Uplink CEO Carlos Lei and Avalanche’s Justin Fiddes on DePIN | Airdrop Alert Pro

In a recent discussion hosted by BeInCrypto, Sofia Pashnina brought together representatives from: avalanche and uplink Explore the potential of the Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Network (DePIN).

with insight carlos rayCo-Founder and CEO of Uplink, and Justin FiedersSenior Ecosystem Growth Associate at Avalanche Labs, this session delves into the future of connectivity and how blockchain technology can address growing global challenges.

Introduction to Uplinks: Decentralized Wireless Connectivity

DePIN, for short Decentralized physical infrastructure networkintegrating blockchain technology with real-world infrastructure such as routers, sensors, and energy systems.

Uplink’s core focus is Decentralized Wireless (DeWi) Solve a pressing problem: the exponential growth of data consumption and connected devices.

Carlos Ray:

Traditional telecommunications infrastructure cannot meet demand. In a world where devices are growing faster than ever, building large towers and purchasing real estate is not only expensive but also increasingly impractical.

Rather than relying on centralized infrastructure, Uplink enables the community to own and operate smaller, distributed connectivity nodes. These nodes range from personal routers to specialized devices, and together provide the same or better service than traditional cell towers.

Carlos Ray:

This model reduces costs for telecom operators while rewarding individuals for their infrastructure contributions. This is a win-win scenario that decentralizes the connection and makes it more scalable.

Why Avalanche is the ideal blockchain for the DePIN project

Justin highlighted Avalanche’s key role in supporting projects such as Uplink. He outlined two key advantages that make Avalanche the blockchain of choice for DePIN projects: ownership and Performance.

1. Ownership and Sovereignty

Unlike many other blockchains, Avalanche enables projects to launch their own Sovereign Layer 1 Blockchain. This approach allows projects like Uplink to fully customize their blockchain architecture, from virtual machine configuration to gas fee mechanisms.

Justin Fieders:

With Avalanche, Uplink does not have to compete for resources on the shared chain. Instead, they own their own chain, giving them full control over scalability and user experience.

This sovereignty extends to the validator network. Uplink’s community members can become validators and earn rewards while increasing decentralization. This feature is especially important as Uplink expands its network to handle millions of transactions every day.

2. High performance, low latency

Avalanche’s architecture enables greater speed and efficiency, Sub-second transaction finality and the ability to handle high throughput. These capabilities are critical for DePIN projects that require seamless interaction among a large number of connected devices.

Justin Fieders:

Uplink requires a smooth chain like Web2. With Avalanche, end users don’t even realize they are interacting with blockchain technology.

Avalanche 9000: Greater scalability and accessibility

A major milestone for Avalanche is its latest upgrade, Avalanche 9000which introduces permissionless layer 1 blockchain. Previously, launching a subnet required a substantial upfront investment of 2,000 AVAX per validator. Upgraded steering is more convenient Pay as you go modelreducing costs to only 1.33 AVAX per month per validator.

Justin Fieders:

This change democratizes access to verification and opens the door to more participants. It’s a game changer for projects like Uplink that need to scale quickly.

Avalanche 9000 also enhances interoperability through: Avalanche Twisted Messaging (Chest)a protocol that allows seamless communication between subnets and the Avalanche C chain. This ensures that users experience the ecosystem as a unified network, regardless of the underlying blockchain.

Justin Fieders:

We envision a world where many chains feel like one chain. This interoperability is critical to fostering cross-industry collaboration.

Set up provisioning using the Uplinks Dashboard

Carlos introduced Uplink Dashboardan important tool for building a decentralized connection network. The dashboard allows users to pre-register their routers and become part of the Uplink ecosystem.

Carlos Ray:

We launched a dashboard to demonstrate that we could build supply. In just over a month, we have registered more than 150,000 users and 125,000 routers.

The dashboard also prioritizes growth in high-demand areas by “Search area”—areas that need connectivity the most. Participants in these areas will receive additional incentives to contribute to their infrastructure.

Collaborative growth of the Avalanche ecosystem

Carlos pointed out that the avalanche community driven approach Perfectly aligned with Uplink’s mission. “Avalanche’s ecosystem is built on collaboration, not competition,” he said. “This allows us to focus on what we do best – providing connectivity – without having to worry about chain-level conflicts.”

Justin echoed this sentiment and highlighted Avalanche’s support programs such as Multiverse Fundwhich incentivized the adoption of new Avalanche layer 1 chains.

Justin Fieders:

Whether it’s facilitating venture capital introduction, marketing campaigns or direct technical support, we help projects like Uplink succeed.

Driving wider adoption of DePIN

Both Carlos and Justin envision a future where DePIN will change industries such as the Internet of Things, telecommunications and energy management. By integrating decentralized connectivity solutions, these industries can solve long-term challenges of scalability, cost efficiency, and global accessibility.

Carlos emphasized the importance of interoperability in this vision; he said:

The future of DePIN is one where everything just works – a blockchain-powered infrastructure that feels just as intuitive as traditional solutions.

What does the future hold for these two projects?

When asked about future challenges, Carlos acknowledged that competition within the DePIN space is increasing. However, he sees Avalanche’s permissionless model as a key differentiator.

Carlos Ray:

By launching our own layer 1 blockchain, we can collaborate with other protocols rather than compete. This approach fosters innovation and ensures we focus on delivering real-world solutions.

Going forward, Uplink plans to expand its network, refine its technology and attract more participants. In the meantime, Avalanche will continue to roll out upgrades and initiatives to support its growing ecosystem.