io.net aims to harness these idle computing resources, unlocking significant economic potential.
Collaboration Between Aptos and io.net: Driving the Fusion of AI and Blockchain
Avery Ching, the Co-founder and CEO of Aptos Labs, introduced the vision of collaboration between Aptos and io.net, emphasizing the potential of computing power as a currency to create a new way for AI products and services to interact. Aptos Network is an ideal partner for io.net, as it is built on the Move language, providing a more secure, faster, and higher-performance blockchain infrastructure, allowing io.net to focus on innovation rather than handling blockchain infrastructure issues.
Aptos has demonstrated its ability to process over 25,000 transactions per second and handled 20 billion transactions in a day, surpassing the transaction volume supported by the Visa network by 13 times. Aptos also plans to expand to over 1 million transactions per second. With this parallel architecture, Aptos is a trusted partner for io.net to expand its AI products in the future.
In addition to scalability and speed, both Aptos and io.net recognize that the future of AI will inevitably collide with Web 3 and decentralization. Maintaining open access and decentralized content ownership are critical parts of the future of AI. Decentralized physical infrastructure networks like io.net are laying the foundation for ensuring global access to AI products and services. Both parties are committed to setting new standards for responsible AI.
Aptos and io.net are collaborating to develop data-linear use cases, such as Proof of Compute, and exploring how blockchain can provide transparent and immutable records for assets and works developed in AI. This collaboration provides an opportunity for developers to accelerate innovation at the intersection of AI and Web3, with Avery expressing their excitement to build the future together with io.net.
Leading the New Era of AI Computing with Decentralized Cloud Computing
Tory noted that the current computing demand is 2.5 times the supply, and the computing demand for AI doubles every 3.4 months, widening the supply-demand gap.
He believes that traditional cloud computing methods are no longer sufficient to meet this demand, but this also presents a significant opportunity. The combined market value of the top three centralized cloud service providers (Amazon, Google, and Microsoft) exceeds $7 trillion, with a significant portion of this value coming from the rise of AI. The demand for computing is so high that last year, the number of chips imported by China exceeded that of oil. Computing is referred to as the “new oil,” with high costs, such as Chad GPT’s daily operating cost exceeding $700,000. With OpenAI launching the new text-to-video generation platform Sora, these costs will continue to rise.
Tory pointed out that despite continuous AI innovations, computing resources are in short supply. io.net fills this gap with an innovative solution called decentralized cloud computing. io.net’s infrastructure is valued at over $3.5 billion, with more enterprise-grade GPU clusters than Amazon AWS, Google Cloud, and Microsoft Azure combined. io.net offers on-demand computing services at a fraction of the cost of traditional cloud service providers, aiming to bring AI to global users in a better, faster, and cheaper way.
Ahmed stated that io.net’s success is not possible without the support of technology and Web 3 industry giants. io.net has received support from teams like Hack VC, MultipleCoin Capital, OKX Ventures, Aptos Labs, Solana Ventures, M13, and many others, as well as top executives from global GPU manufacturers. Through this extensive list of top-tier venture and angel investors, io.net raised over $40 million in oversubscribed Series A funding, furthering their mission and execution. In its first 10 months of operation, io.net has already become a unicorn company, and this is just the beginning.
Solana and io.net: Shaping the Decentralized Future of AI Computing
Anatoly, the co-founder and CEO of Solana, reviewed the collaboration journey between the Solana ecosystem and io.net.
Anatoly mentioned that io.net emerged victorious in the Solana grizzlython hackathon and showcased their MVP at the Solana Breakdown conference. io.net chose Solana as a partner because of Solana’s speed, low cost, and scalability. Solana processes millions of transactions daily, with fees lower than half a cent and over 1.5 million active addresses.
Anatoly emphasized that AI is one of the fastest-growing industries, and io.net needs a robust blockchain partner to support its expansion. Solana’s scalability and Solana Pay’s seamless payment functionality will help io.net achieve success globally.
Lily, the Chair of the Solana Foundation, highlighted the importance of finding a platform that not only supports growth but accelerates growth in the rapidly evolving Web3 world, crucial for pioneers like io.net. Solana is not just a blockchain but a launchpad for cutting-edge applications and rapidly growing enterprises, with strong projects like Orca, Jupiter, Mediora, and Backpack. Solana provides unparalleled support, ensuring that builders have the tools they need for success from day one.
Lily also mentioned that the Solana Foundation works closely with teams like io.net through events, hackathons, and direct support to drive innovation. io.net actively participates in several Solana programs and collaborates closely with partners like Colosseum to build the world’s largest decentralized AI computing network, redefining the status quo and democratizing AI.
Achieving Sustainable Development of AI Through Decentralized Computing Networks
Ahmed emphasized that io.net is the largest AI computing network in the world and views computing as a currency, making sustainability crucial here. io.net promotes a healthy ecosystem by rewarding IO workers who contribute computing power, enabling AI developers to seamlessly and affordably access the computing power they need while motivating them to build new models and lead cutting-edge technologies. This network belongs to everyone, relying on a supercluster attack protection system called IOG Cortex, which is deployed on every IO worker node.
