DePIN (Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Network) Guide

If your car, router, or GPU is sitting idle, it’s time to put them to work.

Welcome to DePIN: where infrastructure gets decentralized, and you get paid.

Read on to explore the real-world use cases and the projects leading the DePIN revolution.

What is DePIN in crypto?

DePIN stands for decentralized physical infrastructure network. In simple terms, DePINs use blockchains and tokens to incentivize people to collectively build and share physical services or resources. For example, a DePIN might pay you in tokens for setting up a WiFi hotspot that anyone can use or for contributing storage space on your hard drive to a decentralized cloud. By recording contributions and transactions on a blockchain, everyone can verify the services provided, and the system can automatically reward those who help out.

Key types of DePIN projects

DePIN is an umbrella term covering a wide range of use-cases where crypto meets physical tech.

Here are some key categories of DePIN projects:

• Decentralized wireless networks: Many DePINs focus on connectivity. These include community-built networks for IoT devices, broadband, or even cellular service.
• Decentralized data storage: Another major DePIN category is distributed storage networks that let users rent out their spare hard drive space to store other people’s data.
• Decentralized compute: These DePINs tackle computing power. The idea is to crowdsource computing resources (CPU/GPU), making it cheaper and more accessible to run applications or process data.
• Mapping & sensor networks: Some DePIN projects create crowdsourced sensor data and maps by leveraging cameras and sensors from the community.
• Content delivery & bandwidth sharing: A growing DePIN area is decentralized content delivery networks (CDNs) and bandwidth sharing. In a decentralized CDN, people run nodes that store and serve videos or other content to nearby users, accelerating delivery.
• Energy & resource sharing: Although newer, DePIN concepts are also emerging in energy. These projects envision sharing physical resources like electricity. Imagine a network where homes with solar panels supply excess power to neighbors in exchange for tokens.

Why DePIN matters

DePINs are exciting because they bring crypto beyond finance into real-world utility. It’s about solving real problems and building physical services people actually use, not just trading digital coins.

Also, DePINs can challenge the monopolies of traditional providers. Instead of a few big companies controlling, say, all the internet service or map data, DePIN networks reimagine these systems as open, permissionless networks owned by the users themselves. This democratizes infrastructure—lowering barriers to entry, encouraging innovation, and spreading both ownership and the economic rewards among participants.

Another reason DePIN matters is resilience and accessibility. With many independent nodes, services can become more reliable and cover areas that centralized companies ignored. For instance, a DePIN wireless network can provide coverage in remote areas because locals are incentivized to deploy nodes there.

DePIN projects to explore

Below are some notable DePIN projects, each pushing the boundaries of decentralized infrastructure in different domains:

• Hivemapper: Hivemapper is a decentralized global mapping network on Solana built by everyday drivers. Participants mount a Hivemapper dashcam in their car and capture street-level imagery as they drive. The data is anonymized and aggregated to build a live, ever-updating map of the world. Contributors earn Hivemapper’s token HONEY for the kilometers they map.
• Helium: Helium is a decentralized wireless network on Solana that began by providing long-range IoT connectivity and has expanded to include 5G mobile coverage. Individuals deploy small Helium hotspots (radio devices) in their home or office which act as mini cell towers or IoT gateways. In return, hotspot owners earn Helium’s crypto tokens as a reward for expanding network coverage.
• DAWN: DAWN is a Solana project reimagining how we get our internet at home. It’s a decentralized broadband network that lets people share spare internet bandwidth with others nearby. Through DAWN’s hardware and Solana-based protocol, a home or building owner can become a micro-ISP, transmitting Wi-Fi or wireless broadband to neighbors and passersby. In return, they earn DAWN tokens.
• Pipe: Pipe Network is tackling the content side of the internet with a decentralized content delivery network. Built on Solana, Pipe allows anyone to run a point-of-presence node that caches and serves content—like videos, software downloads, and more—to end-users in their region. This results in faster load times because data is delivered from nearby nodes rather than a distant server. Node operators earn the PIPE token as a reward for providing bandwidth and storage to the network.
• Decen Space: Decen Space is a Solana DePIN project aiming for the stars—literally. It is building a decentralized network of satellite ground stations. The idea is to connect satellite operators with underutilized ground antennas around the world. Ground station owners can join Decen Space’s network, offering their antenna’s downlink/uplink time to spacecraft operators and getting paid in tokens.

Getting started with Hivemapper and Phantom

The HONEY token powers the Hivemapper economy, rewarding contributors who power the map with fresh data. Whether you're capturing street imagery or checking AI annotations, your work is recorded onchain and compensated transparently—no middlemen, no mystery, just fair rewards for real contributions.

Here’s how to get started:

1. Purchase a Hivemapper Bee dashcam
2. Set up your Bee and install it in your car
3. Download and set up a Phantom wallet
4. Start driving and contributing real-world imagery to the Hivemapper network
5. Earn HONEY tokens for your contributions; redeem them directly to your Phantom wallet
6. Use Phantom’s built-in swap feature to trade HONEY for other tokens like SOL or USDC

It’s that simple—map the world, earn tokens, and swap seamlessly.

How to share HONEY with friends and family

Know someone who might be interested in HONEY? You can share a simple token page with them so they can get involved.

Here's how:

• Open Phantom
• Search for e.g. “HONEY” and select the token
• Click the “Share” button
• Copy the link
• Send the link through your preferred app, such as iMessage, Telegram, Instagram, or others

When you share this link, the recipient will receive the official HONEY token page from Phantom.

FAQs

Disclaimer: This guide is strictly for educational purposes only and doesn’t constitute financial or legal advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. Please be careful and do your own research.