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Helium builds a decentralized wireless network for Internet of Things (IoT) that runs on a peer-to-peer structure using blockchain. It sells IoT hotspots—small devices that users place to provide network coverage and, in return, earn Helium Network Tokens (HNT). IoT devices connect to the network by paying data credits, which helps finance operations. Unlike traditional cellular-based connectivity, Helium relies on a distributed set of hotspot owners to create coverage over wide areas. The company differentiates itself by combining hardware, distributed systems, and blockchain to create a community-powered network, rather than depending on a single carrier. Its goal is to reduce the cost and increase the reach of IoT connectivity by growing a large, decentralized network that people participate in and users earn rewards for expanding coverage.
Industries
Data & Analytics
Hardware
Enterprise Software
Crypto & Web3
Company Size
51-200
Company Stage
Series D
Total Funding
$364.8M
Headquarters
San Francisco, California
Founded
2013
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Helium Network offloads 274TB of mobile data monthly at 2,485 restaurant locations across 34 chains. Helium's Solana-based DePIN network offloads 274,000GB of mobile data each month across 2,485 locations at 34 US restaurant chains, per official network data. Helium Network HNT$0.195-1.4% published data on July 24 showing its Solana-based wireless network offloads 274,000 GB of mobile data every month across 2,485 locations at 34 national restaurant chains in the United States. The figures cover carrier offload, a mechanism that routes cellular subscriber traffic through locally deployed Helium hotspots inside high-traffic venues, reducing congestion on AT&T's network during peak dining hours. AT&T's partnership with Helium for carrier offload, reported by The Defiant in April 2025, underpins these deployments. Keep up to date with the Solana eco How carrier offload works at Fast food chains. Fast food and coffee chains have moved deep into app-driven revenue. Mobile ordering, digital loyalty programs, payment systems, and in-store digital menus all require customers to maintain a data connection. At peak lunch and dinner rushes, hundreds of phones compete for carrier spectrum in a small space, degrading the apps that restaurant revenue depends on. Helium's carrier offload mechanism redirects that congestion. When a subscriber's phone detects a compatible Helium hotspot with the right network credentials, the device shifts data from the cellular network onto local Helium coverage using Passpoint or Wi-Fi Calling standards. The subscriber stays on their carrier plan and sees nothing different. Hotspot deployers (whether individuals or the chain operators themselves) earn HNT... (HNT) rewards based on data volume transferred. This model requires no new cellular infrastructure from the carrier and no contract negotiation from the restaurant. Hardware deployment is the entry point, and data throughput scales with venue traffic. Chain-by-Chain breakdown: Chick-fil-A, KFC, Taco Bell, Starbucks. Helium's July 24 data puts KFC first by site count at 586 locations, followed by Taco Bell at 539. By data volume per site, Chick-fil-A leads: roughly 1,100 GB per location per month across 34 sites, equivalent by Helium's calculation to streaming 6,400 HD movies monthly at a single restaurant. Starbucks contributes 32,774 GB total across 90 locations, per the same data. Total monthly offload 274,000 GB Chick-fil-A per-site average ~1,100 GB/month Starbucks monthly total Five Guys per-site average ~525 GB/month Helium also reports Five Guys at around 525 GB per site monthly across 6 locations, Raising Cane's at 361 GB across 7, and coffee shops at roughly 218 GB per site per month on average, reflecting longer customer dwell times than quick-service formats. Other chains on the network include McDonald's, Sonic, Dunkin', Chipotle, and Wendy's. What 274TB monthly means for solana-based DePIN. At 274 TB per month, the restaurant segment annualizes to roughly 3.3 petabytes of data offload. The figures are self-reported from Helium's own network logs. For hotspot operators, HNT reward emissions from this data traffic are set by network parameters the Helium community governs through ongoing proposals. The restaurant data arrives during an active expansion period for the network. Helium opened new expansion zones at major New York City venues including Madison Square Garden and Grand Central Terminal last week. Earlier this month, Helium ranked first in fee generation among Solana's active DePIN projects alongside GEODNET. The carrier offload model's cost structure helps explain the deployment scale: once hotspot hardware is installed, marginal cost per gigabyte is low, and throughput at high-traffic commercial venues grows with customer volume rather than requiring new infrastructure per new gigabyte. Solana Compass is an independent Solana analytics and staking platform, operating a validator on Solana mainnet since September 2021. Its network statistics and...
