What is Render Network (RNDR)? New Premier Guide 2024

Render Network(RNDR) is a decentralized GPU rendering solution provider under OTOY, aimed at connecting creators and idle GPU resources through blockchain technology to eliminate hardware constraints, reduce time and costs, and provide digital rights management, further driving the development of the metaverse.

OTOY was founded in 2008, RNDR conducted a token sale in October 2017, and Render Network was fully launched in April 2020. Currently, Render Network has established partnerships with important companies such as Apple, Microsoft Azure, Google, Disney, and Unity.

Notably, RNDR successfully raised $30 million in funding at the end of 2021, led by Multicoin, with other investors including Alameda Research, Solana Foundation, Sfermion, Vinny Lingham, and Bill Lee. These funds will help further advance the development of Render Network.

What is Render Network?

Render Network is a decentralized cloud rendering power network, a distributed rendering solution based on GPU.

What is Render?

Rendering is the process of converting 3D models or scenes into 2D images or animations, widely used in industries such as architecture, industry, art, gaming, and film. In the current industry ecosystem, rendering is typically the last and most time-consuming step in the workflow. Rendering a complex object or scene can take hours, days, or even weeks with limited computing power.

In recent years, with technological advancements and increasing demands for realistic and high-quality visuals in movies and games, the computational power required to meet these demands has also increased. Building a high-performance professional rendering computer or even a commercial-grade rendering farm incurs high costs not only for tools but also for physical space and electricity. For individual artists or small studios, this represents a significant barrier to entry.

The Mission of Render Network

The core mission of RNDR is to liberate and aggregate surplus GPUs worldwide to create a distributed rendering network. Node operators can rent out idle GPU computing power by applying to become rendering nodes, while artists or visual studios can upload their files in specific formats to the network. They can then choose their cloud rendering solution based on rendering speed, security, and system specifications, receive a predicted price, pay the fee, and start cloud rendering.

How does Render Network work?

Creators who want to use OctaneRender for rendering need to subscribe to or purchase an OctaneRender license from the OTOY website. Then, they can export their scene documents and upload them to the RNDR platform.

On RNDR, creators can set rendering parameters, choose network nodes that suit their needs, and estimate rendering costs. To render, they must ensure that their RNDR account has enough RNDR tokens or credits. Once everything is set up, they can submit rendering requests and wait for the rendering to complete.

Once the rendering is complete, creators can review the results and, if satisfied, download the rendered images or send them via email.

Users with idle GPUs can apply to become node operators. Node providers register their GPUs with the RNDR network and rent them out to creators in need of additional computing power, receiving RNDR tokens as rewards for rendering tasks.

The Render Network nodes are divided into three tiers:

• Tier 1 – Trusted Partner Network: This level provides highly reliable and closed rendering nodes, such as Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud A2. Currently, these nodes are only open to studios and are not publicly disclosed.
• Tier 2 – Priority Network: This level is more powerful than Tier 3, with faster average speeds and the ability to handle larger, more complex rendering tasks.
• Tier 3 – Economy Network: This level provides the most economical rendering solutions with the lowest costs but longer processing times. It is suitable for scenarios where fast task completion is not required.

RNDR Token

RNDR is the token used to pay for rendering services and serves as rewards for node operators completing rendering tasks. Specifically, it has three main functions:

Paying for rendering service fees: RNDR tokens can be used to pay for rendering services on the Render network. Digital content creators can use RNDR tokens to purchase rendering resources on the platform to meet their rendering needs for large projects.

Rewarding rendering node providers: In the Render network, rendering node providers execute rendering tasks by providing computing resources to the network and receive RNDR tokens as rewards. This incentive mechanism encourages more users to participate in the Render network, provide more computing resources, and increase the network’s rendering capacity.

Participating in governance: RNDR token holders can participate in the governance of the Render network, including voting on the network’s development direction, proposing and approving proposals, etc. This governance mechanism aims to involve token holders in the development and decision-making process of the Render network, thereby promoting the healthy development of the network.

Prospects and Future Trends Analysis

According to a research report by The Insight Partners, the global rendering software market is expected to nearly double from $2.3 billion in 2021 to approximately $7.4 billion by 2028, with a compound annual growth rate of 18.2%. There is also a trend of gradually shifting from local to cloud-based rendering services.

