[TL;DR]
- Traditional telecommunications, cloud, and energy infrastructures, monopolized by a few large corporations, have led to high costs and service inequality.
- DePIN addresses these issues through a decentralized model where individuals contribute their WiFi hotspots, hard drives, GPUs, etc., to the network and receive token rewards. WaaS abstracts away the complexity of blockchain technology, enabling even non-technical users to participate easily.
- In fields such as smart cities, logistics, and mapping data, individuals’ everyday activities function as part of societal infrastructure, creating economic value in a new paradigm.
1. Structural Limitations of Existing Physical Infrastructure: A Vicious Cycle of Monopoly and Inefficiency
1.1. Monopoly in Telecommunications Infrastructure: The Real Value Captured by Big Corporations
When we examine the internet and mobile communication networks used daily by everyone around the world, we find a striking paradox. Large telecommunications companies, aside from installing and maintaining base stations and cables, generate annual revenues worth tens of trillions of won without significant innovation. Their business model is essentially based on “rent-seeking through physical monopolies,” which is one of the greatest contradictions in today’s digital society.
The core of this structure lies in the barriers to entry created by massive upfront capital investment. Installing a single 5G base station costs hundreds of millions of won, and building a nationwide network requires trillions. Since such investment is far beyond the reach of individuals or small businesses, only a handful of large corporations can own and operate telecom infrastructure. However, the real value generated by these networks comes from users’ demand for communication and the data they produce—yet the profits are entirely monopolized by the corporations that own the infrastructure.
Even more problematic is that such monopolistic power reduces the incentive for innovation. In an oligopolistic market with limited competition, telecom companies invest more in retaining existing customers and marketing than in improving service quality or lowering prices. In reality, Korea’s 5G speeds are far slower than advertised, and in rural areas of the U.S., internet speeds can be worse than in developing countries—clear side effects of this monopolistic structure. Telecom companies avoid investing in low-profit areas and, even in urban regions, often seek maximum profit with minimal investment when competitive pressure is absent.
This monopolistic structure exacerbates the digital divide, hindering overall societal progress. Wealthy urban areas enjoy fast internet and 5G services, while rural or low-income regions still pay high prices for slow connections. This leads to disparities in access to education, healthcare, and economic opportunities, worsening social inequality. In developing countries, the heavy financial burden of telecom infrastructure delays digital transformation, creating a vicious cycle of reduced global competitiveness.
1.2. The Centralization Problem of Data Centers and Cloud Services
While telecom monopolies create inequality in network access, the centralization of data centers and cloud services concentrates even greater power in the digital realm. Amazon AWS, Google Cloud, and Microsoft Azure control more than 70% of the global cloud market, placing the core infrastructure of the modern digital economy under the control of a few U.S.-based corporations. This is more than just market monopoly—it is a serious threat to data sovereignty and digital autonomy.
The most direct risk of this centralization is that a failure at a single critical point can paralyze the entire system. The large-scale AWS outage in 2021, which simultaneously disrupted services like Netflix, Spotify, and Twitter, is a prime example. The fact that the daily lives of billions can be halted due to a technical problem at one data center operator highlights the vulnerabilities of modern society. More critically, this centralization can have catastrophic ripple effects in situations such as natural disasters, cyberattacks, or political conflicts.
Censorship and control present another serious consequence of this centralization. Cloud service providers have the power to cut off access to specific services or content under government pressure or according to internal policies, threatening freedom of expression and the right to access information. The case of Parler—a social media platform effectively shut down after being removed from AWS—shows that these concerns can become reality. Granting individual corporations or governments the power to control global internet services poses a fundamental threat to democracy and free information flow.
From an economic perspective, cloud centralization creates extreme imbalances in value distribution. Data and traffic generated by billions of users worldwide are converted into profits for a small number of companies, while the individuals and organizations creating this value receive inadequate compensation. Personal photos and videos, corporate data, and research computing tasks all contribute to the profits of cloud providers, yet users merely pay “service fees.” This reveals the structural problem of unfair value distribution in the digital economy.
1.3. Inefficiency and Opacity in the Energy Grid
If data center centralization is a problem in the digital realm, the centralized structure of the power grid mirrors a similar issue in the physical world. Today’s electricity system, where massive coal or nuclear plants generate power that travels hundreds of kilometers through transmission lines before reaching end users, is based on an early 20th-century model—fundamentally incompatible with the distributed renewable energy era of the 21st century. This structural mismatch is a major factor delaying the energy transition and hampering climate change mitigation.