What's driving token prices? June 3, 2026. Jun 3, 2026 Join Katie Talati, Arca's Head of Research, weekly on Wednesday at 4PM EST / 1PM PST as she shares notable token activity over the past week and her insights on what market events drove these token price movements. % buffered Current time06:52 * SUI (-17%) - Layer-1 network Sui suffered three major outages over the past week. The outages caused a blockchain halt, effectively pausing on-chain activity. The root cause was identified as part of its latest software release, which included a few "edge case" bugs that caused the blockchain to stop. Blockchain halts can be particularly chaotic, not only as it stops any activity on-chain, but also because of the potential impact on financial applications. Since Sui experienced multiple hours of downtime, any financial applications could see price changes in underlying assets, causing liquidations of loans or other leveraged positions. Thankfully, it does not appear that the outage led to any widespread losses. * HNT (-17%) - Yesterday, decentralized wireless network Helium announced the sale of its Helium Mobile division to Noble Mobile. Noble Mobile, which is owned and operated by former presidential candidate Andrew Yang, acquired the mobile carrier on undisclosed terms. Noble will continue to offer Helium Mobile subscribers the same coverage through the Helium Network and T-Mobile. In addition, Helium Mobile will still rely on the Helium Network for connectivity. Nova Labs, the entity that maintains and develops the Helium Network, affirmed that the sale will allow them to focus on growing the overall network and grow into more regions. Most recently, the team announced an expansion to Brazil through the Mambo Network. Helium Mobile has just under 700,000 subscribers, but the Helium Network supports over 2.6M daily active users. * RDNT (-15%) - Money market protocol Radiant announced this week it would sunset its DAO. Back in 2023, Radiant had $773M in TVL, but after suffering two exploits in 2024, the protocol's activity declined, now capturing under $2M in TVL. In a blog post, the team detailed how it plans to wind down DAO operations and cease active development of the protocol. While the protocol will remain available, the front-end will be shut off, new borrowing activity disabled, and RDNT token emissions discontinued. The DAO will remain, but only in case stolen funds are somehow returned to the protocol. Radiant joins more than 40 DeFi protocols that have shuttered in 2026 alone. The increasing number of security hacks has been a primary cause for this trend, along with consolidation and a lack of product-market fit. * ENA (+15%) - Decentralized stablecoin issuer Ethena announced yesterday that it partnered with crypto exchange Coinbase to launch an on-chain savings product through Coinbase's interface. As part of the deal, Coinbase Ventures also purchased Ethena's ENA token on the open market. Details around the upcoming product launch were not disclosed, but the partnership could provide Ethena with distribution to Coinbase's 100M user base. Ethena currently has $5.4B in AUM; the hope is that the new Coinbase venture could further expand that. DISCLAIMER: This commentary is not intended to be investment advice, investment research, or a recommendation. Please consult your investment professional for your own circumstances. Subscribe For the Latest Blockchain News & Analysis You may unsubscribe from one or all communications at any time. Arca needs the contact information you provide to Arca Funds to contact you about its products and services. For information on how to unsubscribe, as well as its privacy practices and commitment to protecting your privacy, please review its Privacy Policy. Disclaimer: This commentary is provided as general information only and is in no way intended as investment advice, investment research, legal advice, tax advice, a research report, or a recommendation. Any decision to invest or take any other action with respect to any investments discussed in this commentary may involve risks not discussed, and therefore, such decisions should not be based solely on the information contained in this document. Please consult your own financial/legal/tax professional. Statements in this communication may include forward-looking information and/or may be based on various assumptions. The forward-looking statements and other views or opinions expressed are those of the author, and are made as of the date of this publication. Actual future results or occurrences may differ significantly from those anticipated and there is no guarantee that any particular outcome will come to pass. The statements made herein are subject to change at any time. Arca disclaims any obligation to update or revise any statements or views expressed herein. Past performance is not a guarantee of future