Original article by: Paul Veradittakit

Original translation: Luffy, Foresight News

Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Network (DePIN) is the fusion of blockchain and infrastructure network. Currently, DePIN exists in industries such as energy, telecommunications, storage, artificial intelligence and data collection.

In the last round of crypto cycles, many projects took advantage of the DePIN craze to target those directions with huge market opportunities, but when the core products failed to gain enough traction on both the supply and demand sides, they turned to cryptocurrency token economics.

However, among those that survived, many companies spent time building infrastructure and achieved sustainable profitability by solving existing problems, even without relying on the flywheel effect of token economics. Let’s take a look at some of these cases.

Geodnet

Core issues solved

Traditional Global Positioning Systems (GPS) often lack the accuracy required for advanced applications that require centimeters rather than meters. Geodnet Networks’ solutions improve positioning accuracy by 100 times over traditional GPS technology.

Target Customers

The Geodnet network serves industries that rely on high-precision geospatial data, including:

  • Self-driving cars

  • agriculture

  • Smart City

  • Defense and Security

  • Space Exploration

Profit Model

  • Data licensing: Selling geospatial data to commercial customers.

  • Node participation fees: Fees associated with the installation and use of mining machines.

  • Partnerships: Working with industries such as agriculture and autonomous driving systems to integrate Geodnet’s services into existing workflows.

In 2024, Geodnet Networks reported revenue growth of more than 500% year-over-year to $1.7 million.

Token Economics

The Geodnet network uses the native token GEOD to incentivize participants:

  • Miners earn tokens based on data contribution and network uptime.

  • Destruction mechanism: Destroy tokens during data transactions and introduce a deflation mechanism.

  • Average daily income: The average daily income of each miner is about US$4.30, and the expected investment payback period is 3-4 months.

  • Circulation: The distribution of tokens ensures liquidity while incentivizing early adopters.

  • Token usage: used for payment, staking and governance within the network.

How to participate and contribute

1. Become a miner:

  • Purchase mining equipment (costs between $500-700).

  • Set up and connect a mining rig to the network, uploading 20 - 40G B of data per month.

2. Use the Internet:

  • Access real-time kinematic (RTK) correction data via subscription or outright purchase.

3. Develop applications:

  • Develop software for specific industries based on data from the Geodnet network.

4. Governance:

  • Participate in protocol governance by staking GEOD tokens and voting on proposals.

Helium

Core issues solved

Traditional mobile network operators, such as T-Mobile, require huge capital expenditures to build base stations, maintain infrastructure, and expand coverage. Helium solves this problem by creating a decentralized wireless network that uses community-owned hotspots to provide affordable, scalable, and resilient network connectivity for mobile and IoT devices.

Target Customers

  • Consumers: Pay $20 per month for unlimited data provided by the Helium decentralized network.

  • Telecom Providers: Enable WiFi offload for major carriers and reduce their infrastructure costs.

  • IoT device manufacturers: Provides connectivity for low-power IoT devices via the LoRaWAN protocol.

  • Enterprises and Institutions: Helps organizations deploy private wireless networks for asset tracking, sensors, and environmental monitoring.

Profit Model

The Helium Network generates revenue in two primary ways:

1. Direct-to-consumer mobile plans:

  • It offers an unlimited data plan for $20 per month, which lets users use both Helium network hotspots and partner networks like T-Mobile.

2. Operator WiFi diversion fees:

  • Telecom providers will be charged $0.50 per GB to route data through the Helium network’s decentralized hotspots rather than traditional cell towers.

Financial Performance

  • Subscribers: More than 100,000 direct subscribers and more than 300,000 indirect WiFi offload users.

  • Revenue: Generates seven-figure annualized revenue from mobile subscriptions and carrier diversion fees.

  • Forecast: As carrier partnerships expand, WiFi offload revenue potential alone is expected to exceed $50 million per year.

Token Economics

The Helium Network’s HNT token is at the core of its incentive and payment structure:

  • Earn Rewards: Hotspot operators earn HNT for providing coverage and transferring data.

  • Usage: Tokens are used for network transactions, payment of network services, and governance proposals.

  • Destruction mechanism: When HNT tokens are used to pay for network services, they are destroyed, reducing the supply.

How to participate and contribute

1. Hotspot deployment:

  • Purchase and set up a Helium network-compatible hotspot to provide coverage and earn HNT rewards.

  • Choose from 16 approved hardware types designed for IoT or mobile offload.

2. Consumer Package:

  • Subscribe to Helium Network’s $20/month mobile plan for affordable mobile data coverage.

3. Operator partnership:

  • Telecom providers can integrate with the Helium network to offload data traffic and reduce operating costs.

4. Governance and Staking:

  • Stake HNT tokens to participate in network governance, make proposals, and vote on key upgrades.

Akash

Core issues solved

Akash Network aims to solve the high costs, scalability limitations, and centralization issues of traditional cloud computing providers like Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google Cloud, Microsoft Azure, etc. It solves these problems by providing a decentralized cloud computing marketplace that allows users to profit from idle machines while reducing costs.

Target Customers

  • AI developers: Need high-performance GPUs to train and deploy machine learning models.

  • Startups and enterprises: Need affordable and scalable cloud computing to support data processing, storage, and AI-driven applications.

Profit Model

Akash Network generates revenue through:

  • Marketplace Transaction Fees: Transaction fees are charged for compute rentals and payments processed through the network.

  • Compute Resource Leasing: Share in the revenue generated from leasing GPUs and CPUs for AI training and workloads.

  • Developer Tools: By charging developers for API integration and SDK licensing fees for using its computing infrastructure.

  • Corporate Partnerships: Collaborate with AI labs and decentralized platforms to expand computing power.

Financial Performance

  • Annual Revenue: Akash Network reports $2.5 million in 2024 from compute leases and fees.

  • Growth rate: Due to the popularity of artificial intelligence, the demand for GPU computing resources has increased 33 times.

  • Network scale: Supports more than 400 GPUs.

Token Economics

The Akash Network uses the AKT token for payments, governance, and incentives.

1. Application:

  • Payment: Buyers purchase computing resources using AKT tokens.

  • Staking: Providers stake tokens to gain job opportunities and grow their reputation.

2. Motivation:

  • Providers earn AKT tokens for supplying computing resources.

  • Tokens are distributed based on uptime, performance, and task completion.

3. Governance:

  • Token holders can propose upgrades and vote on protocol changes.

4. Destruction mechanism:

  • Network fees are burned, reducing token supply.

How to participate and contribute

1. As a provider:

  • Set up a GPU, CPU, or storage server on the Akash Network.

  • List your resources, set your price, and start earning AKT tokens.

2. As a consumer:

  • Use Akash Network's web interface or command-line interface (CLI) to lease compute resources.

  • Deploy AI training workloads, web services, and decentralized applications.

3. As a developer:

  • Access APIs and SDKs to integrate Akash Network’s services into your applications.

  • Use GPU clusters for deep learning training or inference tasks.

4. Governance participation:

  • Stake AKT tokens to vote on network upgrades and resource pricing policies.

Looking ahead

These are just a few of the projects that are working and have sustainable revenue. In the coming months, DePIN adoption will undoubtedly increase again, leading to more sustainable, scalable, and profitable companies.

The above companies are all consumer-facing, but another area that excites me is infrastructure. The underlying blockchain, oracle services, smart contract services, middleware, token issuance services, etc., these companies are in areas that will benefit from the development of the DePIN project. Some examples include Solana, Peaq, Base, Story, Arweave, Opacity Network, and DeForm.