Helium

$HNT · Solana

InfrastructureWirelessVerified

The original consumer DePIN. LoRaWAN IoT plus a CBRS mobile offload layer now on Solana. Saturated metros have crushed marginal IoT earnings; the mobile side carries real carrier demand.

Analytical reportDraft

Decentralized Wireless Infrastructure: An Analytical Evaluation of Helium ($HNT)

Helium is the pioneer wireless DePIN, a dual-sided marketplace for decentralized connectivity. Launched on its own Layer-1 in 2019, it migrated to Solana in April 2023, unifying two verticals under one token-incentivized network: a mature LoRaWAN IoT layer and a fast-growing CBRS and Wi-Fi mobile-offload layer. Independent hotspot hosts provide coverage, and enterprise clients and retail subscribers consume affordable data.

IoT hotspots: ~380,000 active
Mobile subscribers: ~115,000 (mid-2026)
Total raised: $364.8M (incl. $200M Series D, 2022)
Maximum supply: 223,000,000 $HNT (hard cap)

13 min read on Helium

Editorial review

The verdict

Editorial draft

The original consumer DePIN, now split between a saturated IoT layer and a mobile offload business with real carrier demand. The mobile side is the live story; IoT-only operators in dense metros should expect little.

Score breakdown89 / 100

Real revenue92 / 100

Demand-side revenue versus pure token emission.

Token economics88 / 100

Emission schedule, burn, and payout sustainability.

Decentralization78 / 100

Geographic and operator distribution.

Hardware economics84 / 100

Payback, cost-to-yield, resale, and capital efficiency.

Operator ease64 / 100

How simple the network is to install and run.

Transparency94 / 100

Public stats, verifiable data, and disclosure quality.

The headline builder score of 89 is our weighted editorial composite of the six dimensions above, scored on the same public methodology for every project. It is editorial, not a guarantee, and not financial advice.