The US company Del Complex wants to found the first AI nation. To do so, they have equipped a ship with 10,000 Nvidia GPUs and sent it out to sea
The American company Del Complex, which describes itself as an “alternate reality corporation”, wants to found an independent nation in international waters. This nation is to be managed by artificial intelligence.
The so-called BlueSea Frontier Compute Clusters (BSFCC) are supposedly floating data centers that will offer “over 10,000 Nvidia H100 GPUs per platform for unparalleled computing power and industry-leading performance”.
In the announcement, which has now been viewed on X with around 2.4 million views, the company explained that the closely guarded barge could operate in international waters and may therefore be exempt from international AI regulations.
But beware: the authenticity of the project is doubtful. Although the post shows realistic-looking images of a BSFCC that is apparently already sailing the world’s oceans, there are some indications that this could be a fake project or a kind of parody
Announcing: BlueSea Frontier Compute Cluster
The Biden admin’s AI Executive Order and the EU’s AI Act aim to centralize control under guise of safety
The solution is at sea.
BSFCC’s are not just barge based compute platforms, but sovereign nation stateshttps://t.co/S4iPksdFPl pic.twitter.com/rvku2Aq1aQ
– Del Complex (@DelComplex) October 30, 2023
Table of Contents
The world’s first AI nation or a huge joke?
At first glance, the action may seem strange, but behind the dubious company Del Complex is an idea that seems to have a lot of appeal. At least that’s the impression you might get if you consider the 2.4 million (as of 08.11.23) views of the post on X.
The idea behind the AI nation
What is the purported goal of the action? As Del Complex presents it, the development of AI technologies without legislative intervention appears to be the basis for the BSFCCs.
The background: As recently as October 30, US President Joe Biden issued an (Order on Safe and Trustworthy Artificial Intelligence). It is intended to “protect Americans from potential risks posed by AI systems “
The EU also wants to put a stop to the (“rapid and uncontrolled development of AI technology” with the AI Act).
Del Complex seems to be of the opinion that the regulations were introduced prematurely. That is why they want to evade them.
“The Biden administration’s recent AI executive order and the European Union’s AI law are thinly veiled attempts to centralize control under the guise of protecting citizens. This regulation not only slows the pace of innovation, but also interferes with the cosmic gift of humanity itself. These technologies are not just tools. They are the embodiment of human ambition and the realization of our potential. “
How should a BSFCC work, according to Del Complex? The US company describes the BSFCC as the “pinnacle of computing power and autonomy”. The more than 10,000 Nvidia H100 GPUs, worth over 500 million US dollars, will be used to train new AIs and work on various research projects.
Del Complex lists their research as follows:
- Artificial General Intelligence (AGI)
- Neural prostheses
- Robotics
- Clean energy
- Resilience solutions
- Fundamental scientific research
But there’s supposedly another purpose for the BSFCCs: the floating data centers will allegedly become a tax haven to attract other companies and entrepreneurs.
Guards are to be posted around the clock for protection and the facility is to be powered by solar panels.
The indications of a forgery
First hints of a fake operation give strangely presumptuous wording. Del Complex describes itself, as mentioned at the beginning, as an “alternate reality corporation”. The statement that AI is a “cosmic gift of humanity” could also be described as dubious
But it doesn’t stop at formulations.
Energy problems: John Carmack, founder of Id Software among others, has pointed out (on X), for example, that the solar panels in the images shown are not sufficient to power the entire ship with 10,000 GPUs.
In response, Del Complex admitted a communication error and claimed that the solar panels were only there to reduce the impact on the environment.
Pictures created by AI: Del Complex’s website features many pictures of employees being photographed at work. But many of these pictures have clearly been created by an AI. Strange facial expressions, chaotic lettering or illogical parts of the picture are always noticeable, as you can see in the following picture
The alleged image of Del Complex employees shows characteristics of AI-generated images. Particularly noticeable is the face of the woman on the right in the picture, the mixture of spoon and fork and partly illogical hand parts. (Image: Del Complex)
Merch and NFTs: Merchandise and NFTs can also be sold on the Del Complex website. This is not exactly common for research companies
Satire from an NFT specialist? Tech Magazine Motherboard first noticed the inconsistencies and followed up with Sterling Crispin.
Crispin is an artist and software developer and has experience with NFTs. And more importantly, he describes himself on X as a Del Complex researcher.
When asked if the action was satire, he said he was responding in his “role as a Del Complex researcher”. But his answer hardly seems to deviate from phrases that are already on the website
So here too, the clear taste of “fake” remains.
Yet a spark of reality? In response to a (inquiry from DatacenterDynamics.com) (DcD), referring to the seemingly realistic LinkedIn campaign that Crispin allegedly used to conduct real job interviews, he responded as follows:
“The Career Transparency report consists of real data from real applicants for a job that was posted on LinkedIn about 5 months ago. Del Complex is an “alternate reality company,” but it’s at home in both worlds. “
After DcD’s inquiry, Crispin released a statement purporting to clear up misinformation.
“Del Complex is a legally recognized company. I work there full-time as a researcher. I do not engage in satire. If you know me, you know that I am a sincere person with great conviction. “
“Del Complex produces tangible, digital, immaterial, rhizomatic and hyperstitional products. Del Complex describes itself as an alternate reality company. It is your job to navigate it and the nature of its products. “
If you use the combined cycled for base load, and ramp the gas turbines up and down with demand after absorbing the solar fraction, when would the battery storage system be used?
– John Carmack (@ID_AA_Carmack) October 31, 2023
Are the BSFCCs real or not?
Unfortunately, we don’t have a clear answer to this question, but the hints of some kind of satire or attempted fraud suggest that this is not an idea that is actually being realized.
Could the plan with the sovereign AI nation work?
Assuming the plan was real and there really were BSFCCs seeking sovereignty: Could the plan work?
Del Complex seems confident that the “statehood” status of each data center complies with international laws on sovereignty.
The company stated that the status of each data center is recognized by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and the Montevideo Convention.
In their opinion, they meet all the criteria for a sovereign state because each data center has…
- .. a permanent population in the form of security forces and personnel
- .. a “defined territory”
- .. a government
- .. and the “ability to enter into relations with other states”
“BSFCCs are governed by their own charter, a document that sets out the rights and responsibilities of residents and visitors. Each charter is a living document that can be amended by the BSFCC operators and their corporate partners. “
Del Complex already sees the BSFCCs as independent nations. Whether they exist or not.
In reality the recognition of a state is a highly complicated undertaking and not always clearly regulated.
Many self-proclaimed states that fulfil the conditions of international law are not internationally recognized or are only recognized by some countries . These include Transnistria, Northern Cyprus, Kosovo and Taiwan, among others.
Whether a state is really recognized depends, among other factors, on whether other countries recognize the nation. A ship on the open sea might have a hard time with that.
What do you think of the idea of letting companies found their own states? Would the world’s oceans soon be crowded with data centers or is this just a gimmick that will soon disappear? What do you think of the AI laws and decrees of the USA and the EU? Do you think the “criticism” by Del Complex is justified? Do you think the campaign is real or fake? Let us know in the comments!
