Akash Network Launches Decentralized GPU Compute Platform
Akash Network has launched early access for its Homenode product, a platform for decentralized computing. The initial phase allows individuals with high-end GPUs, such as the RTX 4090 or 5090, to contribute their compute power to the network for use in AI and other intensive tasks.
- The Akash Network was founded by Overclock Labs in 2018, led by CEO Greg Osuri and CTO Adam Bozanich, and is built on the Cosmos SDK utilizing a Delegated Proof-of-Stake consensus mechanism. - The platform's native utility token, AKT, is used for network governance, staking to secure the blockchain, and as the primary currency for leasing and paying for computing resources. - While initially focused on CPU and storage, Akash upgraded to a "Supercloud" in August 2023, integrating high-performance GPUs like NVIDIA's H100s and A100s to meet the rising demand from AI and machine learning workloads. - The Homenode initiative specifically aims to simplify the process for non-technical users to add their home computing power to the network, targeting the expansion of resources for AI inference and IoT tasks. - Future roadmap plans include introducing stable payment options, support for full virtual machines (VMs) to run enterprise software, and confidential computing to enhance data privacy for sensitive workloads. - Akash is currently planning a migration from its proprietary Cosmos-based blockchain to a new Layer 1 network to enhance security and capital efficiency, with Solana being considered as a potential option. - The network competes in the decentralized physical infrastructure (DePIN) space against other projects like Render and Flux, aiming to provide compute resources at a lower cost than centralized cloud providers such as Amazon Web Services and Google Cloud. - In January 2025, Overclock Labs announced the acquisition of Cloudmos, a key deployment tool in the Akash ecosystem, with plans to make it fully open-source and co-develop tools to accelerate user adoption.
