In-depth Understanding of DEPIN: Interview with Head of DePIN at Solana Foundation

In Web3, DEPIN is rapidly becoming one of the most followed tracks. What exactly is it? What does it have to do with ordinary people? How great is its potential for future development? The following content is整理自 an interview with Amira Valliani, the person in charge of DEPIN at the Solana Foundation, from The Defiant Podcast. If you want to know whether DEPIN is an opportunity you should follow and how to realize its implementation, this content is a must-read.

Q: Can you briefly introduce yourself and how you got into crypto and joined the Solana Foundation?

Amira Valliani ( hereinafter referred to as A): I first started to follow crypto in 2017. However, at that time I was mainly interested in community-built news platforms, especially local news. I have always been thinking: is it possible to use blockchain to establish community infrastructure, such as news writing, which can be both shared and profitable?

Later, I changed my career to entrepreneurship and developed a paid podcast platform. Although it has nothing to do with crypto, it made me deeply realize how difficult it is for content creators to collect small subscription fees. And I have never forgotten the concept of "community co-construction." After selling the company in 2021, I began to seriously consider returning to the crypto world.

Previously, I was involved in politics in Washington and also spent time at the White House and the State Department. I felt this was an opportunity that could integrate multiple interests of mine. After joining the Solana Foundation, I initially handled policy matters, and later gradually got involved in strategic projects. I also joined the Helium Foundation Board, and naturally took on the DEPIN-related work for the foundation.

Q: You just mentioned policy matters, and the Solana Foundation is quite active in policy-making as well. Can you elaborate on what you have been doing in Washington?

A: Our primary task is actually "education". After all, policymakers generally do not understand blockchain, and we need to help them understand the impact of this technology on the real world, especially how it can assist their constituents.

For example, we invited developers from Helium to Congress early on to introduce how to establish a community-shared wireless network through blockchain. Many lawmakers originally had misunderstandings about crypto, but when they saw the project materialize with their own eyes and heard "there are people in your district using the Helium network," they truly began to take this technology seriously.

Q: Your current core work is DEPIN, can you explain in simple terms what DEPIN is and why it is so important?

A: DEPIN stands for "Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Networks". In simple terms, it is a service technology that uses Web3 incentives to transform the "fragmented resources" in everyone's hands into a unified package that others can use.

For example, each of us uses navigation apps every day, but the update of map data is actually very slow and costly. There is a project called HiveMapper, which is a decentralized mapping project. You just need to install a dashcam, and it will automatically collect map data along the way during your daily commute, and the system will reward you with tokens. This real map data updates faster than Google, covers a wider area, and costs less.

For example, in the Helium project, you can deploy hotspots using your extra home WiFi bandwidth, contributing to the Helium network, allowing others to connect through it, and you can earn tokens. Some large telecommunications companies like AT&T and T-Mobile also collaborate with them to use the Helium network to cover areas that are difficult for them to access.

Essentially, DEPIN solves the problem of "collaboration at scale". Previously, only the giants could afford to spend billions of dollars to build this kind of infrastructure. Now, Web3 has made it feasible for everyone to participate.

Q: Are all physical resources suitable for DEPIN? Why haven't some traditional supply chain tracking technologies worked out?

A: Good question. First of all, I don't think supply chain tracking counts as DEPIN. The key to DEPIN is whether there is a market on both the supply and demand sides: one side consists of people who can collect data, such as those who have idle bandwidth, equipment, or location resources; the other side consists of companies that need this data.

If we only put the status of an item on the chain, it resembles a B2B traceability tool and is not quite considered DEP. DEP is more about integrating distributed resources and turning data into services that can be widely traded. Therefore, information that is frequently demanded and dynamically updated, such as map data, WiFi bandwidth, and edge computing, is particularly suitable for doing DEP.

Q: DEP and AI have a strong relationship, can you elaborate on how these two are combined?

A: I think AI is one of the core driving forces that I am most optimistic about for DEPIN. Right now, most of us interact with AI just by opening ChatGPT or Perplexity to chat a bit; the application layer of AI still remains on the computer. I believe that in the next decade, AI will enter reality and become a part of our lives. For example: autonomous driving, delivery robots, vacuum robots, and so on.

So what do these "grounded" AIs need? The answer is—data from the real world. For example, self-driving cars need to know whether there are any potholes ahead, whether the road signs have changed, and whether there is construction on the street. This kind of data cannot be obtained just by Google sending a few cars out each year to scan everything.

