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Helium: A Deep Dive

Cointime Official

From blockcrunch by Darshan Gandhi

Introduction

Helium is undeniably the leader in DePIN (Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Networks). If you’re familiar with this space, you’ve likely heard of it. Rather than focusing on the basics, this report dives into advanced topics—key statistics, real-world case studies, upcoming developments, and a broader look at the DePIN ecosystem and decentralized wireless (DeWi) technology, which is where Helium is doubling down right now.

Here’s what this report covers:

  • SubDAOs: what are SubDAOs, why do they matter, and how do they operate?
  • Network of networks: helium’s vision for supporting multiple decentralized networks.
  • Use cases: real-world applications, from paragliding safety to green energy.
  • Challenges: issues like demand generation and evolving incentive structures.
  • Future growth: opportunities in new markets and industries.

Before diving in, let’s take a quick look at what Helium is and how its network has evolved over the years.

So, helium is a unique wireless network built & operated by the “community“, not traditional web2 telecom companies. It’s a bold attempt to decentralize the wireless infrastructure industry by letting individuals deploy hotspots to build connectivity. In return, these contributors earn rewards, creating a unique alignment between network growth and real-world demand. This approach eliminates dependence on telecom giants, offering a more scalable and cost-effective alternative to traditional networks.

Helium’s journey so far

Helium started in 2013 with a mission to create a decentralized IoT network. It launched its first LoRaWAN-based network in 2019, targeting low-power devices like sensors in agriculture, logistics, and smart cities. By 2021, it had grown into one of the largest decentralized networks globally, with over 450,000 hotspots deployed in 34,000 cities across 161 countries, but it didn’t get to the desired demand as expected (more on it later in the report).

In 2022, Helium entered the mobile space with its 5G network, expanding into new use cases. This marked its evolution from an IoT network to a broader infrastructure provider or how they call it today a “network-of-networks“. Today, Helium supports various wireless technologies like WiFi and VPN and develops sector-specific ecosystems through subDAOs.

If you’re excited to learn about the history of Helium, you could more about it here.

Why Helium matters?

Traditional telecom providers monopolize the wireless industry, controlling infrastructure, spectrum, and pricing. This centralized approach inflates costs, slows innovation, and focuses primarily only on urban markets while leaving rural areas disconnected. Deploying and maintaining networks under this model involves significant CapEx and OpEx, with these inefficiencies passed on to users.

For eg: in USA, three corporations dominate 99% of the wireless market, making alternatives nearly nonexistent.

Deploying and maintaining networks under this model involves significant CapEx and OpEx, with these inefficiencies passed on to users.

Building and maintaining networks under this system is slow and expensive, with costs ultimately passed on to consumers, while underserved areas remain disconnected.

Helium wants to try to change this - by decentralizing network ownership, it enables individuals to deploy hotspots and earn rewards for providing coverage. This crowdsourced model reduces costs, speeds up deployment, and ensures coverage grows where it’s needed most, without relying on lengthy approvals or major investments.

Helium’s incentive system is a big reason why it works. Instead of charging contributors, it rewards them with tokens for helping the network. This builds trust, keeps the system transparent, and makes the network sustainable.

So what does Helium offer?

  • Reduces costs with small, affordable hotspots
  • Introduces competition in a monopoly-dominated industry
  • Expands coverage to ignored rural areas
  • Enables quick deployment without lengthy approvals
  • Supports low-power devices for affordable IoT use
  • Avoids failures with decentralized network design
  • Resists censorship with decentralized infrastructure
  • Ensures transparency through blockchain-based systems

Here’s a quick understanding about what it takes to set up a network in traditional web2 scenario vs helium

So, that’s a good understanding about why does Helium even matter. Let’s now first dive deeper into understanding, what’s depin all about and why does it even matter.

What’s DePIN?

Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Networks (DePIN) offer a decentralized alternative of building infrastructure using blockchain and token incentives. It shifts control from centralized entities to individuals who contribute resources like capital and labor. This makes infrastructure efficient, scalable, and resilient while lowering costs.

How it works?Contributors deploy assets (e.g., hotspots or sensors) and earn token rewards. Networks grow organically as more people join, creating a cycle of better services, wider coverage, lower costs, and increased participation.