The most obvious problem with centralized electricity systems is the massive loss during transmission. Between 8–15% of power generated at the plant is lost as heat while passing through transmission lines and substations. This amounts to hundreds of billions of dollars in wasted energy annually worldwide, while also increasing unnecessary carbon emissions. Additionally, long-distance transmission requires extra infrastructure such as high-voltage lines and large substations, which are costly to build and maintain. Ultimately, these costs are passed down to consumers through electricity bills.
Unfair treatment and cumbersome processes for renewable energy producers illustrate another issue with centralized systems. Individuals with rooftop solar panels must navigate complex permits to sell excess power, and the selling price is unilaterally set by power companies. More critically, existing systems are not designed to efficiently integrate variable renewable energy. When solar or wind output spikes, grid instability often forces operators to limit renewable production or activate fossil-fuel backup plants—an inherently inefficient approach.
Lack of transparency in electricity trading and the role of intermediaries further undermines market fairness. Power passes through multiple entities—transmission companies, distribution companies, power exchanges—each adding fees and margins. Consumers end up paying far more than the actual generation cost, with little transparency on pricing. Moreover, the complexity of the electricity market makes it virtually impossible for individuals or small businesses to trade power directly, entrenching an oligopoly dominated by a handful of large power companies.
These three infrastructure challenges—telecom monopolies widening the digital divide, cloud centralization threatening data sovereignty, and energy grid inefficiency delaying the energy transition—are all symptoms of the same root cause: the ownership and control of physical infrastructure being concentrated in the hands of a few. Attempts to solve these problems individually have shown limitations, and a more fundamental and integrated approach is now necessary.
2. A New Infrastructure Paradigm Proposed by DePIN
2.1. Decentralized Wireless Networks: Communications Built by Individuals
As a fundamental solution to the monopolistic structure of traditional telecom infrastructure, decentralized wireless networks—owned and operated directly by individuals—have emerged. In this new model, anyone can install a small base station or WiFi hotspot at home or in an office to provide communication services to the surrounding area, receiving economic rewards in the form of tokens. The Helium network is already operating on this principle, with hundreds of thousands of individuals around the world installing small antennas in their homes to build low-power networks for IoT devices.
The most innovative aspect of this decentralized model is that the driving force for network expansion comes not from the capital investments of large corporations, but from the voluntary participation of individuals. In the past, telecom companies decided where to invest based on profitability; in a decentralized network, residents themselves have the incentive to improve network quality in their own areas.
In rural regions or developing countries—places traditional telecoms avoid—residents can cooperate to build their own infrastructure. Moreover, because the system is designed so that the better the network quality, the more users it attracts and the greater the token rewards, participants are motivated to continuously improve service quality.
Such individually-driven networks can drastically reduce communication costs. Without the need for massive corporate headquarters, marketing budgets, or middle management, the service can operate purely on the actual cost of providing communication. Individual operators receive rewards proportional to the traffic their equipment handles, while overall efficiency is far higher than traditional telecoms. Users benefit from cheaper services, and profits generated within local communities remain there instead of being extracted by external corporations, creating a positive feedback loop.
Another key value of decentralized wireless networks is censorship resistance and resilience. In centralized networks, governments or telecoms can block access to specific areas or services. In contrast, in a network composed of thousands of independent nodes, such control is far more difficult.
Even during natural disasters or political instability, if some nodes fail, the rest can continue operating, maintaining communication services. Moreover, because individual operators have direct responsibility to their communities, responses during emergencies can be faster and more flexible.
2.2. Decentralized Storage: Monetizing Personal Hard Drive Space
If decentralized wireless networks democratize access to communications, decentralized storage—using individuals’ unused storage space—fundamentally changes the paradigm of data storage and management. Platforms like Filecoin, Storj, and Sia enable millions of people worldwide to contribute unused space on their computers or external hard drives to a global cloud storage network. This opens up an entirely new possibility: secure and low-cost cloud services without relying on massive data centers owned by Amazon or Google.
The key to this model is that data is not stored in a single server or data center but is encrypted and distributed across thousands of nodes worldwide. A single file is split into multiple pieces, each stored on different people’s hard drives in various locations. Even if one node fails, data loss or service interruption is prevented. Since each fragment is encrypted, node operators cannot access its contents, meaning privacy and security are stronger than in centralized cloud systems.
