Solana DePIN gains traction in 2024, led by Render and Helium

• Solana-based DePINs like Render and Helium recorded massive growth on key metrics
• New entrants have entered the Solana DePIN ecosystem. 

After dominating the memecoin trading segment, Solana [SOL] seems set to lead the DePIN (Decentralized Public Infrastructure Networks) sector.

One of the leading decentralized computer networks, Render [RNDR], recorded a remarkable 66% growth in node operators since migrating from Ethereum [ETH] to Solana last November. 

According to a report by crypto analytics provider Flipside, the growth isn’t restricted to Render but was evident across the Solana DePIN sector in the first half of 2024 (H1). 

Render moved to Solana because of its speed, scalability, and low cost. New DePIN entrants, like io.net, cited the same reasons for choosing the network. Reinforcing Solana’s capacity, Garrison Yang, chief strategy at io.net, told Flipside that, 

“With advantages in retail liquidity, speed, scalability, cost, and mindshare, Solana has become a natural choice for many web3 projects, including the DePIN category.’

State of Solana DePIN sector in H1 2024

According to the Flipside report, four major DePIN sub-categories have matured within Solana – compute, connectivity, data/sensor, and storage networks. 

Render led the decentralized computing segment, hitting a record high of 1920 node operators in January 2024, a 66% increase post-Solana migration. 

Source: Flipside

Node operator rewards spiked in January, with a 34% average in the first half of 2024. 

Render offers a Web 3 alternative to AWS or Google Cloud through its peer-to-peer compute power (GPU) marketplace. Per the report, Render pivoted to AI/Machine Learning and could be an outlier in the segment if the AI narrative extends.

Part of the report read, 

“As global GPU demand continues to outstrip supply, investment in, and adoption of, decentralized compute solutions will likely outpace other DePIN sectors.’

The report noted io.net and Nosana as the latest projects in the compute segment worth tracking. 

Solana’s next hottest DePIN category was connectivity, and the Helium Network was the leading project amidst surging subscribers. Wife Dabba and Pollen Mobile are new projects within the category. 

The decentralized sensor and data storage segments are the third and fourth largest, respectively. These categories are dominated by Hivemapper (a Google Street View rival) and Shdwdrive, respectively. 

Overall, the Solana DePIN ecosystem has over 25 projects led by the three known ones: Render, Hivemapper, and Helium. 

On the performance front, the DePIN narrative was in the top five after DeFi and posted 85% in Q1, per the Coingecko report.

The best performer was the memecoin sector, which Solana dominated. It remains to be seen how the DePIN narrative will play out at the end of Q2.