2024 DePIN Sector Insights: Challenge and Solution

Debine Sector: From behind the scenes to the lead center

In 2024, the DePin sector suffers from a renewed wave of attention. According to the Messenger of DePin 2024 report, more than 13 million devices around the world contribute to various DePin networks every day, and the total market value of the relevant DEPIN is exceeding $ 50 billion. However, compared to the potential of the market trillion dollars in the sector, the current scale remains modest. The report highlights that in 2024, 20 DePin project exceeded active contracts, with five of them exceeding one million contracts. While the projects made a preliminary progress in spreading the node, they still face challenges on generating demand and income.
As one of the first DePin representatives, Helium continued to advance network upgrades and expansion efforts in 2024. After deporting the Lora IOT network to the Solana series, the number of new hotspots of the Internet of Things reached 32,900 in Q4, while 5G hot points rose to 24,800. In addition, helium has significantly improved the use of the actual network through partnership with traditional communications operators. In the fourth quarter of 2024, helium dropped more than 576 terabytes of data movement for operators, representing an increase of 555 % quarter of a quarter. In addition, Helium Mobile 124,000 cumulative users exceeded.

The main challenge for the Deeb sector

Despite the promising expectations and impressive data, the performance of the DePin Sector market was frustrated. We believe that this is largely due to the ongoing challenges that DePin projects offer in the early stage, which have not shown comprehensive solutions.
Capex costs:
Building a material network is definitely required to spread devices, and participants are often responsible for buying equipment themselves. This is a major investment for users and greatly raises the barrier to expanding the knot. For example, helium initially asked individuals to buy specialized hot point devices, as the cost of each unit ranges between $ 500 and $ 1,000. This inhibits a large part of the young participants and retail trade; Without strong incentives such as mining bonuses, it was difficult to convert Web2 users into Web3 participants.
Cold start challenges:
The value of the DePin network depends on the intensity of the knot coverage and the use of the service, which leads to a clear starting problem. Without enough nodes, it is difficult to attract peripheral users. In addition, in the absence of a meaningful traffic, there is a little motivation for the new contract to join. This dynamic is similar to the Gamefi sector, where the players explode when the prices of the distinctive symbol rise, but it raises the cycle of death when the prices decrease. Several projects in the early stage have mainly relied on symbolic incentives to push the growth side growth but they are struggling to stimulate real demand.
Node quality problems:
Payed by incentive mechanisms, some contract tries to increase mining bonuses through fraud behavior, which generally degrades the network performance. For example, during the early evolution of Hillium, cases of fake sites of the node, combined publishing operations, and mutual witness, greatly undermining the effective coverage of the network and data originality.
Sibel resistance mechanisms:
Most current DePin projects still lack the strong defense mechanisms against SYBIL attacks, with insufficient verification of the identity of the device and the authenticity of the data. This opens the door to falsify data recorded on the series. At the same time, very strict SYBIL resistance mechanisms can lead to concerns about internal favoritism. For example, in 2024, she faced many layer 2 projects that were launched on the stock exchanges of unjust early access due to aggressive control filters. Therefore, the teams must achieve an accurate balance between security and the user experience by designing transparent and well -spent checking systems, ensuring that none of the two sides are at risk.

Traditional DePin in practice: Hillium lessons

In 2019, helium became one of the first projects that launched a central, non -central network, entering the market through the hot points of the Internet of Things and obtained recognition as a pioneer in the DePin space. By launching the distinctive symbol of HNT, I stimulate helium to buy and spread hot points, allowing a low -power network coverage for Internet of Things devices. This incentive model achieved great success on the show side. Within a few years, nearly one million hot points were published in the world. At its peak, Helium built the largest Internet of Things network that is especially operating in the world, which covers hundreds of cities. However, the early success of Hillium was largely limited to the scale of the knot, while achieving the actual network benefit is late.

Due to the fragmented nature of the Internet of Things applications and the generally low preparation for payment, the helium network was lacking in stable revenues from the peripheral users for a long time. The symbolic economy was largely sustainable by CEX or Dex and the flow of new participants. At one point, despite its value of several billion dollars, the Helium network produced less than $ 2000 in monthly data revenue. This blatant contrast revealed a structural defect in the DePin model, which is a great focus on building infrastructure, with insufficient interest in operational interest. Without real demand, even the huge node network becomes an empty promise, only capable of leading to increase the prices of the distinctive symbol in the short term, but it provides a long -term value.
However, the helium did not remain stagnant. In 2022, the team suggested multiple architecture and introducing subcathers to distinguish between incentives across its networks, such as Lora and 5G. In 2023, the helium abandoned his 1 -layer chain and migrated to Solana’s ecosystem to improve performance and reduce maintenance costs. More importantly, helium began to actively expand the demand. Through a partnership with an American mobile company, Helium Mobile launched, combining 5G small cells into the traditional communication market and enabling collective consumers to become direct users of the network. Through the common hotspots with communications operators, helium helped fill geographic coverage gaps. By the end of 2024, its network attracted more than 120,000 mobile phone users, and the hot points began to deal with the traffic traffic and real data.

