Exclusive interview with DeepLink Protocol CEO: DePIN changes the cloud gaming market

Original | Odaily Planet Daily ( @OdailyChina )

Author｜Nan Zhi ( @Assassin_Malvo )

There are billions of gamers around the world, and the size of the gaming market and the demand for equipment are constantly increasing. However, due to the huge computing power generated by the explosion of AI, GPU prices remain high. The cost for users to enjoy 3A masterpieces is very high, which is also a major obstacle for game manufacturers to expand their user base.

In this context, cloud gaming has begun to take the stage. Through 5G networks and centralized server resource deployment, it can provide players with a delay-free, high-quality gaming experience. In 2023, the annual scale of Chinas game cloud market will reach US$1.74 billion, and the global cloud gaming market will reach US$5.76 billion. According to Fortune Business Insights, this market will grow at a compound annual growth rate of 37.9% starting in 2024 and exceed US$100 billion by 2032.

However, cloud gaming also faces several major problems. First, in order to meet the needs of a large number of players online at the same time, cloud gaming requires high-performance and stable server support, which has a relatively high initial cost. In addition, there are also considerable iteration and maintenance costs, which will eventually be passed on to consumers . Second, cloud gaming requires a large amount of network bandwidth and ensures low network latency. Especially for competitive games, network latency is a crucial factor in the gaming experience.

Looking back at the last decade, the cloud gaming pioneer OnLive shouted the slogan of ending the personal console market but eventually went bankrupt: although OnLive spent a huge amount of money to give away OnLive streaming consoles for free, because it needed to build and maintain a large amount of GPU server infrastructure, in addition to setting up a subscription service model, OnLives users also needed to pay a monthly fee to access its game library. The high cost of use was extremely unattractive to users and thus failed. In recent years, despite strong financial and technical support, Googles Stadia was announced to be closed last year due to revenue and expenditure and service quality issues.

The market needs a new solution to provide a cloud gaming experience with lower cost, higher performance and wider coverage . For this reason, Odaily Planet Daily interviewed Mr. FENG, co-founder and CEO of DeepLink, to talk about how DeepLink will bring innovation to the cloud gaming track through its DePIN, AI and cloud gaming technologies.

Let’s talk about why we created DeepLink and what is the project’s mission and vision?

FENG: Our team has more than 14 years of experience in the cloud gaming field. We have previously developed large-scale cloud gaming and cloud e-sports systems, so we are very familiar with the problems in the cloud gaming industry. We believe that blockchain technology is the key to solving industry problems, so we founded DeepLink in Singapore 4 years ago, combining AI, blockchain and rendering streaming technology to provide high-quality, low-latency cloud gaming experience . Through DeepLink Protocol, gamers can enjoy 3A masterpieces at a low cost without having to buy expensive hardware, and support seamless cross-device experience, whether it is PC, mobile phone or other terminal devices, can get a consistent gaming experience.

In a nutshell, our mission is to enable global gamers to play high-quality games anytime, anywhere at a cost-effective price, and to achieve our ultimate vision of reaching 2 billion gamers worldwide.

How does DeepLink achieve this new cloud gaming experience?

FENG: From the underlying technology point of view, DeepLink no longer uses traditional centralized servers, but uses GPU resources provided by global miners to build a distributed computing network. Then it adopts a peer-to-peer network architecture to achieve direct data transmission between users and miner nodes, reduce latency, and based on network slicing technology, intelligently select the optimal transmission path according to network conditions in different regions to ensure service quality.

Specifically, our products are divided into two parts, one is DeepLink Protocol and the other is DeepLink Software . DeepLink Protocol is a decentralized AI cloud gaming protocol that leverages blockchain technology, distributed computing, and streaming media transmission technology, allowing game developers to integrate our games into cloud gaming platforms . This protocol supports ultra-low latency game rendering and can be widely used in a variety of scenarios, including cloud gaming services, cloud Internet cafes, and cloud e-sports hotels.

DeepLink Software is a software developed based on DeepLink Protocol, and is a cloud gaming platform for end-users . Users can remotely access GPU servers through our DeepLink Software, enjoy cloud gaming services, and play large 3A games smoothly without high-end local hardware.

What level of gaming experience can DeepLink provide?

FENG: First of all, in terms of gaming experience, through AI and streaming technology, DeepLink can achieve 1 ms ultra-low latency, 8K resolution, 244 Hz high refresh rate and 24-hour uninterrupted service.

As for the cost, compared with fully configured devices, DeepLink only costs 20% of the hardware required to play 3A games . Users only need to configure an ordinary CPU and a high-end gaming screen to enjoy the top gaming experience. This is not only for individual users, but also for Internet cafes and e-sports hotels, which can help them transform to a light asset development model, reduce initial investment costs, and thus improve capital turnover and expansion capabilities.

In addition, DeepLink has strong device compatibility, and users can play on a variety of devices, including PCs, mobile phones, tablets, etc. Our cloud gaming functions cover all mainstream systems on the market, including Windows, MacOS, Linux, iOS, Android and other operating systems. Not only on the user side, the games native platform no longer has boundaries on DeepLink, whether it is PS exclusive or Switch exclusive, it no longer poses a problem for users. Only one device is needed to play all platform and all categories of games, and no longer requires a series of cumbersome PC and host devices.