This creates a positive feedback loop, often referred to as the DePIN Flywheel:

  1. Improved user experience (faster, better services)
  2. Broader coverage through increased participation
  3. Higher utilization as networks attract more use cases
  4. Lower unit costs driven by economies of scale
  5. Increased token liquidity and value, drawing in additional contributors

State of DePIN

Applications across industries

  • Telecom: decentralized wireless (eg. Helium)
  • AI: networks for collaborative AI training (e.g. Bittensor)
  • Storage: scalable data storage (e.g. Filecoin)
  • Energy: peer-to-peer renewable energy trading (eg. Glow)
  • Mapping: real-time maps from user contributions (e.g. Hivemapper)
  • Logistics: transparent delivery and mobility systems

Ofc Depins also have their challenges circling around scaling, bootstrapping issues, lack of user incentives over a period of time and so on. But most of the these apps are extremely heavy revenue making first projects as compared to the other broader web3 applications which struggle to make any revenues.

The spectrum of offerings is also spread across depending on whether one of targeting growth over

What we can also see/ expect to unfold over the next couple of years (especially since Trump’s gov is going to start from 2025), a more deeper focus and opportunity for depin to succeed. Some trends we could be on the look out for:

  • Capital-efficient scaling over full decentralization for faster adoption
  • Time-based or demand-driven token strategies to stabilize value
  • Rapid growth in Asia due to favorable regulations and adoption
  • Gamification, like mapping missions, to attract and engage users
  • Increased focus on real-world sectors like energy and logistics
  • Collaborations with traditional companies to boost adoption

DePIN provides a sustainable, utility-focused model to replace inefficient centralized systems and over speculation (what most of the other web3 verticals offer), but its success depends on overcoming regulatory and scalability challenges.This is a great graph to understand how the network wins if they are able to sustain over a longer period of time and have sustainable growth.

Decentralised wireless networks

Traditional wireless networks dominate the landscape, here’s a quick understanding of realising the massive market opportunity that’s present in operating and running wireless networks.

DeWi networks combine blockchain incentives with physical infrastructure, allowing individuals to manage nodes, earn tokens, and support scalable, cost-efficient connectivity.

Categories:

  • Radio networks: Helium (5G), Nodle (Bluetooth)
  • Sensor networks: WeatherXM (IoT data), Hivemapper (mapping)
  • Server networks: Filecoin, Arweave (decentralized storage)
  • Energy networks: PowerLedger (peer-to-peer energy trading)

Timely emergence:

  • Advances like eSIMs and unlicensed spectrum simplify entry
  • DeWi reduces risks like SIM-swapping and offers urban scalability

Economic opportunities:

  • Cuts network operation and customer acquisition costs
  • Unlocks underused spectrum as a $10B+ market
  • Early adopters earn tokens through venture mining
  • Targets inefficiencies in the $270B U.S. telecom market

Innovative models:

  • MHNOs: Combine telco and DeWi infrastructure for lower costs
  • MVNO Platforms: Oxio simplifies network creation
  • Tokenized Spectrum: Enables dynamic spectrum allocation
  • ISP Enablers: Airwaive optimizes wireless ISP operations

Again, this report by ev3 is one of the best reports i’ve read on understanding the DeWi landscape deeply.

Here’s a good comparison of the live tokens in the market and how helium compares against them on the secondaries (on a high level).

How does helium work?

It connects hotspot operators, device users, and governance participants, creating an alternative to traditional telecom.

  • Hotspot deploymentIndividuals or businesses purchase hotspots from approved manufacturers and deploy them to provide wireless coverage. LoRaWAN hotspots support low-power IoT devices like agricultural sensors, while 5G hotspots enable high-speed mobile connectivity. Each hotspot becomes a network node, contributing to coverage expansion
  • Proof of Coverage (PoC)Helium uses PoC to verify the location and coverage quality of hotspots. Hotspots issue challenges to nearby nodes within a grid structure (H3). Successful participation in these challenges validates their activity and earns operators token rewards, encouraging reliable network contribution
  • Data credits (DCs)Devices connected to the Helium network consume DCs to access services like IoT data transfer or mobile connectivity. DCs are purchased by burning $HNT tokens at a fixed rate. This creates a deflationary effect, reducing $HNT supply as network usage grows
  • Token rewards and governanceHotspot operators earn tokens - $HNT, $IOT, or $MOBILE - based on their contributions to the network, including PoC participation and data transmission. SubDAOs, such as IoT and Mobile, oversee specific sectors in the network. Token holders stake governance tokens (eg. veIOT, veMOBILE) to vote on subdaos decisions, ensuring decentralized governance.

The flywheel effectAs more devices use the network, the demand for DCs increase. This leads to more $HNT being burned, raising its scarcity and value. The higher token value incentivizes more hotspot deployments, which improves coverage and attracts even more users. This positive feedback loop can help drive scalable network growth.

Helium combines infrastructure, PoC validation, data tokenomics, and governance into a scalable decentralized system. Here’s a good flowchart understanding of how the helium network is interlinked on a high level.

