Lilypad
Lilypad is a San Francisco-based startup building a decentralized GPU compute network that lets AI developers deploy and monetize models on a blockchain-settled marketplace while resource providers earn token rewards for running inference jobs.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2023
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Lilypad does
Lilypad is a San Francisco-based, privately held company (legal entity Lilypad Network Inc.) building a decentralized GPU compute network for AI workloads. Founded in 2023 with a 1-10 person team, the platform enables AI developers to deploy and monetize AI models via a Module Marketplace, resource providers to run GPU nodes and earn token rewards, and end users to submit inference jobs through an API (Anura) or CLI. The protocol is built on the Bacalhau peer-to-peer network for job scheduling and uses Arbitrum Sepolia for blockchain-based settlement of compute transactions in ETH and the LP utility token.
The core technology stack combines containerized AI/compute modules (Stable Diffusion, Llama, Mistral, AlphaFold2, voice synthesis, Filecoin data preparation) with decentralized orchestration, crypto payment rails, and developer tooling (CLI, JS CLI Wrapper, VS Code extension, n8n workflows, ML Workbench). Currently operating on an Incentivized Testnet (IncentiveNet), Lilypad has a multi-phase roadmap through 2025 covering tooling, smart-contract audits, whitepaper and tokenomics (with CryptoEconLab), and mainnet launch with the LP token and curated Module Marketplace.
The business model is usage-based compute fees paired with marketplace commissions on module utilization, though no pricing is publicly disclosed and no revenue is currently generated. Go-to-market is product-led and community-led: self-serve developer onboarding via documentation, Discord, and GitHub, complemented by conference participation (TOKEN2049, ETHDenver, Devcon, ETHCC) and a Builderverse bounty program. Key technology dependencies include Bacalhau (core P2P layer), Arbitrum (settlement), and Filecoin (storage prep). The company has raised $1.9M in a single disclosed April 2024 round from unnamed investors.
Lilypad firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Lilypad
- Legal name
- Lilypad Network Inc.
- Website
- https://lilypad.tech
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2023
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Lilypad is a San Francisco-based startup building a decentralized GPU compute network that lets AI developers deploy and monetize models on a blockchain-settled marketplace while resource providers earn token rewards for running inference jobs.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Lilypad industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Decentralized AI Compute Infrastructure
- NAICS
- Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (518), Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (518210)
- SIC
- Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373), Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Decentralized GPU/AI Compute Networks (training/inference, GPU renting, model hosting) (FSAPALAC)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- AI Compute Cloud & GPU-as-a-Service (HDAAAAAK), Developer APIs & Node Access (RPC providers, node infrastructure APIs) (FSAPABAC)
Keywords
Where Lilypad is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Lilypad business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- Compute Job Fees: AI developers pay for compute jobs run on the network. Resource providers earn for every job run based on competitive pricing they set.
- Module Marketplace Revenue: AI developers can monetize their models by deploying to the Module Marketplace and earning revenue each time their model is utilized by others.
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels8 records
Lilypad product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Lilypad operates a decentralized GPU compute network that lets AI developers host, run, and monetize AI models on distributed hardware, with blockchain payment rails (ETH and LP utility token) on Arbitrum Sepolia. Resource providers run compute nodes and earn rewards for every job executed at competitive prices they set. Customers access the network through an Inference API (Anura), a CLI, a Module Marketplace, and developer tooling including a JS CLI Wrapper, VS Code extension, and n8n-based Lilypad Workflows.
Product overview
Lilypad is a decentralized AI compute network platform built on blockchain technology (Arbitrum) for hosting, running, and monetizing AI models. The ecosystem consists of the core Lilypad Network (decentralized GPU compute with blockchain payment rails), the Module Marketplace (AI model catalog), Inference API (Anura - programmatic access), CLI tools, and ecosystem projects. Users can deploy AI models and earn revenue when utilized, run AI inference jobs via API or CLI, or become Resource Providers running compute nodes for rewards. The platform supports various AI modalities including text (Llama, Mistral LLMs), image generation (Stable Diffusion), video generation (SD Video), audio synthesis, and protein structure prediction (AlphaFold2). The current Incentivized Testnet is live with Mainnet launch planned for 2025 alongside the Lilypad Token.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Lilypad Network Decentralized GPU compute network built on blockchain (Arbitrum Sepolia) enabling AI model distribution with ETH and LP token payment rails. Users can host, run, and monetize AI models on the network.
- Module Marketplace Curated marketplace of community-built AI models and programs on Lilypad. Developers deploy modules such as Stable Diffusion, Llama LLM, Mistral LLM, AlphaFold2, and others, and earn revenue each time a model is utilized.
- Inference API (Anura) Official AI inference API (Anura) for submitting inference jobs, processing requests, and retrieving results programmatically on the decentralized network.
- Lilypad CLI Command-line interface for running compute jobs, managing workloads, and interacting with the Lilypad Network directly from terminal.
