What is Pi Network?
All the math nerds know the value of π as 3.14. Fortunately, there is another less complex Pi in cryptocurrencies, the Pi Network. The developers of Pi bill it as ‘the first digital currency you can mine on your phone,’ which is a revolutionary concept considering most coins need expensive and power-consuming machines to do the job.
The Pi Network aims to be what Bitcoin plans to be but with more inclusivity and eco-friendliness. Four Stanford Ph.D. graduates founded the project. As a reference to the mathematical constant of π, the project was launched on the aptly named Pi Day in 2019 (14 March) with a free smartphone mining app.
About three months later, the network already had over 100,000 users and reportedly crossed the 17 million count as of August 2021. According to Pi’s website, the cryptocurrency is still in phase 2 of its roadmap plan (testnet).
The developers plan for Pi to become a publicly available, decentralized blockchain with an actual coin and trading exchanges in phase 3 once it reaches 100 million users (or sooner). Therefore, you cannot buy or trade Pi from anywhere; you can only mine it by downloading an app.
Is the Pi Network a good investment?
Pi may be a good investment despite not having any price chart data to observe. The project is technically a work-in-progress, which could be off-putting for some investors. Yet, the advantages it offers are compelling.
There is virtually no financial commitment yet as you’d expect with a traditional cryptocurrency, meaning there is far less risk. Innovators all aim to provide a solution to a lingering problem. Pi’s mission is to make mining more accessible than currently, where you need a sizable investment in many cases.
It achieves this objective through the provision of a mobile-first cryptocurrency allowing everyday people to get involved. As cryptocurrencies need a consensus algorithm, this model is quite different with Pi compared to the likes of Bitcoin.
Unlike the latter relying on the expensive, energy-wasting proof-of-work, Pi’s mechanism is super-lightweight since it occurs on phones and doesn’t depend on which computer is the most powerful.
Hence, this mining is more environmentally friendly and doesn’t drain your battery, RAM, and CPU. Users have reported the app can run in the background, or you can continue to mine even when not on the application.
What is the Pi Network’s coin price prediction for 2025?
It is rather challenging to make any informed price prediction for Pi as the cryptocurrency is not yet publicly traded anywhere. There isn’t any date set from the developers as to when Pi will officially launch.
Yet, numerous observers and enthusiasts have already begun to forecast the project’s future. Presently, holders mining Pi are accumulating as much of the coin as possible in anticipation of when it moves to the mainnet phase.
Users cannot transfer their holdings until Pi becomes an exchangeable cryptocurrency with a publicly distributed ledger. Nonetheless, a few publications have provided their two cents on the future price of Pi.
Let’s first consider the likely price Pi would debut at once it goes live. Most new cryptocurrencies typically start from $0.1 or even $0.01 if there is a much bigger supply. Changelly suggests that Pi could reach the dollar level within a year of release and maybe a few more (not above $5) by 2025.
All predictions are a mix of pessimistic, realistic and optimistic speculation. If the project has a sudden spike in market capitalization, it may be worth a few dollars after release. Nonetheless, we’ll have a much better idea when the coin goes on the public market, which is hopefully soon.
How to mine Pi
As already mentioned, mining Pi happens on a smartphone. The mobile app is available for Android and iOS users on the Google Play Store and Apple App Store, respectively. You create an account using Facebook or your phone number with a password.
What’s worth mentioning is you need an invitation code, either provided by a friend or one you can find online. As a new user, you earn π1 for signing up. The amount of π made every hour presently is 0.12, which is the ‘pioneer’ level.
To increase your hourly earning rate, you need to unlock other levels, which are:
- Contributor (achieved after mining for three days)
- Ambassador (a rank for those inviting others on the network)
- Node (this level is in development but refers to those connecting additional hardware)
Pi’s app can run in the background and is quite light on the battery and other system resources.
Notably, one must also check in every 24 hours to restart the mining process.
