What is Advanced Computing? Most people are unaware that the traditional computing model of CPUs, servers and hard drives is changing. New hardware devices such as Blockchain ASICs, Tensor Processing Units for AI, or Massively Parallel HPC/GPU Clusters are being deployed at vertiginous rates. The characteristics of these new devices are redefining the traditional form and footprint of computing infrastructure – such as data centers and equipment therein.
Central Oregon and Washington are blessed with the right resources and people to become a major location for the development of advanced computing infrastructure. If done properly, the creation of facilities for blockchain, AI, or HPC can bring significant economic benefits to our inland communities.
Consider Amity Labs journey for example. We started as one of the first cryptocurrency miners in Oregon at a time when the topic was confined to the underground and to EECS journals.
While speculators filled warehouses with machines from overseas and emptied them of people – we took a different direction. Our solid background in engineering, energy, and innovation led us to invest in infrastructure, R&D and product design.
We became makers and developers, known for service and reputation. For instance, using our facility as an R&D lab, we designed a new type of power supply (PSU), optimized for mining and for local manufacture. Thanks to years of testing and refinement under real use conditions, our PSUs quickly became recognized for performance and reliability.
Today, these PSUs drive tens of MW of blockchain capacity worldwide, and have created genuine new labor opportunities for rural Oregonians. Equipment sales accounted for two thirds of our 2017 revenues. To the best of our knowledge, we’re the only significant domestic maker of such blockchain-related equipment.
Our facility remains one of the largest independent blockchain nodes in Oregon, and serves as a research lab where we perfect the next generation of products and services. Several innovations in blockchain computing infrastructure were pioneered by Amity Labs there.
We need your help to take it to the next level. Our next project is the construction of the first mixed-use data center, combining hosting space for blockchain computing, HPC/AI devices, and traditional servers.
The planned facility will incorporate design features we developed during our years as cryptocurrency miners to reduce cost and risk. The facility will also serve as an R&D and equipment manufacturing site.
Amity Labs is one of the few advanced computing practitioners able to make this model of cross-activity integration work in practice. We’ve also managed to connect these technologies to our local economy and community. Join us and help us scale it up!