Ahmed likened io.net’s network to an ant colony, where all worker nodes coordinate like ants to continuously complete tasks. The IOG framework enables engineers to utilize open-source computing power, meaning the Python code you run on your laptop can automatically run in the GPU internet. This network not only serves over 100 million users with extremely low latency but also coordinates tasks distributed across thousands of GPU clusters in 139 countries, creating a cloud service for ML model inference.
io.net utilizes core open-source technology from ray.io, and without it, many fundamental applications like Chat GPT, Uber, and Instacart would not be possible. By leveraging this technology, io.net is pioneering the future of AI computing, providing a sustainable and efficient platform for innovation and advancement.Products without AI will not be able to exist in the future. io.net has taken this technology to a new level by building the world’s most advanced, scalable, and secure distributed computing framework.
io.net: Enhancing AI Application Distribution and Training Efficiency through IOG
Aline Almeida, the Senior Engineering Vice President of io.net, introduced how the io.net platform distributes AI and Python applications across a wide range of GPU networks and enhances these capabilities through IOG (Internet of GPUs).
io.net forked Ray to run better in a decentralized network and provide a more user-friendly experience for application libraries. IOG introduced backend customization for optimal integration with io.net’s unique network, including specialized Outer Scalar and support for graphics and scheduling algorithms in the Io Cloud. io.net also improved dashboards, providing developers with Io-specific operational metrics and detailed geographical node information.
IOG simplifies the distribution of AI applications through direct interfaces with the Io Cloud and code templates, making AI scalability feasible not only for large companies’ engineers but also accessible to AI creators globally. io.net’s clusters can scale to thousands of GPUs, offering powerful computing capabilities for tasks ranging from confidential computing and zero-knowledge jobs to AI model training and tuning, supporting decentralized agents, and achieving low-latency model inference. This is an open-source journey, and global collaboration will shape the future of decentralized AI.
Aline also demonstrated how to use the IUG package in practice to train computer vision classification models and adjust their hyperparameters for improved accuracy. By connecting to an IOG supercluster with 1000 GPUs, io.net can complete 1000 different configurations of training in 1 hour instead of the 41 days it would typically require. This showcases the powerful impact of distributed computing, not only in terms of speed but also in reducing costs by up to 90%.
Lastly, Aline announced that the IOG SDK Python package will be released to the public next quarter and invited interested users to join the waiting list for the beta version.
io.net: Redefining the User Experience of AI Cloud Computing Platforms
Mahar Jilani, the Chief Experience Officer of io.net, shared how io.net is leading the future of Web3 through innovative design, creating the world’s largest AI computing network. He emphasized that technology alone cannot shape the future; it is people who truly shape the future, and design is at the core of connecting people and technology. io.net is committed to providing a superior user experience, enabling engineers to deploy the most advanced clusters in the world effortlessly.
The Io Cloud platform of io.net boasts 100 times more GPUs than major players in the crypto market, nearly on par with Google Cloud, Amazon AWS, and Microsoft Azure. Engineers can deploy a cluster with 20,000 GPUs in 90 seconds, offering end-to-end solutions from model training to inference.
Mahar demonstrated how to deploy clusters using the Io Cloud, where engineers can choose powerful options like Ray, Mega Ray, and Kubernetes, select GPU models and connection speeds as needed. io.net also supports clusters for Apple chips, allowing millions of Apple device owners to contribute computing power and earn rewards. The entire process is simple and fast, without the need for KYC; users only need to make selections, and io.net handles the rest.
io.net’s cloud services are up to 80% cheaper than major players in the market, offering the same performance, quality, and reliability, significantly reducing costs.
io.net: Transforming GPUs into Global Assets for AI Computing
Gauvrav Sharma, the Chief Technology Officer of io.net, introduced io.net’s revolutionary platform aimed at democratizing GPU computing and making it a global standard. The IOG (Internet GPU) platform of io.net allows GPU owners to connect their devices to the network, turning GPUs into valuable assets that generate stable income.
Whether it’s large data centers, mining farms, or professional miners, anyone with underutilized GPUs can join io.net, becoming digital oil that drives the AI revolution. io.net breaks traditional boundaries through the revolutionary principles of Web3, empowering global users. Gauvrav likened io.net’s GPU network to an ant colony, where each GPU is maximized like an ant, allowing individuals from anywhere to join this worker community.
Gauvrav demonstrated how to connect and monitor devices. Users can connect new devices through an intuitive process, choose operating systems (Mac, Linux, or Windows) and device types (GPU or CPU), run scripts to download and install Docker and all drivers, and finally run Docker commands to connect devices. On the device page, users can monitor device activity and reputation scores (driven by online time), monitor and withdraw accumulated earnings on the earnings and rewards page. Users can connect their Solana wallet to io.net to claim rewards, view the computing tasks devices are participating in, and the earnings they have garnered.
