Introduction:
Since 2019, the explosive growth of the crypto industry has attracted an increasing number of individuals to explore and become involved in the blockchain space. Initially, blockchain was primarily associated with virtual asset transactions and profit generation for some individuals. For others, it involved mining and increasing computational power to acquire tokens. Only a minority were dedicated advocates and developers who focused on researching and applying blockchain technology. Unfortunately, the market environment gradually became chaotic due to the gold rush mentality triggered by the first two groups. Pure technical research took a backseat as the hype-driven economy overshadowed the true potential of blockchain.
Over the past 3 years, the blockchain industry has witnessed various trends such as DeFi, NFTs, and the Metaverse. However, as the initial frenzy subsided, those who couldn’t find profitability gradually exited the stage. Simultaneously, technology research and market supervision have matured.
It has become increasingly evident that in today’s social environment, Web2 still dominates the market, and any significant updates cannot occur overnight. Progress can only be achieved by understanding the fundamental needs of the majority of users and integrating Web3 technology with the existing Web2 infrastructure. Striking the right balance between the two can propel Web3 in the right direction, bringing about gradual change to the current monopoly-driven, unstable, and high-risk market environment through new technologies. This transformation can usher in a new era of equality, sharing, and security, significantly altering the landscape of the Internet.
To address these challenges and emphasize the significant role of blockchain, the concept of DePIN has emerged. DePIN focuses on building upon existing infrastructure. It starts by leveraging the resources of Web2 and combining them with Web3 technology to create a transitional stage known as Web2.5. In this stage, individuals can continue utilizing existing resources and equipment while enjoying the efficiency and convenience offered by Web3 technology.
The first step is to integrate this technology into the underlying layer, establishing a robust foundation that subtly constructs a vast decentralized network. Ultimately, DePIN aims to provide fertile ground for developing networks, applications, and protocols. It is within this soil that the Web3 ecosystem will take root and flourish.
1.What is DePIN?
1.1 Definition of DePIN
DePIN, short for Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Networks, refers to an infrastructure built on blockchain technology. It operates through a token incentive mechanism to maintain and enhance physical infrastructure.
According to Messari, a reputable organization, DePIN can be described as follows: It leverages blockchain technology to coordinate the physical hardware infrastructure of multiple individual units in a permissionless, trustless, and programmable manner, all driven by token incentives.
Broadly speaking, DePIN encompasses a wide range of applications. For instance, hardware facilities like PoW mining machines play a crucial role in maintaining the operational integrity of blockchain networks. Additionally, when viewed from another perspective, the entire Web3 ecosystem is built upon the foundation of the DePIN network, as each node relies on individual units renting their own servers.
The ultimate objective of DePIN is to establish a decentralized and self-sustaining system that enables individuals and organizations to become active participants within the network. By contributing their labor, equipment, or other resources, they can engage in transactions and reap the benefits offered by the DePIN network.
1.2 The Core Mechanism of DePIN
The fundamental mechanism behind building a DePIN network revolves around individual hardware units earning returns through leasing their services. To transform this mechanism into a decentralized global network, the token economy plays a crucial role.
In traditional centralized hardware service providers, substantial upfront capital is typically required for purchasing or constructing hardware facilities. Additionally, revenue generation relies heavily on future orders. This model is generally feasible for projects backed by large enterprises or government funding. However, the significant upfront costs, potential risks in later stages, and competition-related challenges make it nearly impossible for small and medium-sized enterprises to participate.
During its initial stages, DePIN operated as a spiraling dynamic mechanism that facilitated the participation and gradual growth of users, providers, and platforms with relatively low risks. Token incentives played a crucial role in coordinating these dynamics. The platform can utilize data from suppliers to design parameters such as one-time rewards or Staking APR (Annual Percentage Rate), achieving a dynamic balance.
Furthermore, the construction mechanism of DePIN is built upon existing platforms. Both individuals and enterprises have the opportunity to contribute their existing resource facilities to the DePIN network, enabling independent resources to participate in a sharing mechanism. This allows them to become builders within the DePIN ecosystem while simultaneously reaping the benefits it offers.
The emergence of DePIN is not a mere coincidence; rather, it is the result of long-term accumulation. This is why many media outlets have labeled DePIN as a track with immense potential in 2023. As the market evolves, DePIN will establish its own set of rules while building its platform. These rules will facilitate the standardized operation of blockchain technology and promote its deep integration with various scenarios.
