The Pi Network, one of the most popular players in the cryptocurrency industry, is doing well as it gears towards its mainnet launch in 2024 or 2025. Is it still a good idea to mine Pi Coin in 2024? Let’s find out.
What is Pi Network?
Pi Network is a blockchain network launched in 2018 by former students at Stanford University. Their goal was to create a cryptocurrency easily available to a global audience.
Its key innovation was letting anyone mine the token, regardless of their wealth or tech background. Unlike other popular cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Litecoin which require sophisticated mining hardware, Pi Network mining is available to anyone with a smartphone and internet connection.
Pi has become highly popular over the years, with its main application having over 60 million downloads and its social media networks having substantial followers. Its Twitter network has over 3.3 million followers, higher than other established networks like Cardano and Solana.
The other goal was to create an ecosystem around the Pi Network. That ecosystem will be made of e-commerce platforms, games, and decentralized finance (DeFi) networks that support the native currency.
Pi Network mainnet launch and potential use cases
Pi Network’s developers have achieved a lot over the years. They moved into an enclosed mainnet in 2019, which provides the full functionality of the ecosystem to developers and miners.
The developers also launched several applications in the ecosystem. For example, the Pi Browser is now used by millions of people globally. They also launched the Fireside Forum, a social media platform used in the ecosystem.
Most recently, they unveiled an ad network that will enable developers to monetize their creations. This network is similar to those run by companies like Twitter, Google, Snap, and TikTok.
The developers have also run several hackathons in a bid to boost developers in the ecosystem. The funded creators are in industries like e-commerce, social media, non-fungible tokens, and DeFi.
However, the challenge for Pi Coin miners is that the enclosed mainnet period has lasted for over four years, meaning that they cannot exchange their tokens for fiat currencies. That is a big issue since some people have been actively mining the token for over five years now.
Pi Network has maintained that it was in no hurry to move to the mainnet. Instead, this process will only happen when the developers achieve three goals.
First, they have to complete the KYC verification process for all pioneers. Last week, they unveiled their biggest upgrade to supercharge this verification. As a result, the number of mainnet-ready users has jumped to over 5.4 million. They need it to reach 10 million to move to the mainnet.
Second, they hope that the network will have more applications that will give the Pi Coin a utility. Finally, market conditions will need to be good. Therefore, while the developers are committed to launching the mainnet, I believe that it will not happen this year.
Is Pi Coin mining worth it?
So, is it a good thing to mine the Pi Coin? On the positive side, Pi mining is a simple process, where you only need to launch the app and press a button. Millions of people have been doing this for years.
There are three main risks. First, there is a risk that the network will remain for more years in the enclosed mainnet, making it impossible to convert it into fiat currency. Second, there is a risk that the Pi Coin price will not rise after launch as many people exit their trades and dump the tokens.
Finally, there is the issue of Pi Network’s ecosystem. It is unclear whether the network will attract enough developers who will build apps that users really want. We have seen this with networks like EOS, Tezos, and Zilliqa.