results and there can be no assurance that any future results will be realized. Some or all of the information provided herein may be or be based on statements of opinion. In addition, certain information provided herein may be based on third-party sources, which is believed to be accurate, but has not been independently verified. Arca and/or certain of its affiliates and/or clients may now, or in the future, hold a financial interest in investments that are the same as or substantially similar to the investments discussed in this commentary. No claims are made as to the profitability of such financial interests, now, in the past or in the future and Arca and/or its clients may sell such financial interests at any time. The information provided herein is not intended to be, nor should it be construed as an offer to sell or a solicitation of any offer to buy any securities, or a solicitation to provide investment advisory services. You may also like. These Stories on Investing Themes
Deep dive: Solana DePIN - March 2026. Read research, tutorials, news, and more on the Syndica blog. Cutting-edge insights and new features & product announcements can be found here. No spam. Unsubscribe anytime. Note: Below is the text-accessible version of this post for visually impaired readers. Syndica deep dive: Solana DePIN - March 2026. Solana DePIN revenue bounced back 16% to $2.9M. In March 2026, Helium, Render, Hivemapper, UpRock, NATIX, XNET, and Geodnet collectively generated $2.9M, reversing February's dip. Deployer rewards snap a 7-month slide, jumping 31% to $2.1M. Solana DePIN protocols distributed $2.1M in rewards in March, up from Feb's record low of $1.6M. This figure is set to grow as Wingbits and Dabba gear up for their TGEs. Wireless protocols smashed through 45k TB, another all-time high. In March 2026, Dabba Network, Helium Mobile, and XNET collectively delivered 45k TB of offloaded data, up 22% from February's 37k TB. Helium Mobile crossed 670k sign-ups. New subscribers picked up to 14k in March from 12k in February. Helium also launched Helium Hangouts, a new in-app feature for Mobile subscribers to discover local spots with Helium connectivity. Helium's growth story shied from new deployments to network utilization. Monthly deployments stayed in the low thousands, well below early 2025's 27k-30k peaks. The 128k cumulative base is doing real work, thousands connected via Helium at Okeechobee Music Festival last month. Helium daily offload hit 111 TB as subscribers approached 2.8M. Average daily data offload rose 10% while daily offload subscribers climbed 12%. Helium revenue climbed to $2.5M, a new ATH. Monthly revenue grew 14% to $2.5M in March, up from $2.2M in February. This marks three consecutive months above the $2M mark first breached in January 2026. Q1 2026 revenue is nearly surpassing 2025's full-year mobile revenue. Offload carriers now account for 57% of Helium Mobile revenue. Carrier offload fees widened their share to 57% in March, continuing their climb from near-parity in January. Major U.S. carriers are routing growing volumes of traffic through the network, reinforcing the shift from subscriber-driven to enterprise offload-driven revenue. Dabba usage surged 24% to 42k TB and unveiled its on-chain roadmap. Data consumption hit 42k TB in March, up from 34k. Deployments moderated to 6k hotspots. The protocol released a major article titled "The Next Phase of Dabba: From Real-World Network to On-Chain" signaling an upcoming token launch. XNET blew past its own record with 150 TB in March, up 40%. XNET's data offload jumped 40% from 107 to 150 TB, marking its second straight month above 100 TB. The protocol launched Passpoint, a seamless WiFi authentication feature that eliminates captive portal friction, and highlighted Cambium Networks' WiFi 7 tri-radio APs as a new revenue path for venue operators. XNET revenue recovered 16% to $4.3k alongside its record offload. On-chain revenue rose to $4.3k in March, up from $3.7k in February. Passpoint and WiFi 7 support aim to bring more venues onto the network by removing login friction and boosting capacity. Hivemapper revenue exploded 8x to $75k after February's low. Revenue surged from $9k to $75k as HONEY burn activity reignited with two weekly burns of roughly 7M HONEY each. Bee Maps launched a Map Feature Explorer for browsing every detected stop sign, speed limit, and turn restriction, and teased a Bee Maps Tracking app on Google Play. Hivemapper contributors jumped 51% to 242 as new products drew mappers back. New contributors rose from 160 to 242 in March, coinciding with the Map Feature Explorer launch and the Bee Maps Tracking app tease. Hivemapper mapping jumped 38% to 11M km as events surged 67%. Kilometers mapped rose from 8M to 11M and map data events climbed from 3M to 5M. The recovery across every metric suggests that the Map