Helium (HNT) is a decentralized blockchain-powered platform for Internet of Things (IoT) devices. As per the whitepaper, the aim of creating the Helium network is to incentivize the creation of physical and decentralized wireless networks.

The Helium network is a decentralized wireless network that allows devices worldwide to wirelessly connect to the internet and geolocate themselves with no requirement for power-hungry satellite location hardware or expensive cellular plans. Blockchain powers the Helium network with a native protocoltoken that incentivizes coverage providers and consumers. By introducing blockchain, the platform makes the industry currently controlled by monopolies decentralized. As a result, wireless network coverage becomes a commodity fuelled by competition and available at a low cost. The platform’s secure and open-source primitives allow developers to build low-power, internet-connected devices swiftly and cost-effectively. The network has a wide variety of applications across industries.

The platform’s key components that enable the platform to function without any hitch are explained as follows. The first element is proof of coverage (PoC). PoC is an algorithm that Helium deploys to verify that a hotspot in the network is physically where it claims and truthfully represents the hotspot’s wireless coverage for its location. With proof of coverage, the Helium network and blockchain can leverage the specific properties provided by the radio frequency to proofs useful to the network and users of the network.

The next element is proof of location. Similar to PoC, the Helium network outlines a system that uses WHIP to interpret the physical geolocation of a device without needing power-consuming and expensive satellite location hardware. Devices can make immutable, secure, and verifiable claims about their location at a particular time. And the blockchain can record that.

The third element is Helium Consensus Mechanism. The Helium network’s consensus protocol operates on certain principles.

The next element is WHIP. WHIP is a standards-compliant and open-source wireless network protocol created for low-power devices over large areas. It works on existing commodity radio chips available from dozens of manufacturers with no proprietary technologies or modulation schemas required.

The next one is Helium DWN. Helium Decentralized Wire Network (DWN) enables wireless access to the internet for devices by way of several independent miners. The DWN also specifies the Helium network and WHIP specifications by which participants on the network conform.

The HNT token is the native currency of the platform. There are no provisions for pre-mining HNT. The token serves as the medium of exchange between two primary parties in the Helium blockchain ecosystem. They are the network operators and hotspot hosts, as well as enterprises and developers utilizing the Helium network.

Who Are the Founders Of Helium?

Helium’s three co-founders Amir Haleem, Shawn Fanning and Sean Carey started the company in 2013.

Haleem has an active eSports and game development background. Fanning, by contrast, is well known for developing Napster, the music sharing service which was one of the first mainstream peer-to-peer (P2P) internet services in the late 1990s.

Carey meanwhile held multiple development roles prior to Helium, which included advertising optimization firm Where, acquired by PayPal.

Helium’s team now consists of members which the company says have experience in “radio and hardware, manufacturing, distributed systems, peer-to-peer and blockchain technologies.”

How Many Helium (HNT) Coins Are There in Circulation?

Approximate mining periods of 30 to 60 minutes unlock rewards which are distributed according to a changing growth plan.

Helium explains that at the start, node owners will accrue more HNT for building out network infrastructure, while later on, it will be more advantageous to transfer device data. This adjustment mechanism for token distribution is expected to last for around 20 years.

As of the start of October 2020, there are 48,712,218 HNT in circulation. When the token launched, the supply was zero, with no premine.

HNT Distribution

YEAR 1 BREAKDOWN

• 30% Network Data Transfer: Rewarded for hearing devices and relaying their packets to the internet.
• 35% Hotspot Infrastructure: Rewarded for participating in, witnessing and creating Proof-of-Coverage challenges.
• 35% Helium, Inc. and Investors: Assigned to founders, investors and organizations who will manage blockchain governance.

FAQ

1. What Gives Helium Value?

The value of Helium is determined by its utility, technical capacity, the relevancy of the project, and its technology. The intrinsic value of Helium is observed mostly through the prism of its utility and technology. However, the intrinsic value and the market value of HNT often don’t coincide, mostly due to the volatility in the cryptocurrency market.

The market value of Helium can vary greatly from one moment to the next depending on a multitude of various factors. The market value of HNT is also subject to volatility in the market and at times, unpredictable trend reversals, which is why the real-life value of the project is often different from the market price of HNT.

2. How Helium Works?

Helium employs a unique work technique called proof of coverage (PoC), which rewards miners in HNT — Helium’s coin, similar to how ETH is to Ethereum — for utilising radio waves to validate that hotspots are delivering wireless coverage to devices.

Similar to how Ethereum utilises graphics cards to crunch cryptographic hash codes that give the proof of work required to validate transactions, Helium miners ensure that wireless hotspots aren’t lying about their service by ‘interrogating’ hotspots about the activity using radio waves.

Helium is a blockchain-based network for IoT devices that employs nodes as Hotspots to connect wireless devices to the network. The native token HNT powers the network and serves as a payout whenever Hotspots transfer connection data across the network.

3. What is Helium Used for?

Helium has two primary uses. The first is to reward Helium Hotspot operators for contributing to the network’s expansion and security. The second is to act as the basis for data credits (DCs) generated by the burning of Helium tokens.

Helium can effortlessly connect devices on the Internet of things by employing low power efficiency and effectiveness. Helium also supports HNT staking, allowing users to benefit from their network involvement.

To begin utilising Helium as a Hotspot node provider, users purchase special mining devices and earn rewards based on their involvement. The rewards are in HNT. Helium builds a one-of-a-kind infrastructure for a completely new wireless economy driven by decentralisation, thus the moniker ‘The People’s Network’.