What is proof of coverage?

Proof of Coverage (PoC) is Helium’s mechanism to verify that hotspots provide valid wireless coverage and are accurately located. It ensures trust, fairness, and reliable rewards in the decentralized network.

How PoC works?

PoC uses a continuous challenge system with three participants:

  • Validators: Trusted blockchain nodes send random challenges to hotspots. Validators stake 10,000 $HNT to participate
  • Beacons: Challenged hotspots broadcast responses as data packets to nearby hotspots
  • Witnesses: Neighboring hotspots detect these responses and submit proof to the Validator, confirming the Beacon’s activity and location

PoC plays a crucial role in ensuring the integrity of Helium’s network by verifying hotspot locations and coverage, preventing fraudulent activity. It ensures fair rewards by aligning token distribution with hotspots’ actual contributions through PoC participation. This mechanism also promotes strategic hotspot placement, encouraging efficient and wide-area coverage rather than overcrowding in specific locations.

While attempts to game the system, such as faking locations, have posed challenges, Helium has implemented stricter verification methods and penalties to counter such behavior. Continuous upgrades further enhance PoC’s robustness, maintaining its reliability as the network grows.

PoC in SubDAOs:

  • IoT SubDAO: Validates LoRaWAN coverage for IoT devices
  • Mobile SubDAO: Verifies 5G coverage for decentralized mobile networks

It’s probably one of the most crucial elements of Helium!

Understanding data credits (DCs)

Data credits are a non-transferable currency used to access Helium’s network services like data transfer, device onboarding, and hotspot location assertions. Pegged to $0.00001 per DC, they offer stable pricing regardless of $HNT’s market volatility. DCs are acquired by burning $HNT, permanently reducing its supply and linking network usage to token scarcity.

How DCs work?

  • Acquisition: DCs are created by burning $HNT, lowering its overall supply.
  • Usage: Examples include $0.10 (10,000 DCs) for a 10kB IoT data transfer or $0.50 per GB (50,000 DCs) for mobile data usage.
  • Non-transferability: DCs are tied to the purchaser’s account and can only be used for network services.
  • Stable pricing allows businesses to manage predictable costs, unaffected by $HNT volatility.
  • Burning $HNT permanently reduces supply, increasing scarcity and potential value.
  • DCs unify IoT and Mobile SubDAOs, aligning incentives across the network.

Helium faces some significant challenges in driving the DC demand which in turn resonates to the actual network growth. Slow growth in IoT adoption limits DC burns within the IoT SubDAO, reducing its overall contribution to the ecosystem. Additionally, currently Helium Mobile accounts for 90% of all DC burns, creating a heavy reliance on this segment and underscoring the need for more diverse use cases. Market volatility further complicates the system, as fluctuations in $HNT’s price affect the purchasing power of DCs and the rate at which they are burned, impacting the network’s deflationary dynamics.

Expanding Helium Mobile, forging partnerships, and increasing IoT applications will be key to boosting DC demand. Higher DC burns will enhance $HNT’s deflationary effects and strengthen Helium’s ecosystem, driving long-term growth.

HNT: Utility and Tokenomics

The Helium Network Token ($HNT) powers the ecosystem by incentivizing participants and supporting decentralized wireless connectivity. It plays a central role in rewarding hotspot operators, facilitating data transfers, and enabling network governance.

Key Utilities of $HNT

  • Network rewards: Hotspot operators earn $HNT for Proof of Coverage (PoC) challenges and data transfer activities.
  • Data Credits (DCs): $HNT is burned to generate DCs, linking its value to network usage.
  • Governance: $HNT holders stake tokens to gain voting rights in Helium DAO decisions through veHNT.
  • SubDAO tokens: $HNT can be redeemed for subDAO tokens like $IOT or $MOBILE, used in specific subnetworks.

Tokenomics

  • Deflationary supply: $HNT supply decreases over time through halvings every two years. The max supply is capped at 223M, with minting reducing to 1 HNT per month by 2064.
  • Burn-and-Mint Equilibrium: DC purchases burn $HNT while minting aligns with network demand.
  • Net Emissions (HIP 20): Supply adjusts dynamically to maintain steady rewards amid changing burn rates

The Helium Flywheel

  • Devices use DCs, increasing $HNT burns
  • Reduced supply boosts $HNT value
  • Higher value motivates hotspot deployment, expanding the network
  • Expanded coverage attracts more users, driving further DC burns

By integrating rewards, network activity, and governance, $HNT tries to sustains Helium’s ecosystem. Its deflationary model and link to network usage ensure long-term growth while incentivizing participation.

