AI training for frontier models remains concentrated in hyperscale data centers, while decentralized GPU networks are increasingly targeting inference and routine workloads as a lower-cost option. Executives from Theta Network, Ovia Systems, Fluence and Salad Technologies describe how consumer and gaming GPUs can handle open-source models, data processing and geographically distributed tasks that do not require tightly synchronized hardware. These networks are positioned as a complementary layer in the AI computing stack rather than a replacement for centralized training clusters.

The EU's DAC8, built on the OECD's CARF, requires crypto exchanges and custodians to start gathering user activity data in 2026, while decentralized finance remains out of scope. Taxbit's Colby Mangels, a former OECD adviser, said the intermediary-first approach is intentional and could change as AML standards evolve; a June 2025 FATF report shows regulators still struggle to assign DeFi accountability.

As banks and payment firms increasingly test public blockchains and governments explore central bank digital currencies, Aleo Network's policy lead Yaya Fanusie warns that financial privacy is becoming a core structural issue. He argues that zero-knowledge tools could reconcile public ledger transparency with traditional confidentiality, but adoption is stalled as regulators demand real-world evidence while industry waits for clear rules.

In the past week, Aptos proposed opt-in post-quantum signatures and Solana ran a quantum-resistant testnet, while parts of the Bitcoin community urged faster work on quantum safety. Several major networks treat quantum risk as a long-term engineering challenge, even as Bitcoin debates how prominently and urgently to address it.

Former SEC counsel Ashley Ebersole said regulatory attitudes, rather than technology, have been the main barrier to compliant real-world asset tokenization, though the Securities and Exchange Commission's stance has begun to shift. He outlined models where tokenized equities are issued through regulated intermediaries with full shareholder rights, while warning that differing global rules and yield structures still constrain cross-border and income-bearing RWA products.