It is important to note that these rules differ from regulatory policies. They are not formulated by any individual or institution. Instead, they are generated organically as DePIN begins constructing its framework. These rules are embedded within smart contracts and continuously improved through the consensus of all users.
2. Why develop DePIN?
The reasons behind the development of DePIN, such as Internet monopoly and concentration of power, break down the chaos of the Internet and what changes DePIN will bring, focusing on changing the Internet.
As we are aware, the operation and maintenance of Internet infrastructure typically rely on centralized institutions or government entities. Enterprises construct the infrastructure, expand networks, and establish interconnected application scenarios, while individuals pay for and utilize the services provided. However, this centralized model possesses certain drawbacks, including restricted device networks, lack of transparency, complex work processes, and limited participation opportunities for individuals and organizations. Individuals find themselves unable to have full control over their own data, information, and behavioral patterns, as they remain monopolized by corporations throughout the entire production and maintenance process.
The objective of DePIN is to address these infrastructure issues, completely eliminate monopolies, and establish power rules that belong to the public. In the following sections, we will delve into a detailed analysis of the three major Internet dilemmas that will be entirely rectified through the implementation of DePIN.
2.1 Remove the shackles of centralization
Through the DePIN system, corporate monopolies will be abolished and anyone will have the opportunity to participate in the maintenance and improvement of physical infrastructure. They can contribute by providing labor, materials or other resources and receive corresponding token incentives in return. These tokens can be used to access infrastructure, such as logistics, cloud services, communications, etc., and can also be traded on exchanges to realize the circulation and transfer of value.
The core concept of the DePIN system is decentralization and self-sustainment. It does not rely on any centralized agency or government, but records and executes transactions between users through smart contracts.
This decentralized mechanism improves the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of infrastructure maintenance, allowing more people and resources to participate, share the workload, and reduce production and site occupation costs.
And it increases transparency, and each user’s contribution and rights can be recorded and tracked to ensure fairness.
In addition, DePIN also has better data visualization conditions to help users better understand infrastructure needs, allowing for better planning and improvement.
2.2 Unit Cost and Economies of Scale
DePIN’s crowdsourcing model plays a significant role in reducing overall costs and facilitating rapid scalability within a short timeframe. For instance, decentralized storage platforms like Filecoin and Arweave offer storage prices that are dozens to hundreds of times cheaper than Amazon S3. This signifies a significant cost reduction (or diversification) achieved through the utilization of DePIN.
Moreover, due to its decentralized nature, DePIN minimizes or eliminates various costs such as labor costs, factory construction expenses, operation, and maintenance costs, among others. As a result, these traditional cost components become almost non-existent within the DePIN ecosystem.
However, DePIN may have instability and security risks. A completely permissionless hardware network that relies on token incentives to manage nodes is, at least so far, just an ideal idea. In practical applications, you may encounter various problems: the imbalance of income and expenditure caused by token floating and eventually reaching the “shutdown price”, triggering a death spiral; misoperation caused by the unprofessionalism of a single node, causing malfunctions; nodes doing evil things behavior, hacking issues, and more. Therefore, solving these problems requires high business capabilities of the project team, and also requires further improvement of the overall blockchain infrastructure.
2.3 Reuse of idle resources
DePIN can gather scattered idle resources and provide them to the most needed and valuable businesses. The reuse of idle resources not only creates additional markets and value, but also drives individuals to generate additional income. Judging from the current mainstream DePIN projects, the idle resources collected are mainly four: hard disk storage space, communication traffic, GPU computing power, and energy. This is actually an attempt at a globalized sharing economy in the field of digital information. Its essence is similar to idle fund management in the financial field and idle vehicle leasing in the transportation field.
The significance of the DePIN era is to connect real life with Web3 through hardware facilities so that Web3 can better integrate with people’s lives.
Elimination must lead to new life. The abolition of centralized rules will bring about the secure, consensus, fair, and open popular infrastructure formed by DePIN. Behaviors such as price hikes, data leaks, and manipulation of public opinion will be cracked down, forming a new network environment.
