Solana DePIN Ecosystem Analysis: From Infrastructure to Earning Opportunities for Ordinary Users

The decentralized physical infrastructure network ( DePIN ) is rapidly rising, becoming an important bridge for bringing real-world assets on-chain. This innovative model utilizes cryptocurrency incentive mechanisms to initiate and operate real-world infrastructure, mobilizing idle resources and increasing efficiency. Solana, with its high performance and active ecosystem, is becoming the preferred platform for DePIN projects.

DePIN Market Overview

As of April 2025, the total market capitalization of global DePIN projects reached $7.1 billion, with projects on Solana accounting for $3.25 billion, leading other blockchain platforms. The average market capitalization of DePIN projects on Solana is $191.3 million, also higher than other platforms.

The DePIN project is mainly divided into five categories: computing, wireless, sensors, servers, and AI. Among them, the computing and wireless categories together account for 93.4% of the market share, and they also have the highest average market capitalization.

In terms of node growth, the total number of registered on-chain nodes for the Solana DePIN project has reached 238,165. Helium quickly surpassed other projects after launching mobile services, accounting for more than 60% of the new node share.

In terms of on-chain revenue, the total on-chain revenue of DePIN projects on Solana reached $5.98 million. Revenue has been steadily increasing, growing from approximately $4,000 per week in April 2023 to over $100,000 per week by early 2025. Helium and Render are the two projects with the highest revenue.

Main Project Analysis

1. Helium: The leader of decentralized wireless networks

Helium is a decentralized wireless network that enables individuals to deploy hotspots and provide connectivity for IoT and mobile devices.

Key Data:

• Total subscribed users: 176,301
• Total number of nodes: 69,449
• Total on-chain revenue: $2.29 million

The user growth of Helium is driven by clear product initiatives, such as the official launch of Helium Mobile and the introduction of the Zero Plan. On-chain revenue is steadily increasing, reaching a sustained peak of $63,000 per week by April 2025.

2. Hivemapper: Decentralized Map Network

Hivemapper is a community-driven map network where users collect street-level images using dashcams to earn token rewards.

Key Data:

• Total number of nodes: 77,483
• Weekly Rewards: Over $60,000 HONEY

Although less than 10% of the nodes actively contribute to the map coverage, these nodes consistently receive about 80% of the total rewards. Income exceeded $50,000 per week during the period from April to May 2024.

3. Render: Decentralized GPU Rendering Network

Render Network is a distributed GPU rendering network that provides scalable rendering services for 3D graphics, dynamic designs, and AI workloads.

Key data:

• Active on-chain nodes: 3,784
• Burned RENDER tokens: Over 121 million
• Tokens distributed to node operators: over 2.4 million

Revenue peaked at nearly $300,000 per week from November to December 2024, with another significant peak in mid-April 2025, reaching weekly revenue of $70,000.

4. Nosana: Decentralized AI Computing Network

Nosana is a decentralized computing network where users can run AI inference tasks through a global network of GPU hosts.

Key Data:

• Global node count: Over 4,200
• Daily active nodes: Increase from an average of 300 in 2024 to over 600 in 2025

After the official launch of the GPU market to the public in January 2025, the number of active nodes significantly increased. The network reached a historical peak of over 200,000 operations per week in May 2024.

5. UpRock: Mobile-first data intelligence network

UpRock is a decentralized data intelligence network where users earn tokens by sharing unused internet bandwidth and computing power through the application.

After reaching a peak of over $3,000 in weekly on-chain network revenue in February 2025, the revenue has remained stable at $1,500 per week.

Conclusion

Solana has become the leading platform for DePIN, with a total project market value of $3.25 billion. The computing and wireless categories dominate the market, accounting for 93.4% of the share. Major projects such as Helium, Render, and Hivemapper have generated nearly $6 million in on-chain network revenue, demonstrating a real product-market fit. Despite the progress, complete transparency and consistent on-chain measurement in the DePIN space are still ongoing.