Feature Explorer and Bee Maps Tracking app tease fueled renewed contributor interest. NATIX held flat at 39M events but bet big on Physical AI partnerships. Map data events edged up 3% from 38M to 39M. The real story was two new partnerships: Valeo to build open-source multi-camera World Foundation Models for Physical AI, and MaprGo for spatial intelligence infrastructure. Onocoy landed a Tier-1 client that onboarded 1,000+ stations on day one. New minerstation deployments came in at 303 in March, bringing the total network to 7.6k. The standout was a major unnamed Tier-1 client now consuming correction data across North America, Europe, and SE Asia. Wingbits confirmed its $WINGS TGE for April 22 with 6k+ stations tracking 200k flights daily. Mainnet and token launch are set for April 22 on Solana, with 50% of revenue going to buy-back and burn. Ahead of launch, the team shipped a GPS Integrity Layer that visualizes jamming across global airspace and tracked the LaGuardia airport accident flight path in real time, demonstrating live utility of the network. Nosana jobs slipped 9% to 146k while the team invested in developer onboarding. Monthly jobs fell from 160k to 146k. Nosana focused on ecosystem building with Builders Challenge #4, including an in-person Singapore workshop and an online session for deploying ElizaOS agents on Nosana GPU Cloud. UpRock launched OpenClaw DePIN and the world's largest decentralized internet survey. $UPT burn up 6% to $35k. OpenClaw DePIN is live, earning tokens for browsing tasks across 190+ countries. The Global Internet Survey also dropped, covering 500k+ devices and 250M+ speed tests. Render revenue nearly doubled to $176k as Salad GPU integration passed its first vote. Revenue surged 87% from $94k to $176k, reversing February's dip. RNP-023, which brings Salad's decentralized GPU network to Render as an exclusive subnet, passed first-round voting with 1.3M yes votes vs. 15.5K no. 375ai went from NYC beta to nationwide US coverage in a single month. 375go v3 launched on Android in mid-March and store missions went live across the US by month's end. The 375edge hardware network expanded across NYC metro with Miami next. Collectively, the network processes 1TB of raw visual data daily into 35MB of structured output, a 26,000x compression ratio at the edge.
Helium Network accelerates global expansion with Brazil entry via Mambo WiFi partnership. Helium Network is making a significant push into the Brazilian market through a strategic joint venture with Brazilian Wi-Fi provider Mambo WiFi, marking a key milestone in the company's global expansion efforts and addressing the country's persistent connectivity gap, where more than half the population lacks reliable internet access and over 100 million people depend on shared or public Wi-Fi for online access. The collaboration leverages Mambo's existing 40,000 Wi-Fi hotspots as the foundation for the Helium Network in Brazil, enabling the people-powered wireless model where individuals and businesses deploy Hotspots that act as mini cell towers to extend mobile coverage and help carriers offload data to rapidly scale coverage across the country as local carriers adopt this decentralized approach, with Helium's network already spanning over 120,000 Hotspots across the U.S. and Mexico and serving nearly 2 million daily users. "Our collaboration with Mambo represents a significant milestone in expanding the Helium Network internationally," said Mario Di Dio, GM of Network at Helium. "Together, we're tackling the telco market in Brazil and pioneering a new model where people-powered networks deliver affordable, reliable coverage at scale. Mambo's deep carrier experience and national footprint make them the perfect partner to accelerate this shift, while setting the stage for future carrier collaborations internationally." The partnership aims to demonstrate how people-powered networks can enter and scale in new regions faster and more cost-effectively than traditional telco infrastructure, and Helium plans to work with local carriers to enhance coverage for subscribers via carrier offload while reducing infrastructure costs. "Through this collaboration, Mambo and Helium are bringing cutting-edge wireless technology to Brazil's telco market," said Katie Angelo Pierozzi, Co-founder and CEO of Mambo WiFi. "Our 40,000 access points will serve as a foundation for the Helium Network, enabling local carriers to adopt this people-powered model to close Brazil's longstanding connectivity gap, bringing reliable and accessible connectivity to millions of users across the country." Additionally, Helium has launched an International Waitlist to invite communities, enterprises, and deployment partners worldwide to express interest in bringing the Helium Network to new regions, helping guide the next phase of its global deployment strategy.