At this point, DEP can play its role. Taking HiveMapper as an example, it is a decentralized mapping project where users only need to install a dashcam. While driving regularly, they can collect data and exchange it for token rewards. The speed at which this data is updated far exceeds that of Google and can cover remote areas—it's practically a data paradise for AI.

There is another example called Matrix Rover, which drives small cars equipped with high-precision cameras on the streets, capturing extremely clear images to train autonomous driving systems. This data is more detailed than traditional "street view" and is very valuable for AI.

Q: Are these data definitely for big companies? Can the data collected by DEPIN serve decentralized AI?

A: Indeed, most AI is currently controlled by large companies, such as OpenAI, Google, and Meta. However, in the past two years, the crypto space has begun to see the emergence of decentralized AI projects, aiming to create an AI network that is not monopolized by big corporations. Here, the real-world data provided by DEP is particularly important.

To add one more point, not only data but also massive GPU computing power is needed to train AI. However, GPUs are too expensive for ordinary teams to afford, while there are countless idle GPUs distributed across personal computers, workstations, laboratories, etc. If these GPUs can be connected through the DEPIN network, it would be a civilian version of an AI supercomputing cluster. Many projects are working on this, such as io.net, Akash, Render, etc., which are establishing decentralized GPU networks to enable small teams to train AI. The underlying philosophy is to liberate both core elements of AI—data and computing power—from centralized monopolies.

Q: Will it be difficult to promote these things in reality? For example, high interest rates, difficulty in financing, and complex policies, will they hinder the development of DEPIN?

A: What you mentioned is exactly why now is a good time for DEPIN. Traditional infrastructure, such as building a communication tower, can cost several million dollars, along with the need for procedures, raising investment, and getting approvals. But now funding is expensive, and many projects simply cannot move forward.

At this point, the uniqueness of DEPIN lies in the fact that it does not rely on a single large institution for investment, but rather breaks the project into smaller pieces, allowing numerous individual users to participate in the construction, such as deploying a hotspot or installing a sensor. You only need to put out a few hundred dollars, and the system will reward you with tokens, making you a network builder.

So DEPIN essentially breaks down high-threshold issues into matters that everyone can participate in. This is, on the contrary, a good solution for the current macro environment of high interest rates and high costs.

Q: You said that the DEPIN industry in the future will be at a "trillion-dollar" level. How can we achieve such explosive growth?

A: The current DEPIN may only be in the scale of several billion dollars, but its development speed is very fast. I think the explosion point in the future will come from three directions:

Mature tools: In the past, if you wanted to create a DEPIN project, you had to build the system from scratch and deploy the chain yourself. Now, with service providers like Solana, chart platforms, and data query tools readily available, the development threshold has been greatly reduced.

AI Drives Data Demand: The rapid development of AI has made real-world data exceptionally important, and DEPIN is the best data collection network. The more AI develops, the more popular DEPIN becomes.

More and more "knowledgeable" entrepreneurs are entering the field: many of the founders working on DEPIN now have backgrounds in hardware, infrastructure, and truly understand the industry. They are not the type of people who "raise money first and then figure out how to do it," but rather they genuinely use crypto to solve old problems. They first identify the pain points and then choose to solve them using Web3. Therefore, I say that the key to the explosive growth of DEPIN is a large batch of "practical" founders entering Web3. They know how to get things done, and that is the core.

Q: Is it possible for an ordinary person like me to earn a living by participating in the DEPIN project?

A: Of course. I met someone in Mexico who now works full-time driving for the HiveMapper fleet. He bought a bunch of dashcams himself, then recruited a group of ride-hailing drivers and truck drivers, equipping them with devices to help him map every day. He is responsible for backend management, profit sharing, and equipment maintenance, which has turned into his "personal mapping company." There are also people specifically doing the operation and maintenance of Helium hotspots, deploying networks, maintaining nodes, acting as regional agents, and so on.

These are all brand new job opportunities that don't require you to know how to code. As long as you can use devices and manage resources, you can participate in a Web3 network and start making money.

Conclusion

DEPIN sounds very "technical", but it is actually a very simple logic: breaking down the resources we encounter in the real world every day into pieces, and then using incentive mechanisms to encourage people to actively participate. It allows us to see a future where everyone has the opportunity to participate in the construction of AI. If you missed the early days of Bitcoin and Ethereum, this may be your chance to enter.