Author: JDI Ventures
In the past year of 2023, the Crypto market has gone through the harshest darkest moment and ushered in a new round of bull market. The concepts that triggered this bull market are Inscription and DePIN (Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Network) . If Inscription represents the Crypto market’s need for a fair launch, then DePIN represents the infrastructure sector’s embrace of Web3.
DePIN is leading a revolution, not only the integration of blockchain and the Internet of Things at the technical level, but also the incentive construction at the business level An infrastructure revolution. This revolution is revolutionizing physical infrastructure.
From network builders to service providers to final consumers, DePIN’s paradigm is to incentivize individuals and small businesses to deploy and operate infrastructure networks that allow The rollout of digital-centric infrastructure around the world is more efficient, democratized and cost-effective.
From telecommunications to data warehouses and data sensors, to the layout of AI computing power and models, the potential that DePIN brings to technology acceleration is unlimited.
According to the analysis of "The DePIN Sector Map" by Messari, a leading industry institution, the market size of DePIN is expected to reach US$3.5 trillion by 2028. In terms of time, there is not much time left for the DePIN track at this time, but in terms of market size, the DePIN track is obviously still in a very early stage.
This article mainly sorts out the development of DePIN in 2023, introduces JDI Ventures’ participation in DePIN, analyzes the main applications of DePIN, and looks forward to the development trend of DePIN in 2024.
Reviewing the development of DePIN in 2023
For many practitioners, DePIN is A new concept that suddenly emerged has attracted attention only because of the amazing market performance of the DePIN concept token in recent times. However, in fact, the DePIN concept has been brewing for a long time.
The concept of DePIN (Decentralized Physical Infrastructure networks, DePIN, decentralized physical infrastructure network) is the research report "The DePIN Sector Map" released by Messari in early 2023. "It was formally proposed to define DePIN as "the use of cryptoeconomic protocols to deploy real-world physical infrastructure and hardware networks." Simply put, it is a blockchain-based token incentive that promotes all participants to build physical infrastructure. network.
And Messari gave a very optimistic market forecast - it is expected to reach 3.5 trillion US dollars in 2028, and the DePIN concept has also been highly praised by the market. focus on.
But in fact, this is just the starting point for DePIN in terms of title. Previously, there have been Proof of Physical Work (PoPW) and token incentives. Concepts such as Token Incentivized Phvsical Infrastructure Networks (TIPIN) and EdgeFi were successively proposed, but DePIN was finally adopted in a community vote initiated by Messari.
Disregarding the evolution of the title, the project of "using cryptoeconomic protocols to deploy real-world physical infrastructure and hardware networks" has actually existed for a long time.
For example, the decentralized network Helium was founded in 2013, and the decentralized storage Storj was founded in 2014. They were both from the communication, storage and other subdivision fields at that time. The team spontaneously explores how to build physical infrastructure networks in a decentralized manner. Later, the Internet, AI, energy, data collection and other fields also gradually joined in. Although the subdivisions vary widely, the core logic is the same, and today's prosperous DePIN track was eventually formed.
After the DePIN concept was proposed in January 2023, the popularity subsided in less than a month. After all, the market was still in a deep bear at that time, but Some investment institutions and entrepreneurs have begun to make plans, but these very early moves are difficult to be captured by the market.
At the Hong Kong Web3 Carnival in April 2023, DePIN once again became a hot topic in the industry, largely because of the Hong Kong SAR government’s acceptance of DePIN and RWA in the Web3 field. The highest degree, and DePIN is more suitable for early implementation. Therefore, it continues to attract the layout of some investment institutions, entrepreneurs and even relevant government departments. Similarly, these very early moves are difficult to be captured by the market.
Until August 2023, DePIN concept tokens represented by Helium Mobile, Honey, etc. have skyrocketed, becoming the most popular track outside of Inscription. This round of popularity is actually driven by multiple factors.
The most superficial thing that the market can see is that the entire encryption market has turned from bear to bull, but why are only DePIN and Inscription shining brightly? So we have to investigate in detail. special reasons behind it.
As mentioned just now, the DePIN track has actually been laid out by investment institutions and entrepreneurs. However, the market environment in early 2023 is not suitable, and regarding The new paradigm of DePIN is still being explored, so new DePIN projects are rarely launched. By the end of 2023, whether it was the improvement of the market environment or the exploration and accumulation of entrepreneurs, many projects gradually took shape from the initial concepts, and then began to be launched on the market one after another, and the subsequent actions were captured by the market. At this time, DePIN was in the technology It quickly occupied an important position in a market that lacked innovation.
