Key Insights: 

• Created by cloud graphics company OTOY and backed by Multicoin Capital, The Render Network is a decentralized GPU marketplace for 3D rendering jobs.  

• The Network allows Creators to rent out GPU power from anywhere in the world. Node Operators use the OctaneRender application to complete the job and earn RNDR tokens as rewards.  

• Several onchain metrics indicate a growth trend in adopting the Render Network; more new users are transacting onchain; there is significant YoY growth in compute capacity and frames rendered, driving the utility of the RNDR token.  

• The RNDR token has two main purposes: governance and paying for jobs. The projects utilize the Burn and Mint Equilibrium (BME) model to maintain demand and supply for Creators and Node Operators.   

• The price of the RNDR token has grown exponentially by more than 1000% in 2023, driven by the AI hype, the ever-increasing need for GPU power, and key partnerships with big and small niche tech companies. 

• By leveraging its cost-effective and powerful rendering capabilities, the Render Network democratizes high-end 3D content production, making it accessible and widely distributed. 

Overview: 

The Render Network is a decentralized GPU compute marketplace that rents idle GPU power to content creators and AI applications. It distributes workloads among available GPU providers through a peer-to-peer network for 3D rendering tasks and machine learning training and incentivizes nodes that provide this service. The RNDR (RENDER) token is the Network's native token and is used to render jobs on the platform.   

The Network solves the problem of access to high-performance GPU computing power, which is often expensive as the resources are limited. It also solves the problem of underutilization of GPU power, where it is not being used to its full potential. By creating a marketplace for these resources, the Render Network ensures efficient use, benefiting both the owners of GPUs and those who need access to computing power. This has led to the Render Network becoming a major protocol to watch in the DePIN and AI space.  

The Render Network was created by OTOY, a company founded by Jules Urbach, CEO of the Los Angeles-based cloud graphics company OTOY. The idea was conceived in 2009, and after several years of development, the first token sale of RNDR happened in 2017. In April 2020, the Render Network launched on the Ethereum mainnet. In November 2023, Render migrated from Ethereum to Solana to accommodate faster transaction times.   

The team raised a $30 million token round in 2021, led by Multicoin Capital. Other investors include the Solana Foundation, Sfermion, and angel investors Vinny Lingham and Bill Lee. More recently, crypto asset manager Grayscale launched a new $30 million fund focused on decentralized artificial intelligence projects, and Render has almost 25% allocation in this fund.   

As per CoinGecko, the total supply for the RNDR token is 532,219,654, out of which 25% has been sold to early investors, 10% remains in reserves, and the remaining 65% is held in an escrow for supply and demand flow back to the Network. The circulating supply of the token is 392,459,381, which is 73% of the total supply. 

How It Works: 

As the Render Network overcomes the limits of the centralized cloud by renting out GPU power to creators and other protocols, device owners anywhere in the world become Node Operators. These operators commit idle GPUs and earn RNDR tokens whenever their GPU power is used to complete a job.   

When a Creator initiates a job with the task's specifics, a fee is determined based on the job's parameters and the Network's resource availability. OTOY-developed OctaneRender, a rendering application, is used by Node Operators to complete the job. The system, employing end-to-end encryption and hashing, ensures the utmost privacy and security of assets and Creators on the Network, instilling confidence in their protection.   

A multi-tier pricing model handles the job allocation, and it uses a reputation-based system to rank Node Operators and lets Creators select from three pricing tiers. Then, the Network's Proof-of-Render (PoR) consensus algorithm coordinates the job processing. Once the task is complete, the PoR algorithm updates the status, including changes to the reputation score based on the quality of the task delivered. The blockchain layer handles all payments and ensures that all Creator's and Node Operators' interactions are transparent. 

The decentralized GPU power can be used for various applications, from film and game development to training AI models. In July 2023, the project shared its plans to support AI and Machine Learning tasks, allowing Node Operators to take on rendering jobs for AI-generated graphics and prototypes. As it is a computationally demanding challenge, the Render Network’s rent-as-you-go model enables these applications to render quality images at a lower cost than centralized alternatives.   

Onchain Metrics: 

Since its inception, the Render Network has achieved significant milestones, including 5600 nodes, 35 million rendered frames, and a community of 27,834 RNDR token holders. The upcoming token migration, scheduled for July 26, has garnered substantial support from multiple exchanges, a testament to the project's growing influence and potential.   

According to onchain data from Santiment, the Render Network has been consistently growing, indicating a high level of users engaging with the blockchain. It shows that the new entrants are making their first transactions on the network.   

