What is Pi Coin Mainnet and Why It Matters?

Lots of people globally are watching Pi Network, a crypto you can mine on your phone, as it works towards launching its full Open Mainnet. This complete opening is a huge step, expected to let the network do a lot more, like getting onto more exchanges and connecting smoothly with other systems. Two Stanford PhDs, Dr. Nicolas Kokkalis and Dr. Chengdiao Fan, kicked off Pi Network on March 14, 2019, wanting to make crypto mining something anyone could do with their smartphone.

Moving from a Closed System to Being Openly Connected

Since December 2021, Pi Network has been in what’s called an “Enclosed Mainnet.” In this stage, the blockchain is up and running, but it’s kept separate from other networks. This lets the team focus on getting tons of users through “Know Your Customer” (KYC) checks, shifting mined Pi coins to this mainnet, and helping apps and tools get built within its own environment. Users who’ve passed KYC, known as Pioneers, can deal with Pi apps and each other inside this walled-off space.

Everyone’s eager for the “Open Mainnet,” which is supposed to tear down these walls. That would mean Pi could link up with other blockchains, people could use outside wallets, and Pi Coin might finally appear on public crypto exchanges. While some folks in the community and a few reports guessed this might happen around February 20, 2025, or early in 2025, the main Pi team has consistently said it’s all about hitting certain goals first. These goals mean serious progress in KYC sign-ups, moving coins to the Mainnet, and having a strong lineup of apps. As of early May 2025, the big Open Mainnet launch was still on the horizon, with the team stressing they’ll go live when they’re ready, not by a set date.

Big Steps Needed for Open Mainnet:

The project has a to-do list before the network can fully open up:

• All the crucial tech, product, business, and legal groundwork must be finished.
• They need to hit their numbers for KYC-verified Pioneers and for coins moved to the Mainnet. Early on, they talked about needing 15 million users through KYC and 10 million migrations; by early 2025, things looked promising, with word of over 10 million migrations already.
• A lively ecosystem with plenty of working Pi apps and services needs to be in place, with an early aim for at least 100 apps ready for the Mainnet.

How It Works: Phone Mining and Making Decisions Together

Pi Network’s standout quality is that you can mine it on your mobile phone, a method designed to be light on battery and easy for anyone, unlike the power-hungry mining that Bitcoin needs. Users “mine” Pi simply by tapping a button in the Pi app each day; this is meant to show they’re active and helps build the network’s overall trustworthiness.

The network uses a way to agree on transactions that’s a twist on the Stellar Consensus Protocol (SCP) and Federated Byzantine Agreement (FBA). This system depends on “security circles”—small groups of users who vouch for each other—to confirm transactions. The idea is for this to be an efficient and planet-friendly method, quite different from Proof-of-Work (PoW) or the common Proof-of-Stake (PoS) systems.

Pi Coins: How Many and Who Gets Them

There’s a hard cap of 100 billion Pi coins ever. Here’s the plan for how they’re shared:

* 80% goes to the Community (that’s 80 billion Pi)
* Mining Rewards (65 billion Pi):

This is for coins users have mined and will mine. A good chunk of Pi was mined before the Mainnet really got going, but the actual amount that gets moved over will depend on users passing KYC.
* Community and Ecosystem (10 billion Pi): A future Pi Foundation will look after this pot, using it for grants, community get-togethers, and helping the ecosystem grow.
* Liquidity Pool Reserves (5 billion Pi): This stash is to make sure there’s enough Pi flowing smoothly for trading and use within the system.
* 20% is for the Core Team (20 billion Pi): This share for the team gets released gradually, based on how much mining the community accomplishes.

The speed at which users can mine Pi is set to go down as more people join. This is meant to make Pi a bit rarer over time and give a hat tip to the early birds. It’s said that transaction fees on the Pi Network get burned (destroyed), which would naturally reduce the total coin supply.

Building an Ecosystem Full of Uses

A huge part of Pi Network’s plan is to create an ecosystem packed with useful apps and services. People use the Pi Browser to explore these DApps (decentralized applications) and other Web3 offerings. Some cool projects and app types include:

• Fireside Forum: The Pi Core Team built this Web3 social spot, where Pi coins are used to encourage better online chats.
• Pi Commerce Apps: After events like PiFest, where local shops showed they were using Pi, coding contests have pushed developers to create apps like “Map of Pi,” which helps users find businesses that accept Pi.
• Help for Developers: Pi Network gives developers tools (like an SDK and APIs) so that even if they don’t know much about blockchain, they can build things on Pi. Their Pi Open Source (PiOS) license also lets the whole community pitch in on DApp creation.

What People Think and the Hurdles Ahead

Pi Coin isn’t officially up for grabs on the big, well-known crypto exchanges just yet, mainly because the network is still in its “Enclosed Mainnet” phase. You might see some platforms listing Pi IOU (“I Owe You”) tokens, though. These are basically bets or stand-ins; they aren’t the real Pi Coin that people could trade once the Open Mainnet is live. The Pi Core Team has put out warnings that they haven’t okayed these IOU listings, and these prices might not show what Pi is actually worth.

The project has certainly had its share of tough questions:

* Long Wait for Full Launch: It’s taken a good while to get to a completely Open Mainnet, which has understandably made some users antsy.
* How Open Is It Really? Who’s in Control?: Some observers have wondered just how transparent the project is and whether the Core Team has too much say, especially in the early days and with the large number of coins they’re set to receive.
* What’s the Real Value?: Until Pi Coin can be traded freely and its apps show they’re genuinely useful for everyday things, people will keep asking what it’s ultimately worth.
* KYC Bottlenecks: Getting through the KYC identity checks is vital for the network’s health, but it’s been a slow and sometimes frustrating process for some users, who’ve reported getting stuck.

Keeping Things Safe and the Validator System

Pi Network really pushes protecting user funds through KYC and encourages everyone to use smart, secure wallet habits. While you don’t always see detailed, third-party security reviews of the Mainnet’s actual code splashed everywhere, the project does say they run their own security checks.

To agree on transactions, the network uses validator nodes. The folks who run these nodes are key to keeping the network safe and decentralized. Getting picked to run a node depends on things like being trustworthy (which you show through your security circles), being reliable, and passing KYC. Even so, some people watching the project have said they worry that the node setup could end up being more centralized than ideal.

Working with Others and the Big Picture

Once Pi Network finally makes the jump to an Open Mainnet, the goal is to connect more easily with other blockchain systems and even traditional finance. This plan involves making it possible to send Pi across different blockchains and letting Pi be used in a much bigger range of apps and services. Projects like PiBridge are already trying to build these connections, for example, linking Pi Network with others like Binance Smart Chain.

The Pi Core Team’s grand vision, as they’ve described it, is to create a digital currency and online space that anyone can be part of, that’s all about real-world uses, and where people interact directly. Their ultimate aim? To make Pi the planet’s most popular cryptocurrency.

As Pi Network keeps plugging away at its development goals, making a smooth switch to a fully Open Mainnet, combined with seeing its apps really take off and find everyday uses, will be the true test of its long-term influence on the wider world of cryptocurrency.