JDI Ventures’ layout in 2023
JDI Ventures is a subsidiary of JDI Group focusing on Web3 An investment institution for technical facilities, it conducts strategic layout and continuous exploration around hardware service providers, DePIN project parties, developers and communities.
Since its establishment in 2019, JDI Group has not only participated in the DePIN industry through investment, but also is the earliest and largest direct hardware participant in the DePIN field - establishing Its own hardware platform integrates leading projects in the field of DePIN and distributed artificial intelligence (Decentralized AI), such as developing and promoting the hardware layout of Helium and DIMO Network, especially solving their supply chain and community services in Asia. question.
In the past four years, JDI Group has successfully captured opportunities in the DePIN industry and accumulated rich experience in DePIN construction through continuous investment, exploration and promotion. It has accelerated the adoption of Web3 applications in the real world, and has gradually become an industry leader in the DePIN field, contributing to the growth of the DePIN industry with irreplaceable influence.
In the past year, JDI Ventures, as an investment institution of JDI Group, has not only invested in Geodnet, PowerPod (electric vehicle charging solution), Metablox (global integrated Web3 WiFi network) as well as Helium Mobile (blockchain-based mobile network service), DIMO Network and Hivemapper (Internet of Vehicles) and other projects, and also actively explore the possibility of DePIN projects in areas with underdeveloped infrastructure such as Africa, from Fundamentally changed the local communication environment.
In 2024, the DePIN projects planned by JDI Ventures will successively demonstrate the wide application and potential of DePIN technology. The following is only relevant information for some cases deployed by JDI Ventures.
1. Helium Mobile
JDI Ventures As an early supporter and participant of Helium, Now he is actively involved in the Helium Mobile project. Helium Mobile currently has more than 10,000 subscribers. Demonstrating rapid adoption and market penetration of its services.
MOBILE token has increased by more than 1,000% in the past few months, driven by the growth of 5G and Wi-Fi networks. With the launch of nationwide services, the network is expected to Showing explosive growth.
As 2024 begins, Helium Mobile subscribers are already using more data on the Helium network than they do on T-Mobile. It shows that users are more inclined to use Helium's services instead of traditional mobile operators. This shows that Helium Mobile, as an emerging DePIN service, is successfully attracting and retaining users and has begun to compete with the traditional large operators in terms of data traffic.
2.DIMO Network
In the past December 2023, DIMO Network welcomed Here comes the first anniversary of mainnet operation. With manufacturing support from hardware manufacturer Hashdog deployed by JDI Ventures, DIMO is making significant advances in vehicle data connectivity and analytics.
DIMO was recognized among CB Insight's "Top Connected Vehicle Data Platform Companies" and featured in CryptoLola's Top DePIN Project Showcase.
Real-time vehicle valuation: With more than 32,000 vehicles connected to DIMO, valued at more than $300 million, real-time valuation tools help drivers maximize the value of their vehicles.
Number of Macarons devices connected: By the end of 2023, more than 1,000 Macarons devices have been connected to DIMO, and the new year is expected to see even greater growth.
DIMO’s analytics team solved the challenge of accurately measuring fuel levels in vehicle tanks.
DIMO provides monthly reports that simplify the process of buying and selling used cars, providing actual price estimates to help users understand the used car market.
3. Powerpod
JDI Ventures’ investment in PowerPod is an investment in emerging energy technologies in the DePIN field and long-term layout of green transportation solutions.
As a start-up focusing on electric vehicle charging solutions, PowerPod has huge growth potential in building a distributed shared charging network.
PowerPod's vision coincides with JDI Ventures' global movement to promote environmentally friendly transportation and energy solutions. JDI Ventures' investment in PowerPod not only demonstrates JDI's commitment to The commitment to clean energy and sustainable development also means the exploration of innovative energy network models.
4.Metablox
Metablox enables users to easily access points anywhere in the world Seamless roaming between users while providing token rewards to individuals participating in its network.
Currently, Metablox has deployed 12,714 nodes in 96 countries and has 11,317 active users. It ranks 2nd on DePINscan and is a future leader in the DePIN field. A solid foundation for growth.
Metablox’s success is not only the result of technological innovation, but also a reflection of cooperation and increased transparency in the DePIN field. JDI Ventures not only supports Metablox’s technological development, but also assists Metablox’s marketing and brand building in the DePIN field.
