Phase 0 protocol and reference implementation

Federated AI compute,
without pretending the internet is one GPU.

FACF is an open protocol and reference architecture for routing eligible AI workloads across independently operated compute nodes — with explicit policy, short leases, metering and bounded fallback.

Whole-workload schedulingOne complete request or job runs inside one provider cell.
Human-controlled capacityProviders choose models, hours, power limits and concurrency.
Fail-closed policyUnknown identity, trust or data class never expands access.
The practical architecture

Coordinate independent cells.
Keep execution local.

The WAN control plane discovers capacity and places work. Local runtimes such as Ollama or vLLM execute it. FACF does not stretch tensor parallelism across consumer internet links.

Workload ownerApplication or agentOpenAI-compatible request or asynchronous job
Control planeGateway + brokerIdentity · policy · scheduling · leases · metering · fallback
Provider cellFACF agent + runtimeAllowlisted model · local limits · outbound authenticated channel
Why now

Useful capacity already exists.
The coordination layer does not.

01 / DISCOVER

Fragmented compute

Laptops, workstations and servers sit idle while inference demand remains concentrated in a few centralised providers.

02 / CONTROL

Different constraints

Nodes vary by hardware, model, trust, geography, availability, cost and network quality. Policy must come before placement.

03 / MEASURE

Verifiable service

Availability, latency, throughput and token counts need evidence before marketplaces, payouts or capacity claims.

Trust by design

Clear boundaries beat vague promises.

The first network is deliberately narrow: manually approved EU providers, public or non-sensitive text workloads and approved open-weight models.

  • Provider agents open outbound authenticated connections
  • The broker never receives arbitrary shell access
  • Request bodies are not logged by default
  • Providers can pause, drain or stop sharing immediately
  • Fallback stops after client-visible streaming begins
Open protocol. Managed network.

Adoption and sustainable stewardship can reinforce each other.

Protocol schemas, the community agent, conformance fixtures and baseline reference components are intended to remain open under Apache-2.0. Cloud Computing Oy may operate the official managed network, verified-provider programme, enterprise control plane, billing, support and service-level commitments.

Pilot path

Start small. Measure everything.
Earn the right to scale.

PHASE 0

Protocol simulator

Scheduling, leases, providers, privacy-safe metering, Ollama boundary and fallback orchestration.

PHASE 1

Verified federation

Three to five approved provider cells, production identity, transport, persistence and conformance.

PHASE 2

Managed service

Customer gateway, provider programme, audited accounting and commercial service guarantees.