Analysts: next frontier of decentralization is AI and spatial computing

It would be stretching the truth to say cryptocurrencies have redefined our understanding of financial systems. After all, despite the crypto market having a total market cap of over $2 trillion, the majority of people remain ignorant or skeptical of the entire asset class. Even among those who regularly interact with them, a comparatively small number truly appreciate the inherent appeal of decentralized currencies, the market tending to attract more speculators and marketers than true believers and builders.

For all the benefits of decentralized currencies – their borderless nature, the transparency of the public ledger, and the absence of intermediaries – they represent only the tip of the iceberg in the broader conversation about decentralization and its merits.

One way of thinking about it is that blockchain served as a proving ground for decentralization itself. The real question now is: what comes next? If Satoshi’s proof-of-work model sought to decentralize and democratize the monetary system, which systems would be in the crosshairs of the next wave of pro-privacy, pro-liberty developers and engineers?

The answer might lie in two burgeoning technological fields: artificial intelligence (AI) and spatial computing.

The rise of AI and spatial computing

Unquestionably, fixing the broken money system is a noble aim. To truly revolutionize society, however, the decentralization community must pool its talents and work together on models and systems beyond financial infrastructures. “Fix the money, fix the world” is a nice idea, but it simplifies the problem. 

The next frontier for decentralization will center on how we interact with the world (physical, virtual and mixed) through AI and spatial computing. These technologies, if left in the hands of centralized powers, could lead us toward a nightmarish Orwellian dystopia. 

Imagine a world where Big Tech cartels own all our spatial data, controlling how we interact with our environment and each other. This scenario underscores the urgent need for community-driven networks where autonomous individuals rather than omnipotent centralized authorities rule the realm.

Apple’s release of the augmented reality Vision Pro headset was hailed as a technological marvel by many yet described as a “dystopian mind prison” by others. Common criticisms cited the potential for the spatial computing device to fundamentally alter not only the nature of computers and the world around us – but also our relationship with reality as mediated by the apparatus. 

If you thought your smartphone was addictive, in other words, Apple’s Vision Pro could cause separation anxiety on a whole different scale, leading to a kind of corporate-controlled, never-ending social isolation. Wearing a spatial computing device for hours each day, critics argued, was akin to letting a data-driven Big Tech company climb inside your brain. 

Where does AI enter the conversation? Well, spatial computing mixed with AI makes the need for decentralization even more pressing. AI-powered spatial computing would see AI untethered from the internet and put into action in the real world. 

By integrating artificial intelligence into autonomous vehicles, drones, and robots, we are navigating the world through immersive platforms. These platforms – a fusion of augmented, virtual, and extended reality – are rapidly evolving. However, this technological leap could evoke a digital hell scape where powerless ‘citizens’ become an unsettling reality.

Decentralizing the World with DePINs

Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Networks (DePINs) are blockchain protocols that power physical hardware infrastructure and systems – energy grids and logistics operations to give just two examples.

They have been talked about for a number of years, but it’s only recently that we’ve started to see them come online. The sector has more than doubled in size over the last six months, from around $10 billion to $25 billion. Today, close to 1,000 DePIN networks are said to be in operation.

DePIN networks represent a significant step towards decentralizing not just our monetary systems but vital real-world resources like energy, telecommunications networks, computing power and water, and doing so in an egalitarian way. 

These networks are particularly relevant in the context of AI and spatial computing. All three technologies are, in simple terms, data-driven, with spatial computing defined as the part of AI that understands the physical world. If AI has already entered the workforce (ChatGPT alone is producing reams of content for marketers), spatial computing will bring it into the physical labor market. 

Naturally, attempts by centralized bodies to control the data flowing through this AI must be fought tooth and nail. As well as giving rise to manipulation and surveillance, the centralization of this information also creates a single point of failure. The same can be said for the spatial and environmental data collected by spatial computing platforms.

DePINs, then, emerge as a potential solution to manage these technologies in a just way.

More about the Posemesh

Posemesh is a decentralized protocol built for the coming age of smart cities, it permits digital devices to securely and privately exchange spatial data and computing power, effectively turning smartphones and wearable technologies into ad-hoc distributed spatial computers. 

In the posemesh, data and compute resources are optimally allocated to serve each participant’s economic interests, with connected devices able to contribute or request sensor data, processing power, storage, and networking/monitoring services. While the consumption of such services incurs a fee, providing them generates rewards. The posemesh, then, is a spatial computing protocol with decentralization at its heart.

The economic implications of such an approach are profound. By democratizing access to spatial data and computing power, the monopolies of tech giants can be broken apart, leaving individuals and small businesses to tap into a wealth of information and computational resources that were previously out of reach.

With the posemesh, The Posemesh Foundation aims to establish a universal spatial computing protocol for the next 100 billion people, devices, and AI.

Moreover, Auki Labs, the team building the posemesh, has announced the creation of a blockchain-based rewards and reputation layer that will allow the posemesh to run as a public utility in service of civilization rather than a profit-driven corporate entity.

If the smart cities of the near future will be powered by a combination of transformative technologies (5G, AI, Internet of Things, spatial computing), the broader decentralization movement must strive to ensure these cities remain accessible to all without compromising privacy and autonomy. With the journey towards fixing the money ongoing, it’s time to fix the world.