Here’s a detailed balance sheet of how $HNT has performed over the last few years & quarters. If you’ like to play around more, check out this dashboard.

→ Y-o-y changes

→ Q-o-Q changes

Helium's SubDAO’s

Helium’s "network of networks" relies on SubDAOs, like IoT and Mobile, to manage specific subnetworks with independent governance and tailored rewards. SubDAO tokens ($IOT, $MOBILE) incentivize operators for activities like PoC and data transfers while linking their performance to $HNT through redeemability and utility-based rewards.

This modular structure drives growth by rewarding high-performing subnetworks, ensuring scalability and resilience. Decentralized governance within SubDAOs, alongside the Helium DAO, balances emissions and fosters collaboration, making SubDAOs integral to Helium’s decentralized ecosystem.

Who are the major stakeholders in the Helium network and how do they contribute?

The network thrives on the contributions of four main stakeholder groups:

  • the founding team
  • early investors
  • miners
  • network participants

Each group plays a critical role in the ecosystem’s growth, scalability, and sustainability.

  • Founding teamThe founding team drives Helium’s long-term success and scalability. They hold $HNT through HST allocations, often staking their tokens to reduce circulating supply and support price stability. Their focus on sustainable growth aligns their compensation with the network’s performance.
  • Early investorsEarly investors provided the funding needed to launch Helium. They hold $HNT via HST allocations and often stake their tokens, contributing to supply reduction and economic stability. Their success is tied to the network’s growth and token value.
  • Miners (hotspot operators)Miners form the network’s backbone by deploying hotspots for IoT and 5G coverage. They earn $HNT through PoC participation and data transfers. By expanding coverage and staking rewards, they improve network reliability, adoption, and governance.
  • Network participantsIoT users and service providers burn $HNT to create DCs for network usage. This continuous burning reduces $HNT supply, creating deflationary pressure that ties network utility to token value.

Incentive alignment

By combining staking and burning mechanisms, all stakeholders strengthen Helium’s economic sustainability,

Here’s the funding history of helium

Helium’s evolution: From IoT to a network of networks

Helium began as a decentralized IoT network, enabling low-power devices to connect via LongFi, a mix of LoRaWAN and blockchain. Hotspot operators provided wireless coverage and earned $HNT through the PoC mechanism. By 2022, Helium had deployed over 900,000 hotspots worldwide, making it the largest decentralized IoT network. However, low IoT data demand and overreliance on a single market exposed limitations, particularly during $HNT’s price volatility in the 2020 crypto bull market.

To address these challenges, Helium transitioned to a "network of networks" model in 2022, introducing SubDAOs like IoT and Mobile SubDAOs to manage specific wireless technologies. These SubDAOs operate independently with tailored governance and tokens ($IOT for IoT, $MOBILE for 5G) while maintaining $HNT as the ecosystem’s backbone. This modular structure supports multiple networks while ensuring economic alignment through $HNT and DCs, which are required for all data transfers.

Helium’s 5G network under the Mobile SubDAO emerged as a key growth driver. The Helium Mobile hybrid carrier, combining decentralized 5G hotspots with T-Mobile infrastructure, quickly reached 90,000 subscribers. Partnerships with companies like Telefonica further expanded its reach, targeting large markets like Mexico with over 300 million potential users. These efforts diversified Helium’s revenue streams and reduced its dependence on IoT.

Managing multiple SubDAOs and maintaining sufficient operator rewards remain challenges, as does competition from traditional telecom providers and other decentralized networks. Helium’s transition to a "network of networks" addresses these hurdles by integrating diverse wireless technologies, expanding market reach, and unifying its ecosystem around $HNT. This shift positions Helium to meet a broad range of connectivity needs while scaling its decentralized wireless infrastructure.

Here’s a good way for you to understand on a high level how does the user <> helium <> subdao economy operate and look like:

The IoT SubDAO

The IoT SubDAO manages Helium’s original LoRaWAN-based network, launched in 2019, to provide low-power, long-range connectivity for IoT devices. This network supports applications like environmental monitoring and asset tracking through community-owned hotspots. Operators earn IOT tokens, which they can stake for governance rights (veIOT), burn for DCs to use the network, or exchange for $HNT, ensuring alignment with Helium’s ecosystem.

Here’s a very good understanding about how does the IOT network work:

PoC validates hotspot locations and coverage reliability, using a challenge-response system where neighboring nodes verify transmitted data packets. This decentralized approach eliminates reliance on centralized servers, reducing costs and improving security. Operators earn IOT tokens for participation, incentivizing network growth.

