Pi Network - Mine Pi coin crypto currency on your smartphone
The story of pi - intro from the creators of the pi network
Make money with your smartphone while you sleep - without draining the battery.
Mining crypto currencies like Bitcoin or Ethereum is associated with high upfront investment, and high power consumption. Mining devices, particularly those of professional mining rigs, are known to not only produce a lot of heat but also to be quite noise intensive.
The Pi Network aims to address these existing issues with their Pi Network App. You can download the app from Apple’s Appstore or the Google Playstore and start mining Pi coins today. Unlike other mining apps, the Pi Network app operates in the background and does not cause excessive drain on your smartphone’s battery.
The vision and mission statement from the Pi Network‘s white paper is as follows:
„Our Mission is to build a cryptocurrency and smart contracts platform secured and operated by everyday people.“
„Our Vision is to build the world’s most inclusive peer-to-peer marketplace, fