This year, the cryptocurrency market has seen a resurgence of older tokens as utility-based narratives gain new momentum. Despite this momentum, DePIN struggled to maintain his pace and drifted away from the spotlight.
BeInCrypto spoke to several experts to understand why one of the most fundamentally useful sectors of cryptocurrencies still fails to gain sustained market attention and what will happen next to it.
About DePIN
DePIN stands for Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Network and refers to a blockchain-based system that coordinates, funds, and operates real-world infrastructure through decentralized incentives.
Rather than relying on traditional companies to build networks such as wireless coverage, storage, sensors, and energy grids, DePIN distributes the work to individuals and small businesses who provide the hardware and earn tokens in return.
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This model reduces upfront costs, expands global access, and frees up infrastructure that was previously difficult to scale. DePIN aims to create a more resilient and efficient system by aligning incentives with real demand.
Why is DePIN still struggling in 2025?
Nevertheless, the field continues to face challenges. It is among the top 10 underperforming sectors this year, according to Artemis data. DePIN market decreased by over 74% in 2025.
But why is this happening? Sami Kassab, managing partner at Unsupervised Capital, told BeInCrypto that the overall downturn in the altcoin market has naturally affected DePIN as well.
He said the macro environment explains some, but not all, of the sector’s slowdown. A more serious problem, he said, is that “the DePIN breakout hasn’t happened yet.”
“The other side of the coin is that DePIN is building a real infrastructure and a real business. That will take a long time, but the cryptocurrency market is not designed for that. Investors are used to fast-moving narratives and overnight successes,” Kassab added.
Leo Fan, co-founder of Cysic, revealed that the main hurdle for DePIN is the mismatch between infrastructure construction cycles and the short attention span of the crypto market. While non-fungible tokens (NFTs), meme coins, and major altcoins thrive on culture, identity, and hype, DePIN serves as an infrastructure layer that is difficult for most users to emotionally connect with.
Its value grows silently through hardware deployment and actual computing power, but the progress is not immediately visible or profitable. A fan pointed out:
“Most investors still view token value as the sole indicator of success, which is not the case for infrastructure systems. The DePIN network creates tangible value through services such as computational power and data distribution. Its performance is measured by usage, speed, and reliability, rather than short-term volatility. This model does not reflect traditional cryptocurrency dynamics and therefore remains outside the comfort zone of most market participants.”
StealthEx CEO Maria Carola shared a similar outlook. He said most investors are still drawn to assets that can be traded quickly rather than sectors that require deep understanding.
“Speculation always prevails within the cryptocurrency cycle, and DePIN’s complex approach doesn’t help that position either. Most investors don’t fully understand how token incentives facilitate the collection, storage, and connection of data and how that translates into revenue. If we’re talking about traditional markets, the infrastructure side is always the least attractive, but still the most important one. DePIN is the cryptocurrency version of that,” she told BeInCrypto.
However, Vinayak Kurap, investment and research partner at Escape Velocity Crypto (EV3), pointed out that DePIN’s slowdown is not just a matter of market perception, but the difficulty of building a real-world network that requires hardware, manufacturing, and physical deployment.
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“While these are often directly compared to existing large-scale network providers, the challenge for DePIN operators is to operate within a sector with high user stickiness while offering comparable reliability and a simpler user experience on a fraction of the capital. These factors combine to weaken DePIN’s mindshare,” Krupp highlighted.
Usage Surge and Price Fall: Experts Explain DePIN’s Widening Fundamentals Gap
Despite the sector’s underperformance, usage indicators paint a different picture. Fees rose to an all-time high in October even as the overall market continued to decline.
This suggests that a disconnect is emerging between the decline in token prices and the increase in real-world usage. According to Kasab,
“While prices are trending upward, they are still small compared to the emissions spent since their inception and the revenues of the incumbent companies these networks seek to disrupt.”
Carola said this disconnect is typical of emerging infrastructure sectors, where fundamentals can strengthen long before prices. He explained that sentiment often fluctuates independently of utility, and that even while the real economy continues to grow, investors may become risk averse in uncertain markets.
“The rise in fees and network activity during market downturns shows that real users continue to see value in these services, whether it’s storage or compute. In the long term, if revenue eventually flows in based on usage, like in the early days of the internet, these will become more important metrics than short-term token performance,” she said.
Hwang also emphasized that there is a clear separation between speculation and actual use. He said that while rate growth captures real demand for the network, price trends largely reflect investor mood, or what he called “Wall Street sentiment.” Rising fees in a bearish environment shows that DePIN’s core services are gaining momentum, regardless of market cycles.
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“Such a divergence is common in early infrastructure cycles. Although network usage is increasing, the market has not yet priced it in as investors still treat DePIN tokens as a speculative asset,” an executive revealed to BeInCrypto.
Could DePIN be the next big thing after privacy coins?
While it is clear that DePIN recognizes real market demand, this raises important questions. Could this sector finally experience a breakout similar to what privacy coins saw this year?
Carola believes the answer is close to yes. He pointed out that the cryptocurrency cycle tends to move from narrative-driven speculation to a phase where practicality and actual adoption take center stage.
She says if privacy coins reflect this year’s move toward digital sovereignty, DePIN could see a similar rally, one based on measurable results. She commented:
“By next year, DePIN could achieve measurable productivity. Whether it’s physical infrastructure or distributed data, network builders are laying the groundwork, anticipating and preparing for a time when the market will start to value cash flow and adoption over memes. When that change occurs, DePIN will be an area that can show tangible real-world traction.”
Mr. Hwang echoed this outlook. He suggested that DePIN stands out as a natural beneficiary once the market rotates back into sectors with clear utility. He pointed to specific on-chain metrics that are already trending upward.
“Network fees are rising, node participation is expanding, and operational performance continues to strengthen. If these data points become standard reference metrics, DePIN may be recognized as a quiet builder of trading infrastructure,” he predicted.
Mr. Krupp offered a broader perspective. While recognizing the uncertainty in broader market conditions, he said investor preferences are gradually shifting towards projects with recurring cash flows and strong fundamentals, an environment that directly impacts DePIN’s strengths.
“But this is also likely to be a tailwind from other changes in the market. 2026 will be the year of DePIN’s resurgence,” he declared.
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Why companies can carve out the next stage of DePIN
Experts also pointed to several catalysts that could lead to major changes in the field, with both Carola and Fan agreeing that corporate adoption could be a key driver.
“Enterprise adoption is the strongest driver. Regulation and investor sentiment follow evidence of adoption. As enterprises begin to integrate decentralized infrastructure into their existing systems, confidence in the model increases. DePIN’s credibility relies on measurable performance, and enterprise engagement provides just that,” Cysic’s co-founder explained.
Krupp stressed that multiple factors are likely to converge to facilitate the turnaround. Investor sentiment remains important, but increased awareness and mainstream presence could accelerate that change, he said.
“Right now, you see Helium advertising its free phone plans on the New York subway, but compared to its Web2 peers, DePIN has only recently become well-capitalized enough to break into the mainstream,” Krupp said.
What role will DePIN play in the future of cryptocurrencies?
As optimism about the sector’s trajectory remains strong, it’s still worth wondering where DePIN actually fits into the broader cryptocurrency ecosystem. Will DePIN remain a niche bet, or is it poised to become a bridge to the crypto-real economy once the market catches up?
StealthEx CEO argued that DePIN is already acting as that bridge, but the market just hasn’t fully realized it yet. As blockchain moves from abstract financial experiments to practical, real-world use cases, she believes DePIN will be the one to anchor many of those transitions.
“Whether powering smart cities, decentralized AI computing, or IoT networks, these systems make cryptocurrencies tangible. So while cryptocurrencies may feel like a narrow niche today, they are already fundamental. When people finally start interacting with decentralized infrastructure without realizing it is a cryptocurrency, that is when DePIN will be a real win,” Carola told BeInCrypto.
Huang pointed to trends in 2025, particularly the rise of real-world asset (RWA) tokenization and increased institutional adoption, as signs that the real economy is already seeing value in decentralized systems. In his view, DePIN is well-positioned to become the infrastructure layer that connects DeFi to enterprise use cases.
“As this sector matures, I believe DePIN will become one of the crypto bridges to TradFi, serving as the infrastructure layer that anchors DeFi to real-world capabilities. As institutions seek verifiable and cost-effective infrastructure to support secure payments, DePIN will move from a niche experiment to the foundational layer of digital finance.”
Whether the market realizes it now or years from now, experts agree on one thing: DePIN’s long-term value lies not in speculation, but in the virtual currency becoming an invisible infrastructure that impacts the real world.