The IoT SubDAO faces challenges such as limited growth in IoT applications, leading to low data transfer demand and reduced revenues for hotspot operators, despite nearly a million hotspots deployed.

Future growth for the IoT SubDAO depends on the broader adoption of IoT applications that require low-power, decentralized connectivity. Developing high-value use cases and improving network efficiency will be crucial for driving demand and increasing data transfer revenues.

One of the core challenges of IOT subdao are the long term revenue potentials, because of lack of demand.

The mobile subDAO

The Mobile SubDAO, launched in December 2023 through HIP 53, manages Helium’s decentralized 5G network. It operates a hybrid model that combines T-Mobile’s infrastructure with community-owned CBRS and WiFi hotspots. This approach reduces costs and expands affordable 5G coverage, especially in underserved areas. $mobile incentivizes hotspot operators, rewarding them based on location, uptime, and demand. The SubDAO independently governs PoC

Here’s a good understanding about how it works:

The hybrid 5G model allows traffic to route through Helium hotspots when available, lowering costs compared to traditional carriers. MOBILE tokens reward hotspot operators based on factors like location, uptime, and demand. Service providers like Helium Mobile must burn $HNT to acquire DCs for subscriber connectivity, ensuring the broader Helium ecosystem benefits from the Mobile SubDAO’s growth.

Helium Mobile as a carrier

The average cost of mobile data worldwide is approximately $7.29 per GB. With the typical user consuming around 20GB of data per month, this translates to a significant expense of nearly $150 monthly for data alone. These high costs highlight the burden on users and underscore the need for more affordable alternatives like Helium Mobile.

Helium Mobile, a $20/month plan launched by Nova Labs (parent company behind helium), has reached almost 120k subscribers in its first year by leveraging cost savings from hotspot offloading.

Its pricing has been able to challenge traditional carriers, showcasing the hybrid model’s viability and encouraging future adoption by other providers.

Here’s a breakdown of the offering by Helium:

How does it compare to the web2 players?

Offload partnerships and expansion:Helium is partnering with major MNOs like Telefonica in Mexico and U.S. telecom operators to offload data traffic. These partnerships target markets with over 300 million potential users, driving DC demand and $HNT burns, which support network scalability and revenue growth.

Revenue impact

  • The Mobile SubDAO generates 90% of Helium’s network revenue, primarily through hotspot offloading and Helium Mobile subscriptions.
  • This decentralized model democratizes telecom access, reduces costs for users and operators, and incentivizes deployment in underserved areas.
  • This breakdown further showcase which organisations have got the highest contribution to the network.
  • Amount of data transfer via the network over the last few weeks
  • The retention numbers though are not the best, with an avg retention rate of around 78% for the telecom industry in USA, helium is far away from reaching that. But ofc, these are early days and as the network grows, hopefully these can become better

So, it would make sense to focus on the following for driving more growth:

  • Expanding offload partnerships to drive more DC demand and $HNT burning
  • Growing Helium Mobile’s subscriber base to attract additional service providers
  • Exploring tokenized spectrum to lower costs and improve spectrum management efficienc

The revenue potential for Helium is immense. By examining the performance of web2 players (shown above in the report), we can better understand the scale of the opportunity and the vast market Helium is positioned to disrupt.

Understanding dynamic coverage & pricing

Dynamic coverage is a core feature of Helium’s Mobile network, seamlessly combining decentralized hotspots with T-Mobile’s infrastructure. Subscribers automatically connect to Helium’s community-owned hotspots when coverage is available, offloading data to reduce costs. When hotspots are unavailable, devices switch to T-Mobile’s network without interruption, ensuring reliable service.

This hybrid model benefits all stakeholders. Helium Mobile lowers operational costs by routing data through hotspots, enabling affordable plans like unlimited data for $20/month. Subscribers enjoy reliable and cost-effective connectivity, while hotspot operators earn MOBILE tokens for data offloading, driving demand for more hotspot deployments. This feedback loop improves coverage and increases offloading opportunities, reinforcing the network’s growth.

By reducing congestion on T-Mobile’s infrastructure, dynamic coverage enhances efficiency for both Helium and T-Mobile users.

Dynamic pricing for data offloading in Helium Mobile

Helium Mobile employs dynamic pricing to adjust costs for data offloading based on factors like demand, location, and network congestion. This market-driven approach incentivizes efficient hotspot deployment by raising prices in high-demand areas to attract more deployments and lowering prices in low-demand regions to prevent oversaturation.

By combining T-Mobile’s infrastructure with community hotspots, Helium Mobile reduces costs for telecom partners while optimizing hotspot usage. B

Core challenges Helium faces

Helium has grown significantly as a decentralized wireless network but faces key challenges in reward allocation, network participation, and tokenomics that affect its sustainability and growth.