The above content focuses on the concept of DePIN and the contemporary Internet dilemmas that need to be improved. This special topic will take you to analyze the concept of DePIN, what problems it solves, application scenarios, and market projects, etc., and sort out the most detailed information on the entire Internet. DePIN information for everyone to understand quickly. In addition, at the end of this series, MEMO’s work and plans in the DePIN project will be elaborated. More DePIN special content will be brought in the future.
3.Market Gaps and Application Scenarios
The market gaps addressed by DePIN primarily revolve around resolving the chaos present in the Internet ecosystem. To effectively promote the adoption of blockchain technology, it is crucial to establish reasonable and well-defined application scenarios. These scenarios play a vital role in determining the actual social impact of DePIN, its effectiveness, public acceptance, and whether it can evolve into an industry standard.
Hence, when implementing any technology, including DePIN, it is essential to prioritize the consideration of practical application scenarios. If DePIN fails to deliver convenience and create substantial social value in specific contexts, it will undoubtedly be deemed an unsuccessful technology. In the following sections, I will provide an introduction to the specific application scope of DePIN.
Internet of Things: DePIN will provide a reliable communication environment for IoT devices. IoT devices can transmit and exchange data through the DePIN network, forming private links between smart homes, smart cities, and financial systems. Individuals can use any IoT device to Devices send instructions to other devices to realize the true interconnection of everything.
Data storage and computing: Due to the continuous provision of resources by participants, DePIN can have large-scale and efficient data storage and computing capabilities. Enterprises and organizations can use DePIN network equipment to store massive data and achieve more powerful data backup, analysis, intelligent systems, AI learning, etc.
Fintech: The decentralized nature of DePIN can provide more secure, transparent, and reliable basic services for fintech. With the help of smart contracts, financial transactions will be traceable, so that the ins and outs of each fund can be queried, which will effectively reduce the risk of false transactions and illegal transactions.
Social and content distribution: DePIN can provide a more reliable and efficient infrastructure for social media platforms and content distribution. Users can share and obtain content more quickly, use DePIN devices to store huge amounts of content resources, social media platforms can process large numbers of users and data more quickly, and traceability can avoid copyright risks.
Public services and governance: DePIN can improve the efficiency and transparency of public services and governance. For example, for monitoring data sharing, individuals can add monitoring equipment to the DePIN network to provide the government with more convenient data access services and improve governance capabilities. They can also open access rights to others and obtain benefits from it, using the DePIN network to create a smarter society. of public services.
4.DePIN track
4.1Helium Network
Helium is a decentralized, peer-to-peer wireless network that allows Internet of Things (IoT) devices to send and receive data without the need for traditional cellular or Wi-Fi networks. Helium’s network runs on a series of hotspots that connect to the internet and create a wireless network for IoT devices to connect to.
Helium’s network is powered by a cryptocurrency called HNT, and hotspot owners can earn HNT by providing connectivity to IoT devices. These devices can include everything from wearable technology to smart home devices and even sensors used in industrial settings.
The Helium network is unique in its ability to scale quickly and efficiently, as each hotspot added to the network contributes to its overall coverage and expansion. This creates a network that is not only reliable, but also cost-effective, making it an attractive option for individuals and businesses looking to streamline their IoT connectivity.
4.2arkreen
Arkreen is a digital infrastructure network for distributed renewable energy equipment jointly built and jointly owned by a Web3-empowered global community. It is used to connect global distributed renewable energy equipment and develop the huge value of green data gathered by the network, thereby Further advance the global carbon neutrality goal.
Currently, distributed photovoltaics account for a high proportion of global installations, and this trend is continuing to strengthen. However, owners of these distributed photovoltaics cannot actually enjoy all the benefits. For example, the power generation data of these photovoltaic assets can actually be developed into green power certificates, but the traditional centralized business model cannot economically help owners of distributed photovoltaic assets earn data benefits from clean energy. With arkreen, the Web3 model can be used efficiently and reliably to connect global distributed photovoltaic assets at a lower cost, ultimately forming a data network to help individuals obtain corresponding green certificate benefits.
4.3MEMO
MEMO is a decentralized storage network that organizes and manages edge storage device resources scattered around the world to build DePIN on a large scale and provide safe and efficient data storage services for individuals and enterprises.