From an economic perspective, decentralized storage allows individuals to monetize resources they already own. Most personal computers or external drives are only partially used, with the rest sitting idle. By renting out this unused capacity, individuals can earn ongoing token income. Storage providers are rewarded based on the amount and duration of storage offered, as well as service quality; nodes that provide long-term, stable service earn higher trust scores and greater earning potential.
This model also offers breakthroughs in data sovereignty and censorship resistance. In traditional cloud services, governments or corporations can block or delete certain data. In decentralized storage, such control is technically almost impossible because data is spread across thousands of independent nodes under different legal jurisdictions. Individuals also gain true data self-determination—deciding exactly where their data is stored and with whom it is shared.
2.3. Decentralized Computing: A Shared Economy of GPU and CPU Resources
If decentralized storage democratizes data storage, decentralized computing connects computing power scattered across the globe into one massive supercomputer. The Render Network allows individuals to contribute GPUs for 3D rendering, while Golem uses idle CPUs for scientific research or machine learning training. With the recent boom in AI and skyrocketing demand for GPUs, gamers and creators can now rent out their high-performance graphics cards during idle hours for AI model training or inference, earning significant income.
The biggest advantage of decentralized computing is cost efficiency. Traditional GPU cloud instances from AWS or Google Cloud include costs for data center construction, operations, and corporate profits. In decentralized networks, hardware owners provide resources directly, eliminating most intermediaries. Researchers and startups can secure the necessary computing power for less than half the usual cost, while individuals earn revenue from underutilized hardware.
Another innovative aspect is the efficient use of global computing resources. Time zone differences mean that idle computers in Korea at night can process workloads from the U.S. daytime, and European evening downtime can fulfill Asia’s daytime demand. This creates a 24-hour global computing grid that increases hardware utilization and enables optimized resource allocation based on regional energy availability.
Quality control and reliability are crucial for enterprise adoption. Because hardware performance and connectivity vary among participants, workloads are distributed across multiple nodes, with results cross-verified. A reputation system based on past performance ensures that critical tasks are assigned to trusted high-performance nodes, while newcomers gradually gain access to more important work. This ensures enterprise-grade reliability.
Together, these three decentralized infrastructure models—wireless networks for data transmission, storage for data preservation, and computing for data processing—form an integrated ecosystem. They allow individuals to leverage their physical assets to become owners and operators of global digital infrastructure.
3. Sector-Specific DePIN Application Scenarios
3.1. Redefining the Smart City: Citizen-Driven Urban Infrastructure
If decentralized networks, storage, and computing return ownership of digital infrastructure to individuals, in the smart city domain, they also transfer the authority over city planning and management directly to citizens. While traditional smart city projects have been led top-down by governments or large corporations, DePIN-based smart cities adopt a bottom-up model in which citizens actively participate in solving urban problems by installing sensors and collecting data.
Individuals can install air quality monitors, noise meters, or traffic counters at their homes or shops, enabling real-time collection of environmental data for the area. Citizens providing this data receive token rewards.
The greatest innovation of this citizen-driven monitoring is that the density and accuracy of data collection far exceed that of government-led systems. A handful of official monitoring stations cannot detect subtle regional differences or time-specific variations, but hundreds or thousands of personal sensors can. This enables precise tracking of things like noise levels in a specific alley, air quality changes near schools, or rush-hour traffic congestion patterns. Moreover, because these datasets are transparently recorded on a blockchain, governments or corporations cannot manipulate or conceal them, making them a trustworthy source of information.
Democratizing urban planning through citizen-collected data brings deeper value. Previously, city planners based decisions on limited datasets and abstract models. Now, decisions can be made using concrete data reflecting citizens’ actual daily experiences.
For example, when planning a new bus route, real mobility pattern data can be used; when determining park locations, air quality and noise data can be referenced; when improving traffic light systems, real-time traffic volumes can guide changes. Citizens become not just recipients of policies but active partners who contribute data to city planning and receive economic rewards.
This participatory smart city model also stimulates local economies. Tokens earned through environmental monitoring can be spent at local shops, or additional incentives can be given to areas providing high-quality environmental data, creating a positive feedback loop. Startups can emerge to develop region-specific services or solutions using this data, forming a data-driven local economic ecosystem—a completely different value distribution model from centralized smart city projects that primarily enrich large corporations.
