iinit

CONTEXT.md

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+# Distributed Inference Network
+
+A volunteer GPU network where nodes independently load model shards, a tracker routes inference through optimal node chains, and contributors earn tokens for serving compute.
+
+## Language
+
+### Nodes & compute
+
+**Node**:
+A volunteer machine that runs the node client, holds one or more shards on disk, and serves inference requests for those shards.
+_Avoid_: worker, peer, miner, server
+
+**Shard**:
+A contiguous range of transformer layers from a model that a node loads and serves. Shards are the unit of storage, assignment, and reward.
+_Avoid_: partition, slice, chunk, segment
+
+**Shard Swarm**:
+The P2P group of nodes that collectively seed and download a specific shard. One swarm exists per shard.
+_Avoid_: torrent, cluster, pool
+
+**Inference Route**:
+An ordered sequence of nodes whose shards together cover all layers of a model. The tracker selects the optimal route per request.
+_Avoid_: pipeline, chain, path
+
+**Gateway**:
+The network entry point that accepts client requests (OpenAI-compatible HTTP), selects an inference route from the tracker, and streams results back.
+_Avoid_: proxy, relay, orchestrator, primary
+
+### Tracker
+
+**Tracker**:
+The coordinator service that maintains the node registry, scores nodes by throughput/latency, and assigns inference routes. Runs as a centralized service with a P2P gossip fallback.
+_Avoid_: coordinator, scheduler, director
+
+**Node Score**:
+A throughput/latency rating the tracker maintains per node, used for route selection. Updated continuously from inference telemetry.
+_Avoid_: reputation, rating, rank
+
+### Payments & fraud
+
+**Stake**:
+Tokens a node locks as collateral before it can serve paid inference. Slashed on fraud.
+_Avoid_: deposit, bond, escrow
+
+**Slash**:
+The act of reducing a node's stake as a penalty for a proven fraud incident.
+_Avoid_: penalize, burn, fine
+
+**Strike**:
+A fraud incident recorded on-chain against a node. Enough strikes result in a ban.
+_Avoid_: infraction, violation, flag
+
+**Ban**:
+Permanent exclusion of a wallet from the network after exceeding the strike threshold. Recorded on-chain.
+_Avoid_: blacklist, block, suspension
+
+**Probationary Period**:
+The first N jobs a new wallet must complete without earning, to raise the cost of re-entering after a ban.
+_Avoid_: trial period, warmup, grace period
+
+**Token**:
+Our native Solana L2 token. Used by nodes for staking and received as inference rewards. Clients never need to hold it.
+_Avoid_: coin, reward token, native token
+
+**Validator**:
+A trusted node (or the tracker itself) that re-runs a sample of inference requests to detect fraud.
+_Avoid_: auditor, checker, referee
+
+### Client-facing
+
+**Client**:
+Any application or user that sends inference requests to the gateway. Pays in SOL or USDC.
+_Avoid_: user, caller, consumer
+
+**Model Preset**:
+A named, versioned model available on the network (e.g. `llama-3-70b`). The tracker knows which nodes hold which shards for each preset.
+_Avoid_: model, checkpoint, version