Why we invested in Hotspotty, the team bringing DePINs into a single, accessible platform
We initially invested in Hotspotty because it provided a complete solution for managing Decentralized Wireless (DeWi) hotspots, initially focusing on the Helium network. Founded by Maxime Goossens and Daniel Andrade, Hotspotty quickly gained traction with an engaged community of 300,000 users and 400,000 tracked hotspots, giving it a competitive edge. Our investment was driven by its potential to lower the cost of connectivity by addressing key issues in wireless infrastructure deployment and management.
Fast forward to today, we’re excited to continue supporting Hotspotty as they expand their success in DeWi to the broader Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Network (DePIN) market. DePINs leverage the blockchain to revolutionize infrastructure management, tackling problems like centralized control, high costs, and single points of failure in traditional systems.
The recent launch of Helium Mobile, offering a $20/month plan with unlimited data, highlights the transformative potential of DePIN. Helium’s decentralized approach empowers users and aligns with the ethos of community ownership. This reflects the essence of the DePIN revolution: fairness, transparency, and community control that is also present in promising projects in other use cases such as decentralized compute, geospatial mapping, weather monitoring, and automotive data.
With the introduction of Hotspotty’s DePIN Hub, a comprehensive resource center, users can explore DePIN projects, stay updated on developments, and engage with the community. DePIN Hub empowers individuals to participate in and shape the evolving DePIN landscape, fostering community engagement and driving adoption. Users can explore sectors like renewable energy and smart city infrastructure, filtering projects based on interests, location, and investment capacity. Educational resources on blockchain technology and DePIN participation lower entry barriers, while community forums empower users to shape project evolution. Participants earn tokens for their contributions, with benefits including financial returns, enhanced security, network resilience, sustainable practices alignment, and community influence. Through DePIN Hub, users transition from passive consumers to active infrastructure participants, gaining financial, social, and environmental benefits while democratizing technology access and reshaping infrastructure management.
Additionally, the team has developed the DePIN Hub Platform, which aims to address key challenges for new DePIN projects and adopters by reducing user acquisition costs and boosting retention through attracting genuine, long-term adopters instead of airdrop hunters. It offers tools for sustainable growth, strategic incentive distribution, and personalized project discovery. The platform includes a launchpad for Web3-enabled projects, a comprehensive resource hub, and the DePIN Score—a decentralized identity solution that uses on-chain and off-chain data to match users with projects based on compatibility and potential contribution. The DePIN Hub Dashboard further enhances user engagement by providing tools for managing participation, optimizing financial returns, and fostering community connections.
As the DePIN ecosystem evolves, initiatives like DePIN Hub play a crucial role in democratizing infrastructure ownership and paving the way for a more equitable and decentralized future.
Carlos Castellanos is an investor at Samsung Next. Samsung Next’s investment strategy is limited to its own views and does not reflect the vision or strategy of any other Samsung business unit, including, but not limited to, Samsung Electronics.