BC 8: Leading a New Era of 3D Content Creation through Decentralized AI
Basen Oubah introduced BC 8, the world’s first fully decentralized end-to-end machine learning model that leverages io.net’s IOG infrastructure for training and inference. BC 8 is a paradigm of decentralized AI, using Aptos as a payment railway to handle inference computation costs, model owner royalties, and proof of computation records, generating 500,000 images daily and 2 million transactions.
BC 8 supports third-party model integrations hosted on io.net’s decentralized cloud. BC 8’s journey began with a model driven by stable diffusion technology, trained on a 10 TB dataset, setting a new benchmark for text-to-image realism, adopted by tens of thousands of community members for generating role images for social media identities.
BC 8’s latest innovation is generating 3D models from text, usable in AAA game engines like Unreal Engine 5, Unity Engine, CRI Engine, and Frostbite, opening up endless possibilities for creators. Users can visit the BC 8 AI website, upload images or input prompts, generate 3D models in seconds, and choose to enhance quality.
In the future metaverse, whether gamers seek new weapon skins or Blender designers envision unique shapes, BC 8 meets these needs and exceeds expectations. BC 8 is a community-driven platform that provides a fair competitive environment for content creation, truly shaping the digital future. Basen also mentioned that Aptos’ AV would further introduce their collaboration.
Aptos: Powering Blockchain Backbone for Decentralized AI and Game Development
Avery Ching introduced how io.net deploys its generative AI product BC 8 on the Aptos blockchain. Each inference transaction is recorded on the Aptos blockchain, facilitating seamless payments and providing proof of computation records. Since its launch, BC 8 processes nearly 500,000 transactions daily, demonstrating Aptos’ advantages in speed and scalability. BC 8 is just the beginning, as future machine learning models will generate high-quality 3D models and AAA game assets, redefining the game development industry.
The Aptos blockchain provides real-time, secure, and scalable computation proof in the background for these operations. Avery emphasized that this is just one of the many use cases supported by Aptos, with hundreds of similar use cases expected in the future. The Aptos ecosystem will offer tools and services for building, training, and deploying machine learning models on-chain, supporting payments for hundreds of thousands of on-chain models, making Aptos the backbone of the Internet GPU. Each product will be supported by its native token on Aptos, driving the growth and adoption of all on-chain AI products.
io.net’s Physical Infrastructure: Etch Data Center
Hidde Hoogland introduced io.net’s Etch data center, part of the world’s largest GPU distributed computing network. She led us on a tour of the server room, housing up to six cold aisle containment units with a total of 120 racks. The Etch data center primarily leverages GPU computing power leased through Web3 and the io.net platform.
The data center has 2 megawatts of redundant power connections, with each cold aisle containment unit connected via power strips under raised floors. Perforated floor tiles between racks allow fresh air to reach the GPUs. These clusters are filled with GPUs leased through the io.net platform, providing services to customers and generating revenue.
Hidde also showcased the battery backup room, where batteries can sustain data center operations for at least 2 hours in the event of a local power outage. These battery systems are charged by the data center’s solar roof, providing enough energy in the summer to achieve net neutrality.
io.net’s Investment Arm: IO.VENTURES Driving AI Startup Development
Hashim Alnabulsi, the Managing Partner of IO.VENTURES, introduced IO.VENTURES as the investment arm of io.net, dedicated to fostering the growth of machine learning startups. AI startups typically allocate over 80% of raised funds to computing power, with even smaller projects consuming over $500,000 per month, hindering AI development significantly. io.net proposes a better solution.
IO.VENTURES’ proposal is to provide GPU computing power to startups in exchange for equity and token allocations, a more cost-effective approach than traditional venture capital, returning significant value to GPU suppliers. With io.net’s decentralized AI computing, IO.VENTURES aims to promote the growth of rapidly expanding AI and machine learning startups through investment.
Hashim also introduced a bolder plan: the creation of the IO.VENTURES Mega GPU Fund. Unlike traditional funds relying on a few limited partners, IO.VENTURES can access the entire io.net network, unleashing $3.5 billion worth of computing power. This grassroots movement connects global idle GPU supplies with innovators, unlocking limitless potential while democratizing AI.
IO.VENTURES aims to expand globally through decentralized investments, focusing on challenging projects that align with its vision and aim to disrupt industries. Hashim calls on the world’s bravest AI talents to join this transformational journey. IO.VENTURES plans to establish connections with global partners, including accelerators, research institutions, large enterprises, and progressive public sector projects, creating an unprecedented supportive ecosystem.
The future holds both challenges and excitement for IO.VENTURES, as they look forward to meaningful collaborations with groundbreaking projects to embark on this transformative journey.
io.net: Making Dreams Come True for a New Era of AI
Ahmed Shadid expressed his excitement about io.net realizing dreams. Just a few months ago, io.net was just a dream, but today, that dream has become a reality, developing at a pace beyond everyone’s expectations.
Today’s event announced the release of several important products: IO Coin, IO Cloud, IO Worker, and most importantly, the introduction of the Internet GPU (IOG), empowering all of us to build and create a better world. Ahmed also previewed the upcoming IOG Python framework, set to be released later this year.
He called on everyone to join this revolution, visit io.net immediately, and together, change the world.