→ Overallocation of rewards during the IoT phase

Helium’s early IoT network allocated fixed $HNT rewards to a small hotspot pool, creating high earnings that spurred rapid deployments. However, as hotspots multiplied and IoT demand remained low, rewards diluted, exposing an imbalance between incentives and network utility. The reliance on PoC rewards during this phase highlighted the need for a more sustainable incentive structure.

As we can see in the graph above helium ranks last in terms the tokens available to keep driving demand, it’s that’s why becoming important for them to now focus even more on the secondary partnerships and introducing more subdaos.

→ Low participation due to limited demandDespite nearly a million hotspots deployed, Helium’s IoT network experienced minimal utilization, with data transfer revenue at one point averaging just $200 per month across the network. This lack of real-world demand led to operator disengagement as PoC rewards dropped. Aligning rewards with actual network usage rather than expansion is essential to re-engage operators and maintain consistent coverage.

→ Exploitation of reward mechanisms

Helium’s PoC system has been exploited by fraudulent hotspots gaming the system for rewards without providing legitimate coverage. This undermines network integrity and reduces rewards for honest operators. Stricter validation mechanisms, penalties for fraud, and a focus on data transfer rewards over PoC could be helpful for having a better ratio of revenue vs token incentives provided.

As we can see above, the revenue has consistently remained below 10% of the token incentives distributed, which is expected given the early stage of the network's evolution. Monitoring this metric will be critical to assess the network's growth potential, particularly in terms of revenue generation (i.e., demand driven by subDAOs). If demand fails to rise, it could jeopardize the network’s sustainability. A lack of sufficient rewards for operators could eventually push the network into a downward spiral.

This should also resonate into the price becoming a function of paying users on the network helping drive the revenue.

→ Token buyback considerationsA potential $HNT buyback plan for mobile operations could boost token demand and value. However, such mechanisms must be carefully designed to avoid centralization risks or market distortions. A well-structured buyback could stabilize demand.

→ Fixed supply constraintsHelium’s fixed $HNT supply of 223M, coupled with biennial halvings, creates scarcity but may limit reward pools for SubDAOs like IoT and Mobile. As supply tightens, incentivizing participation could become difficult without adjustments to the halving schedule or alternative reward structures to balance scarcity with growth needs.Addressing these challenges requires refining Helium’s tokenomics and incentive structures. By prioritizing real-world utility, combating fraud, and aligning rewards with network demand, Helium can sustain its growth and remain competitive in the DePIN space.

Real world use-cases

Helium’s impact on paragliding safety and tracking

Helium has addressed critical tracking challenges in paragliding, offering a reliable, low-cost alternative to traditional GPS and cell phone coverage, which often fail in remote mountainous regions. For instance, in 2020, a paraglider named Kiwi tragically went missing in Nevada due to GPS failure and lack of cell coverage, underscoring the need for better tracking solutions.

Using LoRaWAN trackers like Oyster devices, Helium provides long-range, low-power location tracking that functions even in remote areas. These trackers send location data up to 40 km, leveraging Helium’s hotspots for connectivity without requiring personal infrastructure. In areas with no hotspot coverage, portable Helium gateways powered by batteries or solar panels can be temporarily deployed for flights or events, bridging connectivity gaps. Tests at

  • locations like The E launch site in California demonstrated seamless tracking for a 5-mile flight
  • another test Palomar Mountain demonstrated reliable tracking for flights, even with hotspots 40 km away

This system enhances safety by offering a backup when GPS and cell coverage fail, enabling faster emergency response times. It is also significantly cheaper than satellite-based alternatives, making it accessible to more pilots. Helium’s decentralized network ensures continuous improvement as more hotspots are deployed, benefiting both paragliders and hotspot operators.

Ofcourse, challenges like signal interference in mountainous terrains and the need for internet-connected gateways persist, Helium has helped transform paragliding safety to some extent.

