DePIN: Reshaping the Internet and Empowering Users

This opinion piece contributes to our latest section, the DePIN Vertical, which focuses on the rapidly growing field of infrastructure built on a decentralized platform.

DePIN networks intelligently connect various physical devices such as sensors, IoT devices, computers, and smartphones with decentralized blockchain systems. By contributing data, resources, or maintaining operations, users can receive genuine rewards in digital currencies – a mutually beneficial arrangement that’s been overdue in the digital landscape. This setup not only allows users to capitalize on their participation but also liberates them from the control of centralized intermediaries who have been taking advantage of the system for too long by monetizing user data. These intermediaries utilize this data for targeted advertising, marketing, and analytics, generating significant profits while providing minimal benefits to users.

The concept is straightforward: expand the physical system and compensate individuals for their participation in the network. Their contributions can take various forms, such as providing information about your driving patterns or car performance, renting additional hard drive space, sharing internet bandwidth, or connecting weather sensors to provide real-time environmental data. Instead of giving away your data to large tech corporations to profit from it, DePIN empowers you to share it and receive payment for doing so. It’s not just about participating; it’s about ensuring that every user becomes a part-owner in the infrastructure they depend on.

Real-World Applications

Currently, DePIN-inspired initiatives are revolutionizing various facets of our everyday existence in innovative ways. To illustrate, consider geolocation technology, where networks like GEODNET are striving to enhance location precision to mere centimeters. This advancement is opening up vast possibilities in sectors such as agriculture, construction, and drone operations. For instance, farmers can now fine-tune crop management more effectively than ever before, while construction projects may achieve unprecedented levels of accuracy. Furthermore, autonomous drones could navigate with pinpoint precision, all made possible by a network that empowers individuals to both contribute to and reap the benefits of it.

On another occasion, the surge of community-based internet connectivity solutions, such as WiFi Map’s 150 million active hotspots globally, isn’t simply an alternative choice. Instead, it represents a daring contest against the outdated telecommunications monopolies. Simultaneously, DIMO enables individuals to gather, utilize, and profit from data derived from their vehicles, while also granting developers access to unique APIs to create applications that utilize this information for purposes like insurance, vehicle upkeep, and fleet management.

In another scenario, Witness Chain – a Proof of Stake system called DePIN, which has amassed over $5 billion in delegated stake from EigenLayer restakers – is currently striving to integrate the fragmented DePIN economy. This network enables various DePIN projects to exchange information such as physical locations, network capabilities, and other data, fostering connections among them. In essence, it’s creating an extended supply chain of decentralized infrastructure that spans end-to-end.

Projects similar to XNET, part of DePIN, are advancing efforts to deliver dependable internet connectivity – now recognized as a fundamental human right by the UN – to the approximately 2.9 billion individuals worldwide who currently lack access. XNET utilizes the bandwidth allocated for Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) and high-quality Wi-Fi to construct a distributed network of operators, interconnected through a shared blockchain platform.

In much the same way, networks like Filecoin enable individuals to share their unused storage capacity, thereby developing a stronger, more economical, and user-friendly solution compared to conventional cloud storage. This transition makes these services more reachable and cost-effective for users, while also providing them with control over their resources and an opportunity to generate income from what was previously underutilized.

In essence, decentralization isn’t just enhancing accessibility, it’s also making the heart of our intricately connected digital universe more democratic.

What’s holding us back?

Although today’s decentralized storage systems might not be as cost-effective as their centralized counterparts, this is more of a short-term challenge than an insurmountable problem. The solution lies in improving data compression techniques and advancing consumer-grade hardware. This progression will eventually reach a point where decentralized cloud storage matches the efficiency of traditional options.

As a crypto investor, I firmly believe that technology should not only withstand but thrive under pressure – it should be anti-fragile. The recurring incidents of massive outages due to single points of failure are more than just inconvenient or unacceptable; they expose the flaws in our current system. However, this challenge is not insurmountable. We can overcome it by fully decentralizing every aspect of our digital infrastructure – even elements like provers in blockchain systems that often go unnoticed. This decentralization will lead us towards a robust and resilient digital future.

Transformative work will be fueled by open-source technologies. Tools such as Plonky3 in the zero-knowledge (ZK) category are currently being employed to develop verifiers and essential frameworks, with platforms like Fleek utilizing them to establish swift, decentralized proof verifiers.

The moment for DePIN has arrived, in fact, it’s far past its due time. Its capacity to redefine our digital terrain is not just intriguing; it’s indispensable for the freedom and openness of the internet in the coming years. It’s crucial that we act swiftly to grasp this opportunity and construct the decentralized future that we all aspire towards.

Keep in mind that the opinions shared within this article belong solely to the writer, and may not align with the perspectives of CoinDesk Inc., its proprietors, or affiliated entities.