AMSTERDAM, June 17, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Decentralized physical infrastructure (DePIN) builder YOM has been selected as one of only five frontier technology companies for the inaugural Gaming Founders Circle, launched jointly by Discord, Techleap, and the Dutch Games Association. The selection comes days after the launch of YOM’s native utility token, $YOM, on the Avalanche network.
The Gaming Founders Circle marks an intersection of Web2 distribution and Web3 infrastructure. Operating out of Discord’s European headquarters in the Netherlands, the hands-on program runs through the end of 2026, connecting the cohort directly to Discord’s global gaming ecosystem and Techleap’s investor network.
YOM shares the cohort with founders of four other Dutch gaming companies, including Poki, the world’s largest HTML5 games platform (90+ million monthly players), and novel initiatives launched by former Epic Games and Guerilla Games executives.
The program culminates in October 2026 with a delegation to San Francisco, where the cohort will meet Discord’s executive leadership and attend a private investor summit hosted by Techleap and Prince Constantijn Orange-Nassau of the Netherlands, ahead of the Dutch Games Awards in November.
From Cloud to Edge Gaming
“Cloud gaming has a structural problem, and we have the solution,” said Jorrit Velzeboer, CEO of YOM. “By repatriating GPU compute from big tech data centers to a sovereign network of local devices, we are fixing costs, scaling and latency in cloud gaming at the first-principle level. This cuts lag to under 12ms, average latency when the connection settles under 50 kilometers of any network host, enabling YOM to ship the fastest, lowest latency network on the planet.”
“We chose to focus on cloud gaming first, as it’s the highest impact use case for ultra fast GPU compute networks,” said Jorrit. “And if a distributed network of edge nodes can stream a first person shooter at sub-12ms latency, it will reliably handle any GPU streaming and other future GPU communications workload. Our token launch is effectively the moment the network’s settlement layer went live on-chain.”
With the settlement layer live, YOM’s operational focus shifts to physical node expansion. Over the coming weeks, more of the network’s “plug and play” specialized NANO physical nodes are scheduled to come online. Meanwhile more professional operators can participate by running YOM’s custom Linux OS on their servers. Once load tests confirm end-to-end network stability under real-world on-chain usage, the automated on-chain payout function will activate, allowing node operators worldwide to monetize their idle gaming pc’s, and GPUs.
The Token Is Live On-Chain
$YOM, the network’s utility token, is now trading on leading exchanges including Kraken and KuCoin, as well as MEXC and the Blackhole DEX. The token is the settlement mechanism for distributed edge compute. Deployed on the Avalanche C-Chain, the protocol’s settlement contract meters node contributions and distributes rewards programmatically. The contract includes a realtime 5% burn mechanism tied to real network throughput, linking its token supply dynamics to realtime on-chain usage.
Backed by Industry Partners
YOM’s selection into the Discord-backed cohort follows a series of milestones supported by a network of institutional partners and accelerators. A “Coalition of Compute” $3M+ backing was announced from funds and ecosystems including Outlier Ventures, CV VC Avalanche, Protein Capital and Borderless Capital. This coalition underpins a massive industrial shift as hardware providers and industrial Bitcoin mining fleets pivot capacity from blockchains toward edge compute.
About YOM
YOM runs a decentralized GPU edge infrastructure for cloud gaming, pixelstreaming and other low latency GPU use cases. Instead of data centers, YOM orchestrates idle consumer GPUs into a global compute grid that pixelstreams any browser, app, or social platform at sub-12ms latency and a fraction of centralized cloud cost.
Discord & Techleap announcement: discord.com/blog/game-on-discord-is-backing-the-next-generation-of-dutch-gaming-founders
Token Contract (Avalanche C-Chain): 0xb6314518b61b4864162c7aE7fdc36261e0A14C4b
Website: yom.net
Legal Disclaimer
Information provided herein is for general purposes only and subject to change. $YOM is a utility token intended solely for use within the YOM ecosystem and is not an offer of, or solicitation to purchase, any security or investment product. This release does not constitute investment advice. Node rewards are variable, non-guaranteed, and dependent on regional demand, network conditions, and uptime.