3.2. Innovation in Logistics and Supply Chains: Tokenizing Personal Couriers
While smart cities make citizens the owners of urban data, in logistics, individuals can become key participants in the global supply chain by using their daily movements and assets. In traditional centralized logistics systems like Amazon or Coupang, massive warehouses and dedicated delivery fleets handle all shipments. In DePIN-based decentralized logistics, however, individuals can integrate deliveries into their daily routines—such as delivering a coworker’s package during a commute or making deliveries during a weekend drive.
Projects like DIMO and Hivemapper are already involving private vehicle owners in logistics and data collection networks, allowing participants to optimize their routes and schedules to earn additional income.
The most innovative aspect of this personal logistics model is the maximization of last-mile delivery efficiency. In conventional courier systems, delivery trucks leave warehouses and follow inefficient multi-stop routes. In decentralized logistics, individuals already heading to a given area naturally handle deliveries there.
For example, an office worker living in Gangnam can deliver packages along their route to Pangyo, or a weekend hiker can drop off online shopping goods at a lodge near the trail. This integrates deliveries into existing travel, dramatically reducing costs while improving delivery speed—creating a win-win model.
Integrating and optimizing various delivery methods is another core value. Personally-owned drones can handle high-rise apartment deliveries, electric scooters can perform short-distance urgent deliveries, and autonomous vehicles can carry large cargo—together forming a multimodal delivery network.
AI systems dynamically match optimal delivery methods and routes based on vehicle capabilities and owner schedules. On rainy days, for example, drone usage can be reduced in favor of private cars with indoor parking access; during traffic congestion, motorcycles or bicycles can be prioritized. Such dynamic optimization provides a level of efficiency unattainable with rigid traditional logistics systems.
Blockchain-enabled transparency and traceability add further value. Every delivery process is recorded, allowing consumers to track exactly where their product was made, through whose hands it passed, and which route it traveled.
A reputation system manages service quality and reliability for each delivery participant, ensuring that valuable items go to trusted couriers while general items can be handled by newcomers—a risk-based delivery allocation system. This reassures consumers, provides long-term incentives for good service, and continually improves the quality of the network.
3.3. Crowdsourced Mapping Data: Real-Time Maps Built by Individuals
If individuals become the drivers of logistics in decentralized networks, in mapping, everyday drivers become producers of real-time road information. Traditional mapping services like Google Maps or Naver Maps rely on satellite imagery and limited mapping vehicles. In contrast, DePIN projects like Hivemapper use millions of regular drivers who automatically collect and update road data with dashcams or smartphones during their daily drives.
Drivers simply go about their normal routes, and changes to roads, new buildings, or updated traffic signs are automatically detected, contributing to a global mapping database while earning token rewards.
The biggest breakthrough of such crowdsourced mapping systems is real-time data updates and accuracy. Traditional services may take months or years to update certain areas, meaning new roads or traffic changes take time to appear on maps.
In decentralized mapping networks, any change is instantly detected by passing participants and reported. Even small updates like temporary lane shifts from construction or a new store opening can appear on the map within hours. In the case of accidents or disasters, road condition changes can be instantly shared with other drivers, enabling a dynamic, living map service.
Decentralized models also address regional data gaps and expand global coverage. Big tech firms focus investments on profitable urban areas in developed countries, leaving rural or developing regions neglected.
In DePIN-based mapping, local residents themselves collect data and receive rewards, meaning previously underserved areas can now have accurate, up-to-date maps. Rural villages in Africa or mountain regions in South America gain detailed and current mapping information, aiding local economic development and tourism.
Finally, such ecosystems redefine data ownership and privacy. Traditional mapping services collect data for free and monetize it via advertising. In blockchain-based mapping networks, individuals receive ongoing royalties whenever their contributed data is used.
Moreover, individuals can set conditions for how their data is used, enabling selective data sharing that protects sensitive information while contributing to public benefit. This provides an alternative to big tech’s data monopolies and creates a new economic model in which personal activities generate social value.