5.Geodnet
GEODNET contributes to global satellite navigation systems through its correction services and related services Sales from the (GNSS) industry and its users are its main source of revenue. According to market reports, augmented services is a large category of around $20 billion.
GEODNET already has certain technical advantages in the field of high-precision applications. It has deployed more than 3,300 user-owned sites and plans to network them by 2024. Expand to over 50,000 sites, aiming to become one of the largest networks in the world. 2023 was GEODNET’s first year of on-chain revenue, with 4,040,000 GEOD tokens burned (0.4% of the maximum supply).
JDI Ventures not only participated in GEODNET’s financing, but was also deeply involved in GEODNET’s hardware sales business.
6.Phoneix
The decentralized artificial intelligence infrastructure provided by Phoenix Global includes AI Computing layer and enterprise-level Layer 1 blockchain. In addition, Phoenix provides code-free AI deployment and multi-party computation, allowing analysis, calculation and sharing of value without compromising data privacy.
JDI Ventures joining Phoenix as a strategic investor and hardware partner will contribute to the rapid development of the SkyNet AI node network, especially through the upcoming PhoenixNode and Additional computing infrastructure hardware.
Through the layout of Phoenix, JDI Ventures has further deepened its influence and participation in the AI track.
7.Wicrypt
Wicrypt is Africa’s first decentralized blockchain-based It has successfully received funding from Microsoft and Google Cloud for its wireless infrastructure project. More than 1,100 hotspots have been deployed in over 30 countries, allowing individuals and businesses to share their online connections while being rewarded with tokens based on usage statistics.
JDI Ventures not only supports Wicrypt financially, but also cooperates with it on hardware to jointly promote the global development and popularization of the DePIN field to promote the narrowing of the global digital divide. .
8.Meson Network
Meson Network is a decentralized CDN that uses the incentives of Web3 The system collects a large amount of public data in a decentralized manner and will become the basis for distributed storage, computing and data transmission of the emerging Web3 Dapp ecosystem in the future.
Simply put, it creates a distributed IP and bandwidth resource network by aggregating idle IP and bandwidth resources from individuals, and distributes them to Users with specific needs.
Currently, Meson Network’s global cumulative bandwidth exceeds 10Tbps and has more than 20,000 mining nodes. It has demonstrated that blockchain technology is innovating the traditional producer-consumer Relevant to the potential of incentive-based network models.
Summary
The above eight DePIN projects involve different segments, and JDI Ventures Its layout goes far beyond this, and its exploration and layout in the direction of green energy is also in progress, such as investing in the decentralized energy Internet Arkreen and the virtual power plant Starpower. JDI Ventures’ actions in the DePIN field will be disclosed in the future.
Summary
Just like the above review and review of the 2023 DePIN track, As shown in the introduction of JDI Ventures' 2023 layout, DePIN is not a meme that happened overnight, but a narrative that has been brewing for a long time.
The imagination of DePIN narrative is that it is the greatest common denominator between the Web3 world and the real world - it is Web3 that shines into the real world, and it is also the reality that shines into the Web3 world. Entrance.
Because of the industry attributes of the DePIN track as an infrastructure, the information transmission is completely different from the tracks such as GameFi and DeFi that directly target crypto users - most of them Information is passed between relevant institutions, project parties, and miner communities in the industry. Therefore, the sudden explosion of the DePIN track is completely unexpected in the encryption market, and it is reasonable.
So at the beginning of 2024, what are the signals and trends in the DePIN track that are worth paying attention to?
The information and logic mentioned above have explained why the DePIN track exploded at the end of 2023. Now the new signal worthy of attention is whether it is overseas family offices He is also an entity business owner in the Mainland and has a strong interest in the DePIN track.
First of all, it is because they have seen the general trend of Web3. Another very critical factor is that they can easily understand the business and business model of the DePIN track ( Compared to DeFi, GameFi or even meme). Their funds have begun to pour into the DePIN track through various channels such as individual angel investments, LPs from investment institutions, and procurement of hardware equipment. This is a trend that has lasted for at least half a year.
JDI Ventures, as the world’s largest promoter and leader of the DePIN track in the last bull market, will continue to focus on laying out the DePIN track in 2023. As the DePIN track is about to explode in 2024, JDI Ventures is willing to contribute its rich experience in DePIN construction and help the DePIN project move towards a trillion-dollar market in terms of funding, hardware, supply chain and community services.