Io.net and Nesa expand partnership to power decentralized AI with advanced GPUs

Just a week after partnering with FLock to roll out “Proof of AI” for securing decentralized networks, io.net has secured another major deal with layer-1 blockchain for AI Nesa to further advance decentralized AI model development.

Although only unveiled in April, the collaboration between io.net and Nesa has grown quickly. io.net has been instrumental in providing vast GPU resources to support the rising demand for AI inference on Nesa’s network, and the pace has far exceeded initial projections.

The partnership, initially expected to be moderate in scope, has evolved dramatically. io.net’s powerful 48x A100 GPUs have played a key role in supporting Nesa’s growth, and the numbers are expected to rise in the coming months.

“The support from io.net has been a major factor in expanding our AI inference capabilities,” said Patrick Colangelo, Co-Founder and CEO of Nesa. “Their GPU contributions have allowed us to break new ground in decentralized AI. The progress we’ve made in such a short time is impressive, and we’re excited for what’s ahead.”

“Our expanded work with Nesa has been a pleasant surprise,” said Tausif Ahmed, VP of Business Development at io.net. “It’s been rewarding to support their growth while also delivering value to our own users. Like us, Nesa believes in democratizing high-performance computing and accelerating AI growth.”

Since April, several applications integrating with AI on Nesa have been performing inference using io.net’s infrastructure, giving GPU providers new revenue opportunities.

This growing partnership highlights the increasing role both companies are playing in decentralizing AI. io.net’s contributions are helping power Nesa’s AI model development, reinforcing the bond between the two organizations as they work to democratize AI access.

Nesa, co-founded by CEO Patrick Colangelo, Gerry Che, Harry Yang, and Zico Huang, is leading the charge in bringing AI on-chain. The platform allows applications, protocols, and smart contracts to integrate with AI, enabling private AI inference across more than 1,000 models. The network relies on NES miners, who run these models using decentralized compute resources provided by Nesa’s partners, all while maintaining privacy.

Founded in late 2023, io.net is a decentralized physical infrastructure network (DePIN) that manages on-demand GPU clusters. Originally created to meet the growing demand for computing power in stock and cryptocurrency trading, io.net has since evolved into a massive network of over 25,000 nodes. This innovative setup offers a scalable alternative to traditional cloud services, reducing both costs and lead times for AI and machine learning projects.