Testnet | Notion

Web/API layer: Public users interact through an API service front‑end or a chat demo. The API service proxies requests to Web2 APIs (such as HTTP or existing AI services) and forwards valid requests to the Ambient network.
Auction app: The auction app submits requests to an RPC node, which interacts with the on‑chain program.

The Ambient Main Program runs on the Solana‑compatible chain and manages core logic:

Bucket & bundle requests: it groups individual queries into bundles to improve throughput.
Auction creation and winner selection: the program creates auctions for each bundle, receives bids from miners and selects winners. The litepaper explains that queries enter the system via an auction contract where users specify a maximum time and payment; miners bid, and refunds are issued if miners complete the query within the time limit . Validators are chosen randomly based on Logit Stake (LStake) .
Validator selection and validation ranges: for each bundle, the program assigns validators and defines the token ranges they must validate.
Result collection and tracking: the program collects validation results and records success or failure on‑chain, ensuring that miners are compensated only when results are correct and timely.

RPC node: Bridges the on‑chain program with miners. It sends auction events to miners, receives bids, and forwards results back to the chain.
GPU miner/validator: Each miner runs an RPC/validator service and a vLLM instance (a high‑performance LLM runtime). The miner:
- Listens for auctions and places bids.
- Retrieves bundled queries and performs inference using the network’s LLM.
- Produces hashed logits and submits partial results to the chain for PoL verification .
- Listens for validation assignments and recomputes selected tokens to verify other miners’ results, writing validation data on‑chain.
- Manages the vLLM cluster (loading the foundation model and scaling inference across GPUs).
Other miners: Compete in auctions and perform inference/validation just like the primary miner. Competition for auctions incentivizes low latency and efficient computation.

Workflow Example

User query submission: A developer or agent sends a request via the API service, specifying constraints such as maximum response time and the amount they are willing to pay. Queries are grouped into bundles by the auction app.
Auction and bidding: The on‑chain program announces an auction for a bundle. Miners listen for auctions and place bids. Miners whose bids win commit to delivering the results within the agreed time. According to the litepaper, miners’ bids are refunded if they complete the query within the specified period .
Inference and result submission: The winning miner runs the query on its vLLM instance, generates hashed logits for each token and submits the output and PoL hashes to the chain. Validators are randomly selected based on their logit stake to audit the result .
Validation: Validators recompute a small portion of the query (a randomly selected token) using the same context and model. If the hashed logits match, the result is accepted . This process ensures that validation is inexpensive (only one token of inference) compared with the original computation.
Settlement and reward: When results are accepted, the miner receives compensation (transaction + inflation‑based) and the user’s payment is released. If the miner fails to deliver on time or produces incorrect results, they forfeit their bond and the query is re‑auctioned.

Developers/users: To try the testnet, developers will call the API service or chat demo with their queries. They can specify maximum response times and payment amounts. The network accepts HTTP and BitTorrent data sources via integrated oracles . During the testnet phase, expect limited throughput and experimental changes as the team optimizes auction parameters and validation ranges.
Miners: Potential miners should provision GPUs and run the Ambient miner software, which includes an RPC/validator component and a vLLM runtime. Miners need to listen for auctions, place competitive bids, execute inference tasks, and participate in validation. Because the network focuses on a single open‑weights model, miners can optimize their hardware for predictable workloads. Proof‑of‑work rewards are predictable and not dependent on expensive enterprise GPUs .
Validators: Validators typically run alongside miners. They should maintain synchronization with the blockchain, store the foundation model (or relevant shards) and be prepared to re‑compute small portions of other miners’ outputs. Validators are selected based on their logit stake and receive rewards for successful validations .