4. The Technological Infrastructure Supporting DePIN Protocols
4.1. Wallet-as-a-Service (WaaS): A User Interface That Hides Complexity
For citizens installing environmental sensors in smart cities, individual couriers in logistics networks, and drivers collecting mapping data to all participate in the DePIN ecosystem and gain economic benefits, it is essential that they can use the service without having to understand the complexities of blockchain technology. This is where Wallet-as-a-Service plays the role of a vital bridge connecting DePIN and the general public.
The core goal of WaaS is to enable a citizen who wants to contribute environmental data or a driver who wants to join deliveries to use blockchain-based services with the same ease as a regular mobile app—without needing to know anything about private key management or gas fees.
The most important innovation in WaaS is the complete abstraction of blockchain wallet creation and management through social login. Instead of memorizing seed phrases and securely storing private keys, a citizen who wants to join smart city monitoring can simply log in with a Google or Kakao account, and a wallet is automatically created and managed in the background.
Similarly, a driver wanting to participate in deliveries or mapping data collection can use the service naturally without knowing anything about blockchain or cryptocurrencies. This smooth onboarding experience plays a decisive role in mainstream adoption of the DePIN ecosystem, attracting countless potential participants who would otherwise be excluded by technical barriers.
Integrated multi-chain asset management is another key value of WaaS. Currently, various DePIN services operate on different blockchains such as Ethereum, Polygon, and Solana, requiring users to manage separate wallets and transfer tokens between networks.
With WaaS, users can manage all their tokens—whether earned from environmental monitoring, delivery services, or mapping contributions—through a single interface. Without worrying about which chain their tokens are on, how much network fees cost, or how to bridge assets, WaaS automatically finds the optimal route and processes transactions.
This technical abstraction enables natural interaction and synergy across different DePIN sectors. Tokens earned from installing environmental sensors can be invested into logistics services, and mapping rewards can be used to fund smart city projects—all in just a few taps.
Users enjoy all the benefits of the DePIN ecosystem without realizing they are interacting with multiple complex blockchain protocols, making WaaS a crucial foundation for DePIN’s growth from a niche for tech experts into an inclusive ecosystem for everyone.
4.2. Incentive Mechanisms: Balancing Participation and Quality
If WaaS improves accessibility to the DePIN ecosystem, then a carefully designed incentive mechanism provides the economic engine ensuring the ecosystem remains sustainable and delivers high-quality services.
Instead of simply rewarding participation with tokens, the system adjusts rewards based on factors like environmental sensor accuracy, delivery service reliability, and mapping data quality—motivating participants to continually improve their service quality. Without such a quality-focused incentive structure, DePIN risks being flooded with low-quality participants or short-term speculators.
Proof-of-location and contribution verification systems are the most technically sophisticated components of these incentives. The blockchain must be able to verify that an environmental sensor is actually installed at its claimed location and collecting accurate data, that a courier followed the agreed route, and that mapping data reflects real road conditions.
This requires cryptographic verification of GPS coordinates and timestamps, cross-checking multiple participants’ data, and implementing algorithms to detect abnormal patterns—all at the protocol level. Such technical verification systems are essential to maintain fair rewards and network trust.
Staking and vesting models for long-term participation help prevent speculation and build a sustainable ecosystem. For example, a portion of tokens earned from installing an environmental sensor may be locked for 6 months to 2 years, encouraging the operator to maintain stable service over time.
Similarly, delivery participants may stake tokens upfront to ensure accountability; those with excellent performance receive additional rewards, while poor performance results in losing part of the stake—creating an economic responsibility system that drives participants to provide real, valuable infrastructure services rather than merely “mining tokens.”
The virtuous cycle between network effects and token economics is key. More environmental sensors increase the accuracy and value of the data, driving demand from researchers or companies, which raises token value. More participants in the delivery network improve route optimization and reduce costs, and more mapping contributors increase real-time accuracy. This network value growth leads to token appreciation, which attracts even more participants, creating a self-reinforcing growth engine for DePIN.
4.3. Interoperability: Connecting Physical Infrastructure
While a robust incentive mechanism ensures the quality and sustainability of individual DePIN protocols, interoperability allows different DePIN networks to combine like Lego blocks to create greater value in an integrated ecosystem. If environmental monitoring, logistics, and mapping currently operate in separate silos, blockchain-based interoperability can connect them for synergistic effects.
For instance, combining environmental data from a smart city network with delivery route data from a logistics network could automatically calculate the least polluted delivery routes, or real-time traffic information from a mapping service could dynamically adjust environmental sensor placement.