At present, MEMO’s nodes are mainly distributed in North America, Asia, Europe and other regions and are constantly increasing. The services currently provided mainly include NFT storage, SocialFi cloud services, data wallets, etc. The complete incentive mechanism can ensure that participants obtain considerable economic benefits. , In addition, unlike other projects, MEMO adds the role of a supervisor between users and nodes. Triangular correspondence can effectively check and balance the relationship between users and nodes, forming a safe and efficient transmission network.
The middleware system developed by MEMO can access Internet data through smart contracts, classify and store it on the chain, and provide data sharing services. MEMO’s move is intended to build a data bridge between the Internet and the blockchain to facilitate the data conversion from the Internet to the blockchain. Next, MEMO will build a DePIN network for monitoring facilities. In the future, MEMO’s storage range can cover the Internet to Most areas in blockchain.
The above mainly introduces three projects from the three aspects of network transmission, renewable energy and data storage. Arkreen is a major participant in DePIN and a leader in the industry. Helium is also famous in this field. MEMO, a rising star in the industry, is still relatively unknown. Next, we will focus on the MEMO project.
5.DePIN MEMO
Although the concept of DePIN has just taken shape, MEMO has been working in this field for a long time. In the early days, MEMO called itself storage infrastructure. At that time, the industry was still in the gold rush era. When the blockchain returned to the right path, people began to discover and After paying attention to DePIN, I discovered that the MEMO decentralized cloud storage originally developed and maintained by memolabs is a pioneer in the field of DePIN.
MEMO is built on the underlying blockchain network and uses Blockchain as a Service to build a decentralized cloud storage platform. MEMO uses blockchain as a coordination and management network to connect edge storage devices (such as personal idle PC hard disk storage Space) providers and demanders of such hardware facilities.
At the previous Hong Kong Web3 Carnival event, MEMO also joined the DePIN Alliance led by Wanxiang Blockchain. Alliance members will regard DePIN construction as a major center for future project development. Next, we will combine MEMO to talk about the real-life scenarios that will be covered in the construction of DePIN.
The MEMO project has been established as early as 2017. Unlike other multi-pronged projects, the MEMO team has been focusing on storage technology research, insisting on developing edge storage technology and the node network has reached a certain scale. Therefore, compared with other projects, MEMO is larger and goes further in terms of DePIN infrastructure construction.
After all, MEMO was already doing this before the concept of DePIN came out. Although MEMO focuses on data storage technology research, the team knows that data storage always relies on physical facilities and promotes blockchain decentralized storage to replace the Internet. The foundation of centralized storage lies in the decentralization of equipment. The infrastructure of the Internet is cloud service providers such as AWS. Only the decentralization of data storage equipment can allow emerging blockchain companies and projects to escape the control of cloud service providers. On the one hand, it ensures The absolute security of your own data, on the other hand, is out of control and reduces costs.
Most of the equipment sources of MEMO network nodes are personal idle hardware equipment, which are linked together through the blockchain network to form a large network that provides storage and computing, eliminating the risk of losing bargaining power and reducing the risk of over-concentration of equipment and services. Labor maintenance costs, factory construction or rental costs are omitted.
MEMO has had in-depth exchanges with Arkreen, a well-known project in the field of DePIN, and has initially reached a cooperation. The two parties have reached a consensus on the construction method of DePIN. MEMO will provide software and hardware for the construction of upper-layer applications based on the existing storage network and equipment. Integrity services, helping blockchain applications to rationally layout and enter the market, are the first step in the implementation of the DePIN concept. To this end, MEMO has also reached cooperation with Lens, a well-known project in the decentralized social field, and developed a distributed storage based on MEMO. Lens Drive provides complete decentralized data storage services for the Lens ecosystem.
5.3.1 Monitoring data storage
In subsequent development plans, MEMO will also provide storage services for more decentralized applications based on DePIN construction, such as monitoring data storage as a basic service.
As we all know, with the rise of economic conditions and the enhancement of people’s safety awareness, home monitoring has gradually become popular. Whether it is an external public area or an internal private area, the installation of monitoring equipment has become the norm. In the current monitoring data storage, most of them are It uses cloud storage services or local hard disk storage provided by equipment suppliers. The disadvantages of cloud storage are the same as the cloud services mentioned at the beginning of this article. Moreover, due to the single data type and small user scale, the price is lower than that of large-scale cloud server equipment. It is more expensive, has smaller space, and needs to clean up the space from time to time. As for the local hard disk, it is not superior in terms of cost and security.
