Helium Mobile’s developer is now licensing its tech stack

The distributed cell plan provider started selling its own hotspots in October 2023

article-image

Helium and Adobe stock modified by Blockworks

share

Helium Mobile is starting a licensing program for its hotspot devices, the cell plan provider announced Tuesday. 

Helium Mobile’s hotspots let individuals or businesses set up “mini cell towers” that emit cell coverage and pay out tokens in exchange. There are already several third-party manufacturers and vendors for the Helium Internet of Things (IoT) network, according to Helium’s website, but Helium Mobile is currently the only provider for cell phone coverage devices.

With the licensing program, Helium Mobile hopes to earn licensing fees from hotspots being manufactured elsewhere while simultaneously growing its burgeoning cellular network.

Helium Mobile is being developed by Nova Labs. The cell plan runs on a hybrid of its own distributed network coverage and service Helium Mobile buys from T-Mobile. The plan piloted in Miami before going live nationwide in the US — at a monthly price point of $20 — last December. 

Read more: Unlimited Helium Mobile cell plan goes nationwide for $20 a month

Helium Mobile has accrued 93,898 sign-ups in total, according to a Dune dashboard. The dashboard does not track potential subscription cancellations, so the number of active subscribers may be fewer. 

Before Nova Labs developed Helium Mobile, the same team built an IoT network with similar Web3 mechanics to power things like e-scooters. Users have been running Helium wireless hotspots for years, and the IoT network supports “dozens” of third-party devices. 

But Helium Mobile’s cell phone coverage hardware was developed in-house.

Helium Mobile began selling $249 indoor hotspots in October 2023 and $499 outdoor hotspots in December. Now, others can manufacture and sell Helium Mobile hotspots.

Read more: Helium hotspots go live in bid to turn Miami network profitable

MNTD. is set to become the first third-party manufacturer of Helium Mobile hotspots, according to a press release. Helium Mobile hopes others will soon follow.

“Introducing a licensing program and partnering with hardware manufacturers means there are more options for people who are considering becoming part of the Helium Network. We are excited to see the community grow,” a spokesperson for Helium Mobile told Blockworks.


Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:

Tags

Decoding crypto and the markets. Daily, with Byron Gilliam.

Upcoming Events

Old Billingsgate

Mon - Wed, October 13 - 15, 2025

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

recent research

Unlocked by Template (10).png

Research

Innovations on Aptos’ technical design through Raptr, Shardines, and Zaptos approach near-optimal latency and throughput by unlocking 100% utilization of network resources, with the capacity to settle 260k transactions per second with latencies less than 800ms. The original Move language was revamped with the launch of Move 2, supporting more expressivity in smart contract logic and a scalable ability to interact with high volume datasets. The ecosystem has benefitted from strong asset inflows, now hosting over $1.3B in stablecoins, $450M in bridged BTC, and $530M in RWAs. Activity in the Aptos ecosystem has grown notably over the past year, with monthly application revenue reaching ~$835k and monthly DEX volumes growing to over $5B, both at new all time highs.

article-image

Interchain Labs will focus on sovereign L1s and institutional demand, abandoning plans for smart contracts on the Cosmos Hub

article-image

Also, only three tokens have outperformed bitcoin so far this year: XMR, HYPE and SKY

article-image

The fund group has submitted proposals in recent months for other funds that would hold litecoin, solana, XRP, HBAR, Sui and others

article-image

Momentum’s back — BTC leads, risk assets follow

article-image

Ondo Finance’s acquisition of blockchain development company Strangelove follows its buy of Oasis Pro

article-image

Cryptocurrency and stock traders alike had a lot to unpack Wednesday