Zero Gravity Labs secures $290M financing for decentralized AI operating system

Zero Gravity Labs (0G Labs) has announced a $290 million capital financing to build the world’s first decentralized artificial intelligence operating system (dAIOS). 

According to a Nov. 13 announcement, the startup completed a $40 million seed raise from a range of venture capital firms, including Hack VC, Delphi Digital, OKX Ventures, Samsung Next, Bankless Ventures, Animoca Brands, Stanford Blockchain Fund, Polygon and several other investors. 

Another $250 million was secured through a financing agreement granting the startup access to a liquid line of credit and a commitment to its token purchases. The liquid line will enable the 0G Foundation — the organization behind the protocol — to access liquid digital assets held on exchanges at over-the-counter rates. 

Michael Heinrich, co-founder and CEO of 0G Labs, told Cointelegraph that the result of the fundraising “could unlock powerful new possibilities for decentralized AI.”

Related: AI faces ‘Immense’ risks without blockchain: 0G Labs CEO

Developing dAIOS

The funds will support the development of 0G Lab’s AI operating system — a blockchain-based infrastructure intended to support decentralized AI applications.

According to its white paper, the system will be based on a modular and layered architecture that includes a storage network, a data availability network, and a data serving network. 

Potential benefits for AI applications involve reducing the cost and complexity of handling large data sets and running intensive computations.

Related: AI startups draw record $11.8B funding in Q3

The protocol promises a secure and decentralized environment for massive data sets, handling a high throughput of up to 50 gigabytes per second. According to 0G Labs, an inference layer will support real-time AI computation directly onchain, allowing faster insights without requiring offchain processing.

Heinrich explained that the team at 0G Labs is also decentralizing its network, “introducing alignment nodes, “enabling “supporters to own part of the critical infrastructure.”

Related: 0G Labs raises $35M pre-seed funding from over 40 crypto investors for onchain AI

Startups working on the intersection of blockchain and AI technologies have drawn investors’ capital over the past few months.

In a previous interview with Cointelegraph, Pantera Capital portfolio manager Cosmo Jiang discussed the growing convergence of AI and blockchain, predicting that, much like the internet over the past two decades, AI will soon become a vital tool for every business:

“There won’t be a distinction between “AI businesses” and “Non-AI businesses” [...] As such, we expect many blockchain-enabled businesses will explicitly solve problems with or related to AI.”

In July, Sentient raised $85 million in funding to develop an open-source AI platform that enables developers to monetize their open-source models and data. The round was led by Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund, Pantera Capital and Framework Ventures.