Next up, let’s also look at some of the companies that Helium has worked with over the years and understand the metric that it’s helped move

→ Building and real estate: Automating water metering and billing

  • Key example: Heliotics in Slovakia
  • Problem: Manual water meter readings were labor-intensive, prone to errors, and failed to meet EU directives requiring remote readability by 2027
  • Solution: Helium-powered LoRaWAN water meters enabled 24/7 remote data collection, automated billing, and real-time anomaly detection
  • Impact:5X lower costs compared to WM-Bus solutions10-year battery life, reducing maintenance100% compliance with EU directives
  • 5X lower costs compared to WM-Bus solutions
  • 10-year battery life, reducing maintenance
  • 100% compliance with EU directives

→ Agriculture and climate tech: Optimizing irrigation for golf courses

  • Key example: Greenmetrics in Portugal
  • Problem: Inefficient irrigation led to excessive water usage, rising costs, and regulatory challenges requiring a 20% reduction in water usage in Algarve
  • Solution: IoT sensors provided real-time soil data, optimizing irrigation schedules
  • Impact:20-30% reduction in water usage (60-90M liters annually)EUR 30,000 saved per course annually, with a 1.5-year ROICompliance with water regulations and enhanced sustainability
  • 20-30% reduction in water usage (60-90M liters annually)
  • EUR 30,000 saved per course annually, with a 1.5-year ROI
  • Compliance with water regulations and enhanced sustainability

Smart cities: Early flood detection and prevention

  • Key example: Greenmetrics in Lisbon
  • Problem: Frequent flooding due to heavy rainfall lacked real-time monitoring, leading to property damage and delayed responses
  • Solution: Helium-enabled LiDAR sensors and humidity monitors tracked water levels and sent real-time alerts to authorities
  • Impact:Alerts issued 15 minutes before flooding began, reducing damageImproved infrastructure planning using historical sensor dataFaster response times, enhancing public safety
  • Alerts issued 15 minutes before flooding began, reducing damage
  • Improved infrastructure planning using historical sensor data
  • Faster response times, enhancing public safety

Environmental monitoring: Carbon sequestration and climate research

  • Key example: OPEN in Liberia
  • Problem: Liberia lacked accurate data on carbon capture, hindering reforestation efforts and access to carbon credits.
  • Solution: IoT sensors monitored CO2 levels, temperature, and humidity to guide reforestation projects and support carbon credit applications.
  • Impact:Identified optimal tree species for carbon sequestration.Secured carbon credits, incentivizing sustainable practicesInformed forestry education programs with real-time data
  • Identified optimal tree species for carbon sequestration.
  • Secured carbon credits, incentivizing sustainable practices
  • Informed forestry education programs with real-time data

Tracking and logistics: Livestock guardian dog monitoring

  • Key example: Texas A&M and LoneStar Tracking
  • Problem: Monitoring dogs across vast ranches was costly and inefficient, risking injury or loss of the animals
  • Solution: LoRaWAN GPS trackers provided real-time location and health monitoring, with alerts for abnormal behavior
  • Impact:Prevented $3,500 loss per dog by detecting issues earlyEliminated helicopter search costsImproved livestock safety and pasture planning
  • Prevented $3,500 loss per dog by detecting issues early
  • Eliminated helicopter search costs
  • Improved livestock safety and pasture planning

Residential roofing: Preventing mold damage in homes

  • Key example: Roof Tec in Washington, USA
  • Problem: High humidity in remote homes caused mold growth and structural damage, with repair costs exceeding $40,000 per home
  • Solution: Helium-connected sensors provided real-time temperature and humidity monitoring, alerting homeowners to abnormal conditions
  • Impact:Prevented costly repairs by detecting issues earlyEnabled proactive maintenance, extending roof lifespanReliable monitoring even in areas with limited connectivity
  • Prevented costly repairs by detecting issues early
  • Enabled proactive maintenance, extending roof lifespan
  • Reliable monitoring even in areas with limited connectivity

Quick summary of some of Helium’s impact:

Helium’s expansion strategies

  • Telefonica partnership: Piloted in Mexico City and Oaxaca, with plans to expand across South America, leveraging Helium hotspots for traffic offloading.
  • DISH Network: First major telecom to adopt Helium’s decentralized hotspots as part of its 5G rollout.
  • Discovery Mapping: Rewards users with MOBILE tokens for identifying coverage gaps, optimizing hotspot placement.
  • New protocols: Expanding into WiFi, VPNs, and CDNs to create a "network of networks."
  • Proposed ENERGY SubDAO: Aims to address renewable energy and decentralized power grids.
  • MNTD and RAK Wireless: MNTD’s Light Hotspots reduce costs, while RAK Wireless supports onboarding with 50 million MOBILE tokens staked.
  • Underserved markets: Focus on regions where traditional providers avoid infrastructure investments, offering affordable connectivity solutions.

What’s next for helium?

Helium is entering a transformative phase, focusing on streamlining its ecosystem, scaling networks, and expanding into new use cases. Key Helium Improvement Proposals (HIPs) help address governance, tokenomics, and technical scalability, shaping the network.

Below is a detailed breakdown of the major HIPs in progress/ recently concluded.

Let’s learn about a few of the recent HIPs as well.

