Lightspeed Newsletter: Helium eyes the big guys

How Helium Mobile’s plan to decentralize cell coverage is catching on

article-image

Helium Mobile and Adobe modified by Blockworks

share

Howdy!

Web3 is helping pay for both my coffee and my cell phone plan. The latter is the subject of today’s newsletter. 

Who said the millennial lifestyle subsidy was dead

Jack Kubinec


How high can Helium float?

It’s been more than five months since Helium Mobile debuted its nationwide cell plan, one of the most ambitious applications of what crypto folks call DePIN (decentralized physical infrastructure) to date. 

For $20 a month, Nova Labs, the developer behind the Helium Network, began offering US residents unlimited data plans. 

Helium Network participants run hotspot nodes that emit cellular coverage, and they’re paid in Solana-based MOBILE tokens for operating these miniature cell towers. In places where no Helium data is available, Nova Labs purchases coverage from T-Mobile. 

The product has gained nearly 90,000 subscribers since its launch, including this newsletter writer. Nova Labs CEO Amir Haleem told me these growth numbers are solid when put in context.

“It looked like in all of last year, AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile only added something like 300-400,000 subscribers combined,” Haleem said, adding that Helium Mobile hopes to reach 300,000 subscribers by the end of the year. 

Publicly available data seems to tell a different story: AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile each reported millions of new subscribers last year. Nova Labs did not immediately return a request for comment on the discrepancy. 

As a user, I’ll say Helium’s coverage has been as good as any of my past cell carriers. Recently, I enabled discovery mapping, where Helium Mobile pays MOBILE tokens in exchange for location data in order to determine where it needs to create more coverage. On my first day, I earned $0.78-worth of MOBILE — or roughly ½ of a slice of pizza, in New York terms. 

But there’s a question that’s followed the Helium Network for a while now: Can this make money? Nova Labs added another revenue stream in January when it partnered with the Spanish telecommunications company Telefónica. The company is offloading some of its mobile data in parts of Mexico to the Helium Network. As data usage increases globally, a new network like Helium’s could prove valuable to data providers. 

Still, the sustainability of the network’s MOBILE token-based incentives are something of an open question. MOBILE’s price leapt more than 2,000% right after Helium Mobile went nationwide in December, according to CoinGecko. Helium Mobile has yet to face a serious stallout in subscriber growth, which could potentially put downward pressure on the token price. 

Haleem thinks that the inefficiencies in legacy cellular coverage make Helium an “obvious” application for DePIN.

“It’s just wildly too expensive to keep deploying infrastructure the way it’s being deployed,” Haleem said. “It’s hundreds of billions or trillions of dollars to deploy towers all the time. It doesn’t make any sense.”

Jack Kubinec

Zero In

The Helium Mobile dashboard from Dune Analytics shows steady growth in newly minted subscriber NFTs, with 89,474 issued since January 2024.

Initially, numbers soared, but enthusiasm flattened somewhat in recent weeks. On May 10, however, a spike occurred with 837 newly minted NFTs. This surge coincides with Helium Improvement Proposal 113, which increased rewards for Wi-Fi hotspots and reduced them for CBRS radios, incentivizing efficient coverage. The spike seemingly underscores the importance of user rewards on growth within the Web3 world. However, sustained long-term interest will likely depend on the quality of services, not just profit incentives.

Jeffrey Albus

The Pulse

Loading Tweet..

On May 12, Solana surpassed Ethereum in daily economic value, recording $2.25 million in transaction fees and MEV — compared to Ethereum’s $1.98 million. The community has been abuzz since, with vibrant discussions spreading across social media.

In one X thread by Dan Smith of Blockworks Research, users pointed out the milestone’s intriguing timing. Users debated the significance of Ethereum’s L2 solutions, noting that reduced transactions on Ethereum’s L1 could reflect L2s working as intended rather than a decline in utility. This raised questions about whether L2 activity should be included in such metrics.

Mert Mumtaz, co-founder and CEO of Helius and co-host of the Lightspeed podcast, highlighted competitive dynamics, noting how other blockchain projects are targeting Solana developers with job offers. He has been vocal about the potential of Solana’s integrated approach and the limitations of Ethereum’s dominance.

Valuation disparities between Solana and Ethereum also fueled discussions, with some suggesting that Solana’s lower current valuation indicates significant potential for growth. This broader sentiment reflects a belief that Solana could see increased adoption and value as it continues to showcase its capabilities and attract more developers and users.

Jeffrey Albus

One Good DM

A text from Arman Dezfuli-Arjomandi, a board member at the Helium Foundation:


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.

Industry City | Brooklyn, NY

TUES - THURS, JUNE 24 - 26, 2025

Permissionless IV serves as the definitive gathering for crypto’s technical founders, developers, and builders to come together and create the future.If you’re ready to shape the future of crypto, Permissionless IV is where it happens.

Brooklyn, NY

SUN - MON, JUN. 22 - 23, 2025

Blockworks and Cracked Labs are teaming up for the third installment of the Permissionless Hackathon, happening June 22–23, 2025 in Brooklyn, NY. This is a 36-hour IRL builder sprint where developers, designers, and creatives ship real projects solving real problems across […]

recent research

Research Report Templates (19).png

Research

Suilend has grown into the top money market and liquid staking provider on Sui. STEAMM, Suilend’s Superfluid AMM, presents a compelling avenue for growing market share within Sui’s DEX landscape and revenue generation for the protocol. Suilend’s multi-product suite position it well for owning market share across key verticals. While current metrics across the Sui ecosystem are likely inflated due to Sui Foundation incentive programs, SEND trades at amongst the lowest multiples in the lend/borrow sector, suggesting that a bull case for continued growth in the ecosystem may be mispriced.

article-image

Decentralized money was a “very unpopular goal” when concepts were proposed in the ’90s, said Nick Szabo

article-image

Cove aims to deliver “risk-adjusted yield” through curated DeFi vaults

article-image

The best capital markets are open to the most people — and crypto capital markets are open to everyone

article-image

Post-conference musings on Firedancer, Kraken, Solana Mobile and Trump

article-image

Executives expect others to follow SharpLink Gaming’s lead in purchasing an asset that has surged this past month

article-image

After a weekend of tariff policy shifts, investors appear confident that trade deals are underway