Autonomys is a network that provides the infrastructure necessary to scale decentralized AI applications on-chain. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Autonomys CEO Todd Ruoff to learn more about the company.
Todd Ruoff’s Background
Could you tell me more about your background? Ruoff said:
“I spent over two decades in traditional finance, holding senior roles at firms like Ruane, Cunniff & Goldfarb and UBS, where I focused on investment operations, equity trading, compliance, and technology. In 2017, I began exploring blockchain and crypto, drawn by the potential of these technologies to reshape finance in much the same way the internet once did. By 2018, I transitioned fully into the blockchain space, recognizing its transformative potential and the early-stage opportunities similar to those I saw during the rise of the dot-com era.”
“Now, as the CEO of Autonomys, I’m driving our mission to lead the AI3.0 revolution by providing the infrastructure necessary to scale decentralized AI applications on-chain. We see decentralized AI as a game-changer for industries, enabling more autonomous and transparent AI systems. My role is to ensure Autonomys stays at the forefront of this innovation, advancing technology while building strong industry partnerships and driving strategic growth. In addition, I lecture on cryptocurrency at Rutgers University, helping finance students understand the intersection of traditional finance and blockchain’s role in the decentralized future.”
Formation Of The Company
How did the idea for the company come together? Ruoff shared:
“The idea for Autonomys originated from a vision to create a hyper-scalable and eco-friendly blockchain solution capable of supporting the growing demands of decentralized AI applications. The journey began in 2018 when two builders recognized the potential of using commodity hardware to let anyone run a node with zero barriers to entry. This vision culminated in the founding of Subspace Labs, where the team introduced the Proof of Archival Storage consensus protocol, where idle storage from users’ computers forms the foundation for consensus.”
“This innovative approach laid the groundwork for a Distributed Storage Network that could archive vast amounts of data efficiently across potentially millions of nodes. As development progressed through 2024, we launched the Aries and Gemini testnets, refining the technology while gathering valuable insights from our global network of users. The transition to the Autonomys brand in 2024 marked a strategic focus towards prioritizing decentralized AI, reflecting our commitment to fostering autonomy for both humans and AI in a transparent, scalable, and secure collaborative environment.”
Favorite Memory
What has been your favorite memory working for the company so far? Ruoff reflected:
“The conclusion of the Gemini testnet was a defining moment for the team because it signaled that we were ready for the big stage. Over 30,000 users from around the world had downloaded and installed the farming client, pushing the network to scale in ways the team could not with internal testing. The sheer global engagement and the network’s ability to handle real-world data reinforced that Autonomys was on the right track. It wasn’t just a technical milestone—it was the moment we knew the infrastructure was ready to support the future of decentralized AI on a massive scale.”
Core Products
What are the company’s core products and features? Ruoff explained:
“The Autonomys Network delivers a powerful decentralized infrastructure designed to scale AI applications on-chain, serving as the foundation for AI3.0. Our core offerings include a high-performance Distributed Storage Network (DSN), which offers massive scalability for storing things like AI training data and federated learning models. Its modular blockchain architecture, with decoupled execution domains, provides powerful storage and compute resources, which can be customized for an application’s workloads. The Auto Drive dApp allows users to upload any file directly to the blockchain, where it’s verifiably and permanently stored forever. The remaining tools in the Auto stack will be complementary, such as AutoID, which will enable humans and autonomous agents to cryptographically prove their identities to one another.”
“Holistically, this comprehensive infrastructure addresses key challenges like data availability, access, and privacy, while ensuring transparency and seamless integration with other blockchain ecosystems. These features make Autonomys a unique and essential platform for AI developers, data scientists, and Web3 builders looking to push the boundaries of AI within a decentralized, secure environment.”
Challenges Faced
Have you faced any challenges in your sector of work recently? Ruoff acknowledged:
“It’s tough to cut through the noise in the AI blockchain space. A lot of projects have relied heavily on marketing to build large followings, but when you look deeper, many of them don’t have much beyond a white paper. The challenge for every project is differentiating yourself and standing out amidst that hype. To overcome it, Autonomys has taken a straightforward approach—launching mainnet. By delivering real, tangible results rather than just promises, our company is demonstrating the strength of the technology, and the commitment to scaling decentralized AI.”
Differentiation From The Competition
What differentiates the company from its competition? Ruoff affirmed:
“Autonomys stands out from its competition through its innovative Proof of Archival Storage consensus protocol. Unlike traditional blockchain solutions, consensus is achieved using the storage users pledge from commodity hardware. This inherently allows Autonomys to ingest vast amounts of data, which secures the network using data as its fuel. This distributed storage combined with decoupled, modular execution environments, makes it an ideal platform for the seamless deployment of AI-powered decentralized applications. Developers wanting to leverage advanced AI capabilities require significant computational resources and data permanence.”
“Autonomys has achieved this by creating the first ever incentive compatible blockchain, where anyone can participate in consensus, while developers and users of the network are assured their data will remain on the blockchain forever. Other networks struggle with the problem of ‘blockchain bloat,’ however, this is actually a feature that increasingly secures the Autonomys network as it grows in size, enhancing both security and performance. Furthermore, the rebranding to Autonomys reflects a commitment to not just decentralized storage and compute, but also to fostering collaboration between humans and AI. The company is uniquely positioned to be a leader in the evolving landscape of AI-driven blockchain technology.”
Future Company Goals
What are some of the company’s future company goals? Ruoff concluded:
“As the demand for AI infrastructure evolves, the increasing demand for high-speed compute will necessitate higher throughput than is currently available on any network. To address this, the researchers at Autonomys have designed a sharding architecture to allow for computation in parallel across multiple nodes. Sharding will significantly increase data availability and access beyond 100 MBPS+, with network throughput exceeding 100 GBPS. The goal is for Autonomys to remain positioned as the leading infrastructure provider for AI 3.0 by integrating cutting-edge advancements in Web3 and AI.”