HIP-138: Consolidating the helium ecosystem

  • Redirects all rewards to HNT, eliminating IOT and MOBILE tokens to simplify tokenomics
  • MOBILE tokens can be converted to HNT at a guaranteed rate (7,060 MOBILE = 1 HNT)
  • Allocates unissued HNT to a MOBILE Growth Fund (1.3M HNT) and the MOBILE treasury (2.9M HNT)
  • Burns 18.2B MOBILE tokens to reduce inflation and increase HNT value.
  • Impact: Increases participant rewards by 40%, simplifies the ecosystem, reduces inflation, and funds MOBILE network development
  • This is one of the most controversial proposal in my opinion, because this can lead to some major gaming since HNT <> Mobile swapping are guaranteed for a min amount, might introduce a few bad players to take advantage of this

HIP-128: Energy subDAO

  • Introduces the ENERGY subnetwork by creating a VPP to incentivize renewable energy contributions like solar power generation and energy storage using distributed energy resources (DERs)
  • Issues 250B ENERGY tokens, with allocations to investors (60B) and participants (190B)
  • Enables IOT Hotspots to support energy services through software upgrades
  • Impact: Expands Helium into renewable energy markets and supports sustainable practices

HIP-132: Scaling mobile mappers

  • Opens MOBILE mapping participation to non-Helium Mobile customers, enabling mapping through third-party apps and in international markets
  • Impact: Increases mapper participation, accelerates MOBILE network expansion, and improves coverage

HIP-134: Reward mobile carrier offload hotspots

  • Rewards Hotspots that contribute to carrier offloading by transferring significant data volumes
  • Impact: Drives Hotspot deployments, increases data offloading, and boosts HNT burns, scaling network utility

Here’s the current impact and growth career offloading has shown

HIP-110: Proxy voting

  • Allows wallets to delegate voting power to other wallets to improve governance participation
  • Proxies reset annually to keep governance active
  • Impact: Enhances decision-making efficiency and governance engagement

These HIPs focus on simplifying Helium’s operations, enhancing participant incentives, and driving adoption in new areas like renewable energy and global connectivity

Closing thoughts

Helium has evolved into a leading decentralized wireless network, expanding from its IoT-focused origins to include 5G and upcoming protocols like energy and WiFi. By leveraging LoRaWAN technology, strategic partnerships with major telecom players like Telefonica and DISH, and innovative tokenomics, Helium is addressing connectivity challenges in underserved and remote areas. Proposals like HIP-138, which consolidate rewards into HNT, simplify the ecosystem and create a more focused growth strategy—though not without significant risks.

Helium’s impact is evident: it reduces the costs of deploying and operating networks, making solutions like IoT tracking, paragliding safety, and flood prevention more affordable and accessible. Features like dynamic pricing, boosted location rewards, and decentralized governance ensure Helium remains competitive in the fast-growing DeWi space.

Challenges persist, including managing operator rewards, maintaining hotspot engagement, navigating regulations, and competing with traditional providers. However, Helium’s first-mover advantage and ability to scale across diverse DePIN use cases position it as a formidable player in the space.

With a dedicated team that has been building the network for nearly a decade, it will be exciting to see how Helium continues to grow, especially as the market gains momentum. The next year holds significant promise for Helium’s network expansion and innovation.

Hope you had a great time reading as I did about Helium, thanks for making it till here - if you did please enjoy, want to drop any corrections/ suggestions or just chat more about Helium & the broader DePIN space, please do drop me a message on Twitter.

References

Disclaimer

The Blockcrunch Podcast (“Blockcrunch”) is an educational resource intended for informational purposes only. Blockcrunch produces a weekly podcast and newsletter that routinely covers projects in Web 3 and may discuss assets that the host or its guests have financial exposure to.

Some Blockcrunch VIP posts are written by contractors to Blockcrunch and posts reflect the contractors’ independent views, not Blockcrunch’s official stance. Blockcrunch requires contractors to disclose their financial exposure to projects they write about but is not able to fully guarantee no such conflicts of interest exist. Blockcrunch itself will not buy or sell assets it covers 72 hours prior to and subsequent to the publication of a piece; however, its directors, employees, contractors and affiliates may buy or sell assets prior to or subsequent to publication of any content and will make disclosures on a best effort basis.

Views held by Blockcrunch’s guests are their own. None of Blockcrunch, its registered entity or any of its affiliated personnel are licensed to provide any type of financial advice, and nothing on Blockcrunch’s podcast, newsletter, website and social media should be construed as financial advice. Blockcrunch also receives compensation from its sponsor; sponsorship messages do not constitute financial advice or endorsement.

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