The helium track shows an important lesson for DePin: simply limiting the contract through incentives, not a sustainable strategy. The real challenge lies in improving the network use and lowering barriers in front of the user’s participation, or more clearly, will determine the achievement of marketing with the meaning of the next stage of success or failure.

Electronic: Explining DePin through low barrier infrastructure

In searching for DEPIN’s penetration applications, some teams have turned their focus towards the infrastructure sectors that are integrated more closely in daily life. Electronic emerged in 2024 as an acting example of this trend. Unlike Helium, which focuses on communications networks, Cybercharge targets high frequency demand, and the basic demand for charging the device by building a common non -central charging network. Its primary product is the first smart charger in the world, which innovatively offers a charging model to Eern (C2E) — Transforming routine charging activities into encryption bonuses.

Cybercharge aims to bridge the gap between users and physical infrastructure, allowing anyone to participate in DePin network building services and access very low obstacles to entering. After purchasing a charger, users simply need to charge a five -minute device to create “evidence of shipping”, registered with the Charger Steer, and receive a symbolic reward. This allows users to contribute to real shipping services and energy consumption data to the decentralized network smoothly, and to convert daily consumption behavior into mining activity and reduce both technology and application thresholds significantly. Through this innovative design, the electronic charge is considered a major penetration in the DePin sector, with the ability to attract a large number of users who have not interacted with Web3 before. As the project describes, the Cybercharge Smart smart charger is the first mining device for many young users — and helps to pay the deportation widely for Web2 users to the ecosystem of the Web3.

In addition, every Internet charge device is equipped with a “Cyberchip” safety unit, which benefits from the advanced AI technology to verify the validity of the charging activities. Only actual energy consumption can generate correct “charging” evidence and gain rewards. It is forbidden to solve the integrated software for problem devices such as reporting the fake site and wasting resources in the early phase of shellium, ensuring the validity of the network contract and the credibility of the data collected.
Cybercharge also has also invested significantly in enhancing user participation and activity. In addition to charging functions of basic charging, the app offers a rich set of interactive features and reward systems. One of the examples is the “AI Doggy” pet system, where users can build and care for pets by completing shipping tasks, interacting with other users, and even generating new pets —- Create a dynamic connection between charging behavior and progress within the application. In addition, the application offers many mini games, allowing users to win symbols during their spare time while entertaining themselves. These game elements are greatly enhanced by the platform’s attractiveness and helping to create a self-sufficient ecosystem — Encouraging users to move from shipping to participating in the wider ecosystem, gaining rewards, and contributing to the circulation and growth of internal resources.

In general, the electronic charge emerges between the new generation of DePin projects. By choosing the studied scenarios of application and innovative technical designs, new vitality injection in this sector by reducing participation barriers, protecting network health, enhancing user participation, and creating a new value within the ecosystem.

Horizons and reflections

From the perspective of 2025, the Depin Planning Blockchain sector with physical infrastructure is steadily moving beyond proof of concept and widely applied. Messari projects that can achieve DePin growth from 100x to 1000X over the next decade, as they gradually acquired the market share of traditional central players. Achieving these capabilities depends on solving the current pain points, as pioneers such as helium and DIMO offer lessons, and new projects such as Cybercharge Uceding Mutsum.
Looking to the future, low barriers appeared, high frequency use, and a strong user interaction as the main design trends. By linking Blockchain incentives to the basic realistic world needs such as shipping and navigation, DePin projects can attract users and promote the permanent demand for service. The team also explores more sustainable business models, such as service subscriptions and data transfer, to reduce dependence on symbolic rewards.
Opportunities will come with challenges. Organizing, the supply chains of the devices, and the competition will all form the DePin path forward. However, the vision of building non -central material networks is still convincing. With the emergence of more projects, there is cautious optimism that DePin can ultimately create the owned infrastructure and maintained by millions — on the occasion of a strong new chapter for Blockchain technology.