Retrieving monitoring data at any time is a basic need for users. With the improvement of equipment performance, the picture quality has become more refined, and the corresponding data volume has become larger and larger. Both in terms of space and security, the above two methods are no longer adaptable. Monitoring data storage needs in the future or even now.
According to MEMO’s plan, the field of monitoring will be included in the development map in the future, fundamentally solving the problem of monitoring data storage, and guiding industry upgrading and ecological convergence. As its own nodes gradually increase, more and more personal idle storage devices will be used. It can become part of the entire monitoring ecosystem. In the user’s own device, part of the data of this ecosystem is stored, and these data may include their own. According to the MEMO protocol, personal nodes cannot read the data stored in their own devices, so there is no need to worry about security.
As for storage costs, users don’t have to worry. First, users themselves will obtain relevant rights and interests after becoming part of the ecological node, and these rights and interests will be reflected in reducing space costs. Second, the construction of ecological nodes mostly comes from personal idle equipment, and This part of the equipment itself only has low value attributes, which is equivalent to reusing idle equipment, and the use cost can be minimized.
When it comes to monitoring equipment, MEMO can choose to cooperate with existing companies, and is only responsible for back-end storage and retrieval, or it can choose to design and produce it itself. After all, this aspect does not require strong technical empowerment. Since most MEMO nodes are now personal devices, in terms of building DePIN, it is the best choice to start from the direction of home monitoring. With the participation of more high-quality enterprise nodes, it can gradually cover enterprise monitoring and even Outdoor monitoring gradually realizes ecological integration and value sharing in the entire field.
5.3.2 Personal cloud services
Earlier this year, MEMO launched a Lens Drive application, which mainly provides user data storage services for the Lens Protocol social ecosystem. However, considering the current Internet facilities, social networking is only a small part of it. Therefore, not long ago, the MEMO team launched EthDrive, a comprehensive data storage application for all individual users. It plans to cover personal storage services to more scenarios and ecology. In the future, including office, audio and video, games, All kinds of data such as artistic creation can be stored in a decentralized manner to maximize personal privacy and ownership.
For example, office data, the current online office system is basically monopolized by a few office software, and all kinds of information and data related to enterprises and individuals are also in the hands of the other party. Once hackers or insiders steal it, the use of these software will be Enterprises have suffered huge losses, such as leaked project plans, lost office materials, etc.
As for audio-visual and game data, in today’s various entertainment applications, each application is independent of each other, and the data generated in one application is only saved in this application, including the data generated during the user’s use and the system purchased. Services, such as songs in music software, movies and game props in video software, etc. These data cannot be viewed or even exported after you close the software. Even other applications in the same ecosystem must be purchased using a new identity. New services.
The main reason for all these problems is that the data monopolies are emboldened. The other party has a monopoly on digital copyrights and has considerable bargaining power. As more and more companies refer to the above practices, they pull data and users closer and closer. As distance travels further and further, users have to accept higher and higher service costs.
What MEMO needs to do is to completely break this framework, restore data to the people, protect users’ digital copyrights, abolish the corporate monopoly between data and users, allow copyright owners and service buyers to form a direct connection, and add to each transaction System certification.
Digital products that you have purchased can be freely transferred and traded under certain circumstances, and can also be used across applications with ecological support. Of course, this requires the cooperation of upper-level application developers, and what MEMO needs to do is to become a developer. A bridge for face-to-face communication between merchants and users.
On the premise of providing data storage, a permanent record of all generated user data and transactions is formed, and the upload, download and rights protection are controlled by the user through the user identity system.
EthDrive is currently officially online. You can also get permanent free space by participating in official activities. You can register and experience it freely. Official website: ethdrive.net
In the construction of DePIN, MEMO first uses hardware facilities as the basis to provide storage services for Web3 applications to help the project implement. In addition, it combines its own storage technology to develop storage applications that serve the majority of users and project parties, aiming to integrate the market and form data Borderless ecological integration and safeguarding all digital rights of Web3 users. The above mentioned is not only MEMO’s next phase plan, but also a long-term goal. The development of DePIN is a common thing for the majority of participants, and MEMO will play an important role in this field. Combining its own advantages, we strive to provide various services and promote ecological prosperity.
