What is Pi Network? Mining crypto from your smartphone

Pi Network is a smartphone app that allows anyone to mine cryptocurrencies directly from their mobile device. The platform aims to lower the barrier to crypto participation for people by simplifying the mining process. Now, crypto users no longer need to invest in mining hardware or stomach the energy costs typically involved in mining crypto.

In this article, we'll walk you through the Pi Network, explaining how it works, the role of the PI token in the technology, and what's to come from the project.

TL;DR

• Pi Network simplifies crypto mining, allowing users to mine crypto through their smartphone in an energy-efficient way.

• PI is the project's native token, and it's mined by users of the Pi Network. PI is used to transfer value on the network and enable payments for products and services.

• To gain access to Pi Network, an existing trusted member must first invite users.

What is Pi Network?

Pi Network is a crypto mining app that you can download directly to your smartphone. The platform is different from the decentralized applications typically used in crypto, which are accessed via a Web3 browser and usually need a wallet to be connected. Not just anyone can sign up, though. New users must be invited by an existing trusted member to access Pi Network.

Put simply, Pi Network exists to help more people adopt cryptocurrencies by allowing them to easily mine the PI token. According to the project's white paper, the Pi Network is a response to the concentration of money and power seen in the Bitcoin ecosystem today — despite Bitcoin being designed as a more equitable alternative to the traditional financial system. The Pi Network uses the Stellar Consensus Protocol (SCP) and the Federated Byzantine Agreement (FBA) algorithm to validate transactions.

Alongside mining, the Pi Network allows trust to be scaled across the web. To do so, the platform's consensus algorithm relies on a global trust graph made up of what the project calls security circles — small groups of network users who trust each other not to act maliciously. The trust graph enables transactions between strangers in a secure way. What's more, the network provides an attention marketplace centered around a social media channel that democratizes content creation and knowledge sharing.

PI utility and tokenomics

Users of the Pi Network mine PI through the platform. As the native currency, PI is also used to transfer value through the platform, and supports decentralized peer-to-peer transactions.

PI's total supply is capped at 100 billion to incentivize "continued growth and new contributions," according to the project. Eighty percent of the total supply is meant to be distributed to the Pi community, with 20% going to the Pi core team. The core team's allocation will be unlocked on a gradual basis.

What's next for the Pi Network?

Pi Network has plans to create a virtual storefront where users — called "Pioneers" — can offer their goods and services to others. The platform app will act as a point of sales, allowing simple access to what's on sale. Meanwhile, the project plans to offer a decentralized app store where users can bootstrap their own decentralized applications and grow using the Pi Network infrastructure. Pi Network rolled out its Tesnet 2 upgrade during October 2024 to prepare nodes for the move from an Enclosed Network to an Open Network period, as it prepares for a mainnet launch.

The final word

Pi Network is another example of crypto's efforts to lower the barriers to adoption for more people and simplify access to crypto technology and tokens. Not only an intuitive platform for crypto beginners, Pi Network provides fundamental infrastructure for developers to build upon, encouraging fresh innovation for the space.

Interested in learning more about crypto mining? Take a look at our guide to cloud mining, and our article on the top ASIC miners available today.