In today's rapidly evolving tech landscape, it's surprising to see a blockchain billionaire stepping in to provide the computational power necessary for generative AI development, rather than traditional Big Tech companies. Recently, Jed McCaleb, co-founder of notable blockchain ventures such as Stellar, Ripple, and Mt. Gox, along with the aerospace firm Vast, announced the launch of a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. This initiative has acquired 24,000 Nvidia H100 GPUs to establish data centers aimed at leasing computing capacity to innovative AI projects.
Already, this impressive GPU cluster—valued at approximately half a billion dollars and among the largest globally—is in use by startups like Imbue and Character.ai, asserts Eric Park, the CEO of Voltage Park, the organization managing these data centers. "Our mission is to democratize access for startups, scale-ups, and research organizations currently hindered by restrictive contracts, GPU scarcity, and high minimum purchase requirements," Park shared in an email. "We continue to engage with industry stakeholders to better understand their needs, using these insights to inform the development of our remaining GPU clusters to maximize their value for diverse customers."
Companies engaged in training models, especially generative AI models like ChatGPT and Stable Diffusion, rely heavily on GPU-based hardware. The unique ability of GPUs to handle numerous computations simultaneously makes them essential for today's leading AI technologies. However, there is a significant shortage of these crucial chips.
Microsoft has reported a severe shortage in server hardware required for AI, raising concerns about potential service disruptions, as noted in their summer earnings report. Furthermore, some of Nvidia's high-demand AI GPU models are now sold out until 2024.
"The shortage of cutting-edge compute resources is critical," Park remarked. "I've spoken with companies of all sizes—startups, scale-ups, and large labs—and they all mention they can't secure enough H100s for their model training. This issue is particularly acute for startups and scale-ups unable to enter into the sizable contracts that many cloud providers demand, which severely limits AI innovation."
Voltage Park operates under a distinctive framework. McCaleb established a nonprofit called the Navigation Fund, to which he contributed a substantial endowment. This fund subsequently purchased the H100 GPUs, paying full sales and use taxes despite its nonprofit status, and transferred ownership of the GPUs to Voltage Park, a for-profit subsidiary of the Navigation Fund.
"A nonprofit structure is advantageous for a venture like this," a spokesperson for the Navigation Fund explained via email. "The board decided that a for-profit subsidiary would be better equipped to handle the specialized operations required for managing such a large GPU cluster." The spokesperson added that this structure allows the Navigation Fund to concentrate on its charitable mission and grants, while Voltage Park focuses on the commercial opportunities in advanced computing.
Importantly, McCaleb does not operate or profit from either the Brooklyn-based Navigation Fund or Voltage Park; both entities are managed by distinct executive teams and possess independent boards of directors. There may be substantial tax advantages associated with McCaleb’s donation, even if the nonprofit entity swiftly redelegated the assets to Voltage Park.
Voltage Park represents just one of many initiatives under the Navigation Fund’s umbrella. The spokesperson noted it is a "long-term" nonprofit foundation interested in various sectors, including farmed animal welfare, criminal justice reform, open science, climate issues, and AI safety—supporting organizations, activists, advocates, and entrepreneurs.
However, the Navigation Fund still has steps to complete before fully launching these initiatives. It appears that the organization is not officially registered as a nonprofit yet. When reporter consulted an expert regarding the Navigation Fund's status on two leading databases, Charity Navigator and GuideStar, no listing was found, and the fund's president, David Coman-Hidy, only joined the organization in August.
This doesn't imply any wrongdoing. It's possible the Navigation Fund's registration is just pending with the IRS, and they have yet to process the documentation.
Regardless of its tax status, a share of Voltage Park's profits is earmarked for the Navigation Fund to support its philanthropic initiatives, according to the spokesperson.
While Voltage Park’s complete GPU cluster is not yet operational, it is expected to be fully functional by the end of the year across three states: Texas, Virginia, and Washington. Park indicated that a "significant portion" of resources will be dedicated to early-stage startups and developers, with options for both short-term leases and hourly billing.
“We founded Voltage Park to ensure a diverse range of companies has access to the AI ecosystem,” Park stated. “Currently, we provide bare-metal machine learning training infrastructure, but our broader goal is to make machine learning more accessible by reducing entry barriers. This may involve offering additional services built upon our infrastructure as we evolve with the industry’s growth.”
Ranking