Key metrics, particularly compute capacity, are growing significantly year over year. Due to increased GPU power, more GPU-intensive rendering jobs are being submitted. The active addresses are also growing consistently, indicating increased direct transactions on the blockchain. 

There is a 17.7% YoY growth in frames rendered, from 2,119,813 in Q1 2023 to 2,495,084 in Q1 2024. Similarly, there was a 60% YoY growth in RNDR used, from 509,469 in Q1 2023 to 816,602 in Q1 2024. The average RNDR per job increased significantly, highlighting the token's utility.   

The recent increase in key onchain metrics proves that more market participants are adopting RNDR. This would convert into increased demand for the token, resulting in a price increase for the cryptocurrency. The migration to Solana is also considered bullish, as Render is one of the top decentralized applications, and cryptocurrencies related to Solana are outperforming the market in the current cycle.   

Token Utility: 

The project utilizes the Burn and Mint Equilibrium (BME) tokenomics model. It is meant to create value for the RNDR token through better pricing and remittance arrangements for Creators and Node Operators.  

The network calculates the cost of jobs in dollars, and Creators are required to burn RNDR equal to this dollar value to post a job on the network. This creates demand for the RNDR token. On the other hand, when Node Operators process the job, they receive rewards in RNDR tokens.  

The network mints RNDR per epoch by calculating the number of jobs processed and the percentage processed by each Node Operator. From these newly minted RNDR tokens, 90% is rewarded to Node Operators, and 10% goes to availability rewards. Part of the availability rewards are also distributed to Creators for posting jobs on the network. This mechanism adjusts emissions according to the network's demand status.   

The RNDR token primarily serves two purposes: governance and paying for jobs. RNDR holders make up the Render DAO and are eligible to submit development proposals and vote on them. Each holder's decision weight is proportional to the number of tokens held. As the platform's base currency, Creators pay RNDR for their jobs. The cost is determined by the GPU power required to render the graphics. It is measured in OctaneBench (OBH), a tool created by OYOT to define the GPU power provided by any combination of graphic cards into a single score.   

Market Metrics: 

The RNDR token witnessed an exponential growth of more than 1000% in 2023, reaching an all-time high of $13.53 on March 17, 2024. It is driven by a combination of factors, including the AI hype and the ever-increasing need for GPUs to train new machine learning models. Notably, Apple mentioned Octane, a 3D design software powered by the Render Network, in one of their keynote presentations this year, so it has also contributed to the change in social sentiment. The partnership with Apple and the technological convergence between blockchain, AI, and Big Data could continue to drive the price performance for RNDR in the coming months.    

Community & Partnerships: 

The Render Network has a large and active community. There are 195,400+ followers on X (Twitter), 19,600+ members on Telegram, and 15,200+ members on Discord. Its rendering technology, OctaneRender, is integrated into millions of Apple devices, and the network has also partnered with other large tech companies like Google, Amazon, and Microsoft. Leading film production and streaming companies like Warner Bros and Netflix also use OctaneRender to produce major work.   

The largest decentralized GPU computing platform and OTOY announced a partnership earlier this year with Stability AI and Endeavor, industry leaders in open-source Generative AI models, media, and entertainment. Together, they will work to develop standardized IP rights, production workflows, and infrastructure around emerging AI technologies.   

The Render Network Foundation, the entity behind the decentralized 3D rendering solution provider, opened applications for its grants program in June. The program aims to support the growth and stability of the Render network by offering financial assistance, technical support, community resources, and general guidance. It will fund projects of varying sizes in four key areas: development, resources, community activities, and educational initiatives. The program aims to improve the Render network and motivate its community.   

Looking Ahead:  

The demand for rendering power continues to skyrocket as the world of visual storytelling constantly pushes the boundaries of what’s possible, from 3D animation to special effects to AI-generated visuals. Finding accessible and affordable solutions is crucial for creators and AI developers, and that is where the Render Network shines.   

Apart from its core rendering capabilities, the Render Network holds immense potential for distributed AI training and inference, which fits perfectly with the ongoing narrative of web3 and AI. The Network can help entities dealing with image and video generation and the computing power required to make inferences, which can be cost-effective and scalable. The Network’s pay-as-you-go approach can appeal more to smaller enterprises and individuals, as Creators only pay for what they need.   

The Render Network makes high-end 3D content production accessible and widely distributed for the first time due to its cost-effective and powerful rendering capabilities, powered by the RNDR token. As the demand for AI and next-generation media increases, so does the demand for GPU computing power. Render Network, with its scalable GPU power at competitive rates, instills confidence in its ability to meet the industry's growing needs.