We have recently supported Apples Vision Pro, which is a good example. This device brings a new way of interaction and a novel visual experience, but its computing power is not strong enough to play high-end games. However, through the web version of DeepLink Software, its excellent visual effects can be combined with games to create an unprecedented experience.

Users gaming experience depends on decentralized GPU equipment providers, so what is the attraction for these providers to join DeepLink?

FENG: Our GPU device miners are divided into two categories:

• Individual home GPU miners: Individuals or Internet cafes with high-end GPU computers can share their GPU machines and receive 1 billion DLC rewards each year, which is currently valued at about 3 million US dollars. The users of this type of GPU machine are mainly individual cloud game users. This type of miner needs to purchase a node license before participating in mining. We will start selling mining nodes in mid-August.

• Professional data center GPU miners: Generally, the participants are large miners with strong financial strength. They also receive 1 billion DLC rewards every year. The users of this type of GPU machines are mainly cloud e-sports hotels and Internet cafes. This type of miners do not need to purchase node authorization to participate in mining.

The mining mechanism is that no matter how many GPU machines participate, a total of 2 billion DLC rewards will be obtained, so there must be miners who participate first, so that they can get the most DLC benefits. As more machines join, the tokens allocated to a single GPU machine will decrease.

On the other hand, our team has the industrys first-class cloud gaming and cloud e-sports game rendering streaming technology, which can stream GPU machines to users through ultra-low latency, rather than simply sharing GPUs. We have 14 years of technical accumulation in related fields, which is a technical capability that other GPU projects do not have. In addition, 1.4 million users are using our products through DeepLink software, which can provide real and long-term economic value for miners.

Let’s talk about how the specific model of the DePIN network works.

FENG: We provide two GPU mining modes. The first mode allows individual users to temporarily share their home computers with other users and stop sharing at any time. This mode also requires individuals to stake a certain amount of tokens. The advantage of this model is that the sharers can set their own prices, making the service relatively affordable.

The second model is that miners place GPU servers in IDC centers. They need to pledge a certain amount of tokens and provide long-term stable services. The GPU servers provided by miners are specifically used for gaming services, so this model provides high reliability and stability. Since miners have pledged tokens, they have the obligation and motivation to maintain the stability and reliability of the servers to protect their assets.

Introducing the Token System

FENG: DeepLinks token is called DLC, and it is currently in the final round of public sales. It is the core token that connects the entire ecosystem. Users need to pay DLC tokens when renting our GPU equipment to play 3A games. It is also the core source of income for miners. As mentioned earlier, when miners join the network to provide GPU equipment, they need to pledge a certain amount of tokens. This is the core use case of the token. The token connects users and miners to form a closed-loop economic system.

One of the main reasons why we use a token model in DeepLink is that we need to incentivize GPU miners in order to attract miners to join.

In addition, we have introduced a deflation mechanism. When users use tokens to pay for cloud gaming services, 100% of the DLC tokens paid into the DeepLink Protocol will be directly destroyed. This mechanism can gradually increase the value of tokens and reduce their circulation in the market.

Could you please tell us a little bit about the team background, current stage of development and future plans?

FENG: The core technical team members of DeepLink Protocol come from global technology companies including Cisco, Intel, NVIDIA, Huawei, etc., and have been engaged in the cloud gaming industry since 2011. It has completed a total of more than US$ 8 million in angel round and A round financing , and more than US$5 million in public sale fundraising, with participation from DeepBrain Chain Foundation, Gobi Ventures, JDI, Waterdrip, Meezan, DePINX, FBG, Open Infra, NeoVentures, DePINLab, DWF Lab, Amber Lab, CoinLS, Hycons, Rock Capital, BTR Ventures, HKC, PS Corporation, Kmtle Corporation, Dan FamilyWorks, Horman, FireHustle, GC Capital and other communities and institutions in Japan, North America, Europe and other Asia.

DeepLink currently has more than 1.4 million users, 600,000 monthly active users, covering more than 110 countries. Our goal is to reach more than 200 million users in the next five years. In addition, many professional hardware developers are developing cloud gaming hardware products based on DeepLink Protocol to further reduce user costs.

Does DeepLink have any recent activities that you would like users to focus on?

FENG: In the next 1 to 2 weeks, DeepLink Protocol will start selling nodes on the official website. Only node owners can participate in CPU traffic mining and personal GPU machine mining. The total reward is 12% of the DLC tokens, that is, 12 billion, of which 4% is given to CPU traffic nodes and 8% is allocated to personal GPU nodes. The more users the DeepLink Protocol network has, the more network traffic and computing power it will need, which will require more CPU traffic machines and more GPU computing machines to meet the needs of the DeepLink network. By purchasing node authorization, users have the opportunity to participate in mining to obtain rewards, and ultimately achieve the goal of decentralization while helping DeepLink to develop faster.