Question 1

What is AKT, and how does Akash provide cloud computing services?

Accepted Answer

AKT is the native token of Akash Network. Akash is a decentralized cloud computing marketplace: users who need CPU, memory, storage, or GPUs define their deployment requirements; independent providers bid; after a user selects a bid, a lease is created and the application runs on that provider's infrastructure. AKT is used on the network for staking, governance, and gas; under the BME settlement model, it also serves as the lease settlement currency. It is not computing power itself, nor is it the same as the ACT credits that users use to prepay for computing power.

Question 2

What is Akash's marketplace process from deploying an application to creating a lease?

Accepted Answer

The basic process for using Akash is as follows: a user describes the resources an application needs in an SDL, a YAML-format file; independent providers submit bids for the deployment; the user selects a bid based on price, location, and provider reputation; once accepted, a lease is created and the application begins running. A lease is an active escrow agreement between the user and provider and may be terminated by either party. This process explains why the payment mechanism must meet two needs at once: users want to estimate and fund computing costs in terms close to U.S. dollars, while providers need to receive compensation through on-chain settlement. BME uses ACT for the former and AKT for the latter.

Question 3

What can AKT be used for?

Accepted Answer

AKT has three core uses: staking, governance, and gas. Staking allows tokens to participate in the network security mechanism, governance allows holders to take part in on-chain decisions, and gas is the processing fee paid when submitting transactions on the Akash chain. In the BME design for the computing marketplace, AKT also has a settlement role: leases are ultimately settled with providers in AKT. Therefore, “paying for cloud computing” must be distinguished across two layers—tenants typically prepay computing credit in ACT, while providers receive AKT at settlement; AKT, ACT, and gas must not be treated as the same type of payment balance.

Question 4

What is the difference between ACT and AKT?

Accepted Answer

ACT (Akash Compute Token) is a computing credit used to fund deployments and pay lease bills, with a target peg of approximately 1 ACT to US$1 of computing credit; AKT, by contrast, is the network's native token and settlement currency. ACT is not a freely tradable stablecoin. ACT is non-transferable. Balances are bound to the funding account, organization, or project and may be spent only by the marketplace module when settling leases; they cannot be transferred peer-to-peer or traded. Users can obtain ACT by burning AKT; the official user documentation also states that credit-card deposits in Console can fund deployments with ACT.

Question 5

How does BME convert an ACT top-up into AKT settlement for providers?

Accepted Answer

BME (Burn Mint Equilibrium) seeks to let users consume computing power using a stable dollar-denominated basis while involving AKT in the payment flow. When users fund credit, the system burns AKT and mints ACT according to the price; the corresponding AKT is recorded as reminting allowance in the BME treasury, so it is out of circulation while the tenant holds ACT. When a lease bill becomes due, the system reads the AKT/USD settlement price, burns the ACT used for that bill, and then calculates the amount of AKT due to the provider. The settlement amount is denominated in ACT, with the formula akt_out = floor(act_spend / P_settle), where act_spend is the ACT consumed in this instance and P_settle is the U.S. dollar price per AKT at settlement; payment is made first from the treasury's reminting allowance, and new AKT is minted only for any shortfall.

Question 6

How does computing usage affect AKT minting, burning, and circulation?

Accepted Answer

The net change in AKT supply is not simply “using computing power burns AKT.” Funding burns AKT and mints ACT; at settlement, ACT is burned and the provider receives AKT calculated at the then-current price, paid first from previously reserved treasury allowance, with additional AKT minted only if that allowance is insufficient. Therefore, the difference between the funding price and settlement price is important. If AKT appreciates between the two, the same U.S.-dollar-denominated bill requires fewer AKT at settlement, and the AKT burned at funding may exceed the amount returned to the provider, creating net burning; if price or treasury-allowance conditions differ, supplementary minting may be required. Network usage triggers these steps, but growth in usage alone cannot support a conclusion that AKT must be deflationary or increase in price.

Question 7

What conditions are required for BME settlement, and what happens if it fails?

Accepted Answer

A BME settlement must first satisfy several conditions: the lease exists, the bill is due and its amount is consistent with available ACT, the payment account has sufficient ACT, and the price oracle is in a healthy state. If these conditions are not met, the system cannot treat the bill as normally settled. The normal sequence is to read the settlement price, burn ACT, calculate the AKT payable, use the treasury reminting allowance first and mint supplementary AKT where necessary, and finally update the lease and provider-revenue records. An oracle issue triggers an error, and insufficient ACT triggers an insufficient-balance error; these checks are intended to prevent incorrect payment where there is no reliable price, insufficient funds, or an inconsistent bill state.

Question 8

What did BME change compared with the previous stablecoin payment approach?

Accepted Answer

The context before BME was that AKT was originally the sole payment method for leases, but its price volatility made it difficult for users budgeting in U.S. dollars to estimate costs consistently; AEP-23 later allowed whitelisted stablecoins, including USDC, for pricing and settlement, and distributed part of escrow fees to AKT stakers. The change proposed by BME is to preserve a stable dollar-denominated usage experience while using ACT as tenant prepaid credit and settling leases in AKT. Official documentation also states that quotes continue to be displayed in U.S. dollars in the interface and API, and credit-card payments trigger the purchase and subsequent burning of AKT to mint ACT. The mechanism creates a link among stable pricing, provider settlement, and AKT supply; it does not promise any token-value outcome.

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