Decentralized Ai.
This is something that is crucial for the future. At a time when we see Big Tech dominating the headlines with its latest GPU purchase or rollout of an updated model, it is important to remember this could be a path to a controlled future.
Web 2.0 is a siloed system. The results strayed a great deal from the value of the early developers. They envisioned a digital world where information flowed freely. Instead, we can platforms that control the ability to interact. In other words, it is nothing more than a series of gatekeepers/
AI is the most powerful technology we ever created. Unfortunately it is following a similar path. We are faced with the prospect of Web 3.0 being nothing more than a high-powered version of Web 2.0. It is likely the same actors are protecting (and profiting from) the kingdom.
The solution resides in decentralized AI. There are a few projects that are looking in this direction.
The Decentralization of AI Is Taking Place
Ben Goertzel is one of the leading figured in the world of AI. He has been involved with the development of open projects for decades. More than 30 years ago, he saw a future where AGI was decentralized.
“In ’93, ’94, ’95, it became clear to me AI should be decentralized,” Goertzel said.
He was caught off guard with the centralization of the Internet. For this reason, he views steps to decentralized AI as crucial.
The internet’s subsequent evolution watered down the foundation of decentralization. “Later on, what happened is, you have Google, you have Facebook, you have Tencent — you have these companies making huge centralized mirrors of the internet on these massive data centers,” he said.
However, for the next leap into AGI, Goertzel sees decentralization as a foundational safeguard against the monopolization and misuse of the technology. That principle is embedded in the architecture of SingularityNET, Hyperon, and the upcoming ASI Chain, a modular blockchain designed for decentralized AI.
SingularityNet is a blockchain based, open source AI platform. This was one of the early entrants into the sector.
It is not the only one however. We are seeing more attention given to the idea of decentralized AI. As larger entities jump in, providing infrastructure, we can see how this could ultimately rival what is taking place with Big Tech.
Tether Becoming An AI Company
Most in crypto are aware of Tether. It is the leading stablecoin, occupying more than half the coins issued.
It is now looking to step into the AI arena.
According to a press release:
14 May, 2025 – Tether, the largest company in the digital asset industry, today announced its upcoming QVAC (QuantumVerse Automatic Computer), a development platform for Infinite Intelligence, designed for humans and machines alike, that enables highly scalable AI applications and agents to run directly on local devices without dependence on centralized services, cloud infrastructure, thereby protecting users from corporate access to private user data.
The idea is to provide developers with infrastructure where AI tools can be created that run locally. This pushed the capabilities away from centralized entities. Having them run on PCs, laptops, and even smartphones without having to go through centralized server clusters is a major step.
With QVAC, developers can use a single framework to build and deploy AI inference and agents across any smartphones, laptops, mainframes, embedded systems, brain-computer interfaces, and a range of other hardware, ensuring that AI applications can function securely and independently, whether connected to a network or operating entirely offline.
Data and Security
Decentralized AI is crucial for the future of not only data but also security.
One of the flaws with the present Internet is the single point of failure Under the typical client-server architecture, the entire database is housed under the umbrella of one company. Thus, entry means all nodes are open to access. Of course, things are partitioned preventing some of the catastrophe. However, as we saw, hacks provide access to enormous amounts of data.
AI only makes this worse as the tools to attack get more powerful.
Decentralized systems bring a different element to the table. Under this scenario, nodes are interconnected yet run by different operators. Each houses its own data, resulting in a distributed system.
Accessing one node might give free reign to those databases but it has no access to anything on other nodes. Each node operates independently. The honeypot of data is no longer there.
This wrecks the business model of Big Tech. It is why they are recreating what they utilized with Web 2.0. It is up to people outside those entities to take it upon themselves to develop something different.
There is a war brewing. The next battleground is decentralized versus centralized. Our newer technologies are simply too powerful to leave to centralized corporations or governments.