Compared to the high costs of local rendering equipment and maintenance, cloud rendering services provide scalable, highly secure, flexible, easy-to-deploy, and cost-effective solutions. According to founder Jules Urbach, the efficiency of decentralized cloud rendering on RNDR is ten times higher than that of centralized and expensive GPU services provided by other cloud providers. Additionally, because RNDR offers Tier 1-3 services, the cost of rendering with RNDR can be one-tenth of that of centralized services for certain types of projects.

According to a report from the Render Network Foundation, the demand for cloud rendering services on RNDR is steadily growing. In March 2023, RNDR processed a total of 840,804 frames and paid out 235,955 RNDR tokens to miners, representing a nearly 15% growth compared to the previous quarter-end.

RNDR’s Future Development Roadmap

Cloud rendering requires highly reliable and stable technology. To improve speed and reduce costs, and considering Solana has more active validators and over a hundred times more TPS than Polygon, RNDR announced on 3/21 that it will migrate the mainnet to Solana based on a previous community proposal vote.

In addition to concerns about blockchain speed and traffic, there are also considerations at the programming language level. The programming languages C/C++ and Rust supported by Solana are more conducive to adoption by external developers compared to the native language Solidity on Ethereum.

Given the thriving development of Ethereum Layer 2, RNDR’s decision to migrate to Solana seems to go against the trend. However, RNDR has also hinted that once there is a Layer 2 solution that meets RNDR’s needs, it does not rule out another mainnet migration in the future.

In addition to mainnet migration, RNDR will continue to strengthen its existing cloud rendering network structure, enhance operational transparency, recruit and expand its team, and promote the development of the entire ecosystem through strategic partnerships with enterprises and creators.

BME and Reward Mechanisms

In the same community vote as the mainnet migration, RNDR proposed the Burn and Mint Equilibrium (BME) model currently being used by Helium.

In the future, after the introduction of the BME mechanism, rendering and other forms of work on RNDR will be priced in fiat currency, and creators will destroy an equivalent amount of RNDR tokens to cover the cost of the work. At the same time, RNDR has established dynamic reward mechanisms for

computing power providers (node operators), rendering service demanders (consumers), and liquidity providers (token stakers) to encourage the development of the entire ecosystem.

RNDR is expected to evolve from a pure payment function to a deflationary nature and form a more complex proprietary ecosystem.

Will RNDR Become the Next Hundredfold Coin?

From the current situation, RNDR cryptocurrency has the potential to become an asset that increases in value by a hundredfold or even a thousandfold.

One of the key factors determining whether a cryptocurrency has the potential to increase in value by a hundredfold or a thousandfold is whether it has been widely adopted in practical applications. For example, Bitcoin is widely used in multi-channel electronic payment transactions, and Dogecoin is used for tips and rewards, which has formed a consensus. These currencies can certainly be held for the long term, but entering at a low point may bring unexpected returns before they take off.

Unlike many other blockchain projects, RNDR has made tangible progress in this regard.

The RNDR project was launched as early as 2009 and was officially launched in April 2020 after completing the development of technical infrastructure and P2P platforms. In addition, RNDR is fully integrated into the ecosystem of OctaneRender 2020, OTOY’s flagship unbiased rendering application.

OctaneRender has a large user base worldwide and has been used by many companies for digital media creation, including well-known premium cable network HBO and American Bad Robot, which produces films such as Star Trek, Star Wars, and Mission: Impossible. Since its release in April, the RNDR network has completed over 140,000 frames of rendering work with a success rate of 92%.

Bottom Line

If the metaverse is a puzzle, RNDR is probably the person holding many pieces. From blockchain networks, cloud computing, AI technology, generative art, holographic images to immersive NFTs, these pieces come together to form a window into the next generation metaverse.

The technology behind RNDR is in high demand in both Web2 and Web3. I believe that in the future, RNDR may not only be crucial infrastructure for the metaverse but also the golden intersection of AI, VR, and the Metaverse sectors. Regardless of which sector of technology trends you are most interested in, RNDR is a project worth continuous attention.