What is Apex (SN1)?

Macrocosmos has just launched Apex (SN1) on the Bittensor network as a platform where AI models compete to solve challenges. 

Miners now race to build the most efficient AI code, with prizes going to whoever improves performance the most.

The idea is simple:

• A challenge goes live.
• Miners try to solve it.
• Validators measure which solution works best.
• Winner takes the entire reward.

It’s a high-pressure environment designed to push AI innovation forward by rewarding the smartest, fastest ideas.

Why Apex Exists

AI has a big problem. It keeps getting more powerful, but also more expensive to run.

Training and running big models consumes:

• massive computing power,
• high bandwidth,
• and a lot of energy.

Apex focuses on problems that reduce these costs.

Instead of one company doing all the research, anyone with a laptop in the Bittensor network can try to solve the problem, and if their solution is the best, they win.

This idea of “outsourced innovation” makes progress faster and more open.

The First Challenge: Matrix Compression

The first live competition is matrix compression, which is about reducing the huge amounts of numbers that Ai models use, without losing important information.

Compressing these numbers:

• saves time
• saves energy
• and costs less

Miners send in their best compression methods, while validators measure how much they speed things up while keeping results accurate.​

The rules are simple, winner takes all (the best solution wins the full TAO reward pool).

How Apex Works

1. First of all, a challenge is posted. A problem like matrix compression goes live.
2. Next, miners build solutions. They write code and test ideas on their machines.
3. Then, validators score them. They check which solution works best.
4. Finally, one winner gets all the rewards. Only the top-performing miner is paid.

The whole point of this “winner-takes-all” method is to create a strong motivation to produce the best possible idea.

Unlike a normal company where you have one research team, on Apex, you have hundreds of miners from different places, competing at the same time.

This creates more ideas, more experiments, and faster progress.

What’s Happened Since Launch

The competition launched December 3 and is still running. No winner yet, but here’s what’s new:

• On December 4, everything went offline briefly for maintenance. It came back smoothly with no issues.
• Developers are submitting solutions, but results aren’t public yet.
• The next competition is coming soon, but no details yet.
• There’s an upcoming event on December 9. It’s a livestream about their training network (SN9), which might reveal how Apex fits into their bigger plans.

How to Get Involved

If you’re a developer, check out the Apex website at apex.macrocosmos.ai and join their Discord. You’ll need to have machine learning skills and the ability to run Bittensor nodes.

For everyone else, follow @MacrocosmosAI and @Apex_SN1 on X for updates. Watch how the first competition plays out, it’s a test of whether crowdsourced AI innovation can beat traditional corporate research.

The Bigger Vision

Apex is part of a movement to decentralize AI. Instead of a few big companies controlling everything, networks like Bittensor spread the work globally. The best solutions win. Everyone benefits.

Macrocosmos is betting that competition beats collaboration when it comes to breakthrough innovations. Whether they’re right could reshape how AI research happens.

For now, the first competition is live, developers are racing to optimize matrix compression, and the winner will prove whether this model works.

Visit: apex.macrocosmos.ai

Follow: @MacrocosmosAI, @Apex_SN1