Aethir, a decentralized GPU cloud computing provider, today announced the launch of "AI Unbundled," an industry alliance aimed at fostering the growth of the Web3 artificial intelligence ecosystem. This initiative brings together leading decentralized infrastructure providers, blockchain networks, and investment firms, including 0G Labs, Biconomy, Polyhedra, Oasis Protocol Foundation, ChainGPT, IoTeX, iExec, Geodnet, Flock.io, Alpha Neural AI, DeAgent AI, and OORT.
Aethir stated that the formation of AI Unbundled is a crucial step in providing end-to-end infrastructure, facilitating industry-wide collaboration, and accelerating the adoption of AI applications. With the rapid advancement of large language models, generative AI, and AI agents, the demand for computational resources for AI model training and development is skyrocketing, driving up costs. Decentralized networks, particularly Web3 platforms, offer a novel solution to this challenge, enabling AI developers to access crucial computing power within an open and permissionless ecosystem.
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Through AI Unbundled, Aethir aims to build a collaborative framework connecting AI developers with decentralized computing resources, funding, and go-to-market channels, creating a comprehensive solution supporting the entire lifecycle of projects, from early concept to market deployment.
The alliance will support AI startups through various programs, including joint grants ranging from $10,000 to $100,000, subsidized access to Aethir's distributed GPU infrastructure, inference and verification tools from 0G, and additional grants and support from other alliance partners. Furthermore, AI Unbundled will offer joint-branded industry events, workshops, and hackathons focused on emerging projects, along with early access to decentralized tools such as the iNFT standard ERC-7857 developed by 0G Labs for secure and composable AI agents. Startups will also benefit from a shared resource center streamlining onboarding, fostering collaboration within the ecosystem, and providing joint marketing, technical guidance, and event opportunities.
Aethir CEO Daniel Wang emphasized, "AI is entering a new phase, and teams at the forefront of innovation need more than just compute power; they need a complete ecosystem. AI Unbundled is our commitment to empowering decentralized AI development by providing builders with open, scalable, and composable infrastructure, supporting projects that drive positive impact and innovation."
0G Labs CMO Ada Heinrich stated that joining AI Unbundled further strengthens their commitment to empowering decentralized AI builders. Biconomy's Head of Growth Vansh Batra believes that AI and blockchain are converging powerfully and is excited to collaborate with alliance partners to drive on-chain applications of AI. Oasis Protocol Foundation's Head of AI Marko Stokik noted that Web3 developers possess innovative visions but often lack the resources for execution, and Oasis is pleased to participate in this initiative and support developers in building secure, scalable, and privacy-preserving AI applications. Polyhedra's Chief Ecosystem Officer Bart Meyer believes that Aethir and Polyhedra represent core infrastructure for scalable AI, and through AI Unbundled, they will support developers in building secure and composable systems to achieve decentralized, interoperable, and verifiable AI.
AI developers and early-stage startups focused on the intersection of Web3 and AI can apply to join the AI Unbundled program through a dedicated portal, gaining easy access to infrastructure, funding, and market exposure. The alliance welcomes both emerging projects and established teams looking to leverage decentralized technologies for development.