- Lilypad Workflows n8n workflow templates for AI automation using Lilypad AI models, enabling automated pipelines and task orchestration.
- Lilypad ML Workbench Developer platform for using the Lilypad network to train and run AI models.
- RP-Beta Program Early Resource Provider program allowing participants to run compute nodes on Lilypad Network and earn rewards for powering AI workloads.
Companies that use Lilypad
Customer profileSegments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Lilypad technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration9 records
AI capability10 records
Feature5 records
Lilypad partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- CryptoEconLabcoreIn partnership with CryptoEconLab, the Lilypad Research Team will craft the economic systems that will power Lilypad at Mainnet, ensuring a fair and incentivized environment for all participants.
- BacalhaucoreLilypad is built on Bacalhau peer-to-peer network for decentralized communication between compute nodes. Bacalhau v1.6.0 is the supported version for running distributed compute jobs.
- ArbitrumcoreLilypad Network uses Arbitrum Sepolia Testnet to settle compute transactions. Blockchain payment rails for the protocol.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights7 records
Lilypad competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Render Network: Decentralized GPU rendering and compute network using blockchain-based payment rails. Closest direct competitor to Lilypad in decentralized GPU compute for AI workloads, with a similar two-sided marketplace model connecting providers and developers.
- Akash Network: Decentralized cloud computing marketplace for renting compute resources, including GPU capacity. Competes directly with Lilypad in the permissionless compute marketplace category, with Cosmos-based settlement vs. Lilypad's Arbitrum stack.
- io.net: Decentralized GPU network purpose-built for AI/ML workloads, aggregating underutilized GPUs globally. Directly comparable to Lilypad on target customer (AI developers) and product (distributed GPU inference), with substantially larger funding.
- Gensyn: Decentralized protocol for ML training compute, targeting the AI compute scarcity problem with a similar two-sided marketplace. Overlaps with Lilypad on decentralized AI compute delivery, with greater focus on training workloads.
- Flux: Decentralized cloud infrastructure network with GPU nodes supporting AI workloads. Competes with Lilypad on permissionless GPU compute provision, though Flux has a broader scope including general hosting.
- Vast.ai: Marketplace for renting GPU compute from a global pool of providers, primarily targeting AI/ML training and inference. Directly comparable on the supply-side matching problem Lilypad solves, with an established track record and price-discovery model.
- Salad Technologies: Distributed GPU compute network that aggregates consumer gaming PCs to serve AI and rendering workloads. Similar two-sided model and target customer as Lilypad, with a different go-to-market focused on consumer bandwidth sharing.
Broad incumbents
- CoreWeave: Specialized GPU cloud provider purpose-built for AI workloads, now serving major foundation model customers. Represents the centralized incumbent benchmark Lilypad competes against on price-performance, not head-to-head.
- Together AI: AI compute cloud offering GPU instances and serverless inference for open-source model deployment. Adjacent competitor that bundles AI-native tooling on top of GPU infrastructure — sets the bar for developer experience Lilypad must meet.
Emerging players
- Spheron Network: Decentralized compute marketplace combining DePIN principles with AI/ML workload support. Emerging peer with partial overlap on decentralized GPU provisioning and similar target customer segments.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Lilypad social profiles
Digital presenceLilypad financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Lilypad leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Lilypad funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Lilypad M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Lilypad
What does Lilypad do?
Lilypad operates a decentralized GPU compute network that lets AI developers host, run, and monetize AI models on distributed hardware, with blockchain payment rails (ETH and LP utility token) on Arbitrum Sepolia. Resource providers run compute nodes and earn rewards for every job executed at competitive prices they set. Customers access the network through an Inference API (Anura), a CLI, a Module Marketplace, and developer tooling including a JS CLI Wrapper, VS Code extension, and n8n-based Lilypad Workflows.
Is Lilypad a public or private company?
Lilypad is a private company. It is classified as unknown and is currently operating.
When was Lilypad founded?
Lilypad was founded in 2023. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Lilypad based?
Lilypad is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does Lilypad make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Compute Job Fees are the primary driver. The others are module Marketplace Revenue.
Who are Lilypad's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Render Network, Akash Network, io.net, Gensyn, Flux, Vast.ai and Salad Technologies. Broad incumbents are CoreWeave and Together AI. Spheron Network is listed as an emerging player.
Does Lilypad have an API?
Yes. Lilypad offers an Inference API for submitting AI inference jobs, processing requests, and retrieving results. The API enables developers to programmatically run AI compute jobs on the decentralized network. Documentation is available at docs.lilypad.tech. A JS CLI Wrapper is also available for running the Lilypad CLI locally. Developer documentation is at docs.lilypad.tech.
What industry is Lilypad in?
Lilypad's product category is Decentralized AI Compute Infrastructure. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAPALAC, Decentralized GPU/AI Compute Networks (training/inference, GPU renting, model hosting), with a secondary code of HDAAAAAK, AI Compute Cloud & GPU-as-a-Service. Its NAICS code is 518 and its SIC code is 7373.