Helium expands to Brazil with Mambo WiFi in depin breakthrough. What to know: * Helium, a decentralized wireless network built on Solana, is entering the Brazilian market through a joint venture with local WiFi provider Mambo WiFi. * The partnership represents one of Helium's most significant international expansions so far and could set the stage for carrier integrations in a country where reliable internet access remains uneven. Helium, a decentralized wireless network built on Solana, is entering the Brazilian market through a joint venture with local WiFi provider Mambo WiFi, the companies said Wednesday. The partnership represents one of Helium's most significant international expansions so far and could set the stage for carrier integrations in a country where reliable internet access remains uneven. As a decentralized physical infrastructure network (DePIN), Helium's model depends on individuals and businesses installing hotspots that act as small cell sites. Those operators earn crypto rewards tied to network usage. Supporters say the approach allows wireless coverage to scale more quickly and cheaply than traditional telecom buildouts. Mambo's network of roughly 40,000 WiFi hotspots, which is already used by major Brazilian telecom providers, will serve as the initial base for Helium's deployment. The companies say this infrastructure could be used by carriers to offload mobile data traffic onto Helium-connected hotspots, a strategy that can reduce congestion and lower operating costs. "Together, we're tackling the telco market in Brazil and pioneering a new model where people-powered networks deliver affordable, reliable coverage at scale," Mario Di Dio, Helium's GM of Network, said in the announcement. Brazil is a sizable target for the rollout: more than 100 million people rely primarily on shared or public WiFi to get online, according to the press release. Helium currently has more than 120,000 hotspots across the U.S. and Mexico. Brazil is set to become the network's next major market as it continues its push beyond North America. AI Disclaimer: Parts of this article were generated with the assistance from AI tools and reviewed by its editorial team to ensure accuracy and adherence to its standards. For more information, see CoinDesk's full AI Policy. Commissioned by GoPlus * As of October 2025, GoPlus has generated $4.7M in total revenue across its product lines. The GoPlus App is the primary revenue driver, contributing $2.5M (approx. 53%), followed by the SafeToken Protocol at $1.7M. * GoPlus Intelligence's Token Security API averaged 717 million monthly calls year-to-date in 2025, with a peak of nearly 1 billion calls in February 2025. Total blockchain-level requests, including transaction simulations, averaged an additional 350 million per month. * Since its January 2025 launch, the $GPS token has registered over $5B in total spot volume and $10B in derivatives volume in 2025. Monthly spot volume peaked in March 2025 at over $1.1B, while derivatives volume peaked the same month at over $4B. The new update enables trustless swaps between Lightning and Liquid, removing technical hurdles for fast, self-custodial BTC spending, the company said. * Blockstream's Green app now supports atomic swaps between the Lightning and Liquid networks, enabling private bitcoin payments without channel management. * The update lets users pay Lightning invoices directly from their Liquid bitcoin (LBTC) balances in a self-custodial way. * Upcoming features will add on-chain swap support and hardware wallet integration to extend multi-layer bitcoin interoperability.
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Industries
Data & Analytics
Hardware
Enterprise Software
Crypto & Web3
Company Size
51-200
Company Stage
Series D
Total Funding
$364.8M
Headquarters
San Francisco, California
Founded
2013
Find jobs on Simplify and start your career today