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While telecom giants spend years getting permission to build new towers, ordinary people are already building the internet faster and cheaper. The contrast is striking. A single small cell tower installation can cost up to $300,000, while a complete macro cell tower installation can cost millions of dollars. With decentralized physical infrastructure networks — otherwise known as DePINs for short — the cost to add a new connectivity point is effectively zero, as it uses software to activate the Wi-Fi routers people already own.
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This technology is already in heavy use, with over 13 million devices operating on the DePIN network. DePIN does for connectivity what ride-hailing apps like Uber did for transportation. This transforms millions of individual, underutilized assets into a powerful, coordinated network. For the end user, the experience is completely seamless.
What I learned is that this financial burden is compounded by logistical hurdles. The towers have taken years to roll out, bogged down with permitting, site leases and complex integration. The world moves at the speed of software, but physical infrastructure still stands still at tangible speed. This creates a chronic gap between demand and supply of connectivity.
Distributed model features: faster, cheaper coverage
At its core, the decentralized model is a cooperative network. Your phone simply finds the shortest, fastest path to the Internet, whether it’s through a cell tower or a set of nearby routers.
The economics are just as simple. Every router owner can become a mini-provider and automatically earn rewards when their devices help route traffic for their network. The barrier to entry is near zero. Participation is often just a lightweight software or firmware update, not a demand to buy expensive new hardware.
This model is financially cheaper because it eliminates the middleman and shifts spending from rigid capital expenditures to flexible operating costs. Telcos and businesses pay for the actual connectivity provided, rather than the huge upfront costs of building it. This structure also makes it economically viable for individuals to provide coverage in white spots that traditional operators deem unprofitable.
For DePIN, I see real scaling on the ground: once a wireless network passes 5 million registered routers and still adds 25,000+ a day, the question stops being “does this work?”
In my experience, the benefit of this collaborative model is that it benefits everyone involved. Users get what they’ve always wanted: reliable connectivity in the places they actually live and work, like apartment buildings, offices, and underground areas.
Operators gain a strategic partner. DePIN enables a flexible way to quickly and inexpensively fill gaps and handle peak traffic without overbuilding your own network. In one case study of a Fortune 500 company, this model increased customers by 23% and data transactions by 82%.