The core of cross-protocol integration is the free movement of assets and data. Tokens earned from environmental monitoring could be invested in logistics services, and a reputation score from mapping data contributions could serve as a trust credential in a delivery network.
Furthermore, environmental data collected in one protocol could be used for route optimization in another, with resulting benefits automatically distributed to all contributors via blockchain smart contracts. This fosters interdisciplinary innovation and collaborative value creation while preserving domain expertise.
A unified identity and reputation system deepens this interoperability. Through decentralized identity (DID), an individual’s performance in environmental monitoring, delivery accuracy, and mapping data quality all combine into a single integrated reputation profile.
When joining a new DePIN service, participants no longer need to build trust from scratch—their accumulated contribution history grants them better opportunities and terms. This gives participants the freedom to choose the most suitable contribution areas without being locked into one protocol.
Such an integrated DePIN ecosystem maximizes the network effects of global physical infrastructure. Discoveries in environmental monitoring can immediately enhance logistics optimization and mapping accuracy, while new routing algorithms from the delivery network can improve map quality. With cross-chain asset and data mobility, hybrid DePIN applications can emerge that combine the security of Ethereum, the speed of Solana, and the low fees of Polygon—offering optimal user experiences without users even realizing which chain they’re on.
Ultimately, this interoperability could connect all physical assets and infrastructure worldwide into a single blockchain network, where everyday human activities become part of global infrastructure—a new economic paradigm.
5. Challenges and the Future of DePIN
Despite the innovative vision DePIN presents, several real-world hurdles must be overcome before such a fundamental transformation can be fully realized. One of the greatest challenges is resistance from existing infrastructure corporations. Large companies that have monopolized telecommunications, logistics, and energy for decades are unlikely to willingly yield market share to decentralized networks run by individuals.
These corporations may lobby regulators to impose restrictions on DePIN services, or they may launch their own token reward systems to lock in existing customers. Leveraging their immense capital, they could also engage in temporary dumping or offer free services to pressure emerging DePIN projects out of the market.
Regulatory uncertainty and legal complexity pose additional obstacles. Questions remain over how existing telecommunications laws or aviation regulations apply when individuals provide communication services from home or use drones for deliveries, and how tax authorities will treat token-based rewards.
The way governments perceive DePIN and the regulatory frameworks they establish will have a major impact on the speed and direction of ecosystem growth. Furthermore, privacy laws and data sovereignty regulations differ across countries, adding complexity to providing global DePIN services.
Technological maturity and user experience limitations must also be considered. Current blockchain infrastructure still struggles with the scalability and processing speeds needed to handle every individual on the planet simultaneously using DePIN services. There is also a significant learning curve before the average user can fully understand and engage with tokenomics and smart contracts. Managing the negative impact of token price volatility on real-world infrastructure services is another technical challenge.
Nevertheless, DePIN’s fundamental value proposition suggests that these hurdles will eventually be overcome, ushering in an entirely new form of the physical world. An economy where individuals earn revenue from environmental sensors, contribute mapping data during daily drives, and make extra income delivering a neighbor’s package on their commute is clearly fairer and more efficient than existing systems. Early adopters and innovative local communities will likely begin implementing DePIN first, and as they demonstrate better service quality and economic benefits, adoption will gradually spread.
The most revolutionary aspect of this change is the complete fusion of the physical and digital worlds. Every object, space, and daily human activity gains economic value through blockchain, transforming the real world into a vast game-like economic system. Sweeping the sidewalk outside one’s home could earn environmental contribution tokens, safe driving could earn traffic data rewards, and helping a neighbor could increase community reputation scores. In this way, every positive action receives immediate economic feedback, naturally guiding behavior in ways beneficial to society—a massive incentive system.
Ultimately, DePIN will realize a paradigm in which personal assets become public infrastructure, and everyday activities become economic contributions. Beyond borders and corporate boundaries, all physical resources worldwide will be connected into a unified network, enabling humanity to solve complex problems through collective intelligence and distributed resources.
Massive challenges such as climate change mitigation, urban problem-solving, and global logistics optimization will no longer depend solely on the unilateral plans of governments or corporations, but will be addressed through self-organizing systems involving billions of voluntary participants. In the end, DePIN will be a core driving force in building a fairer, more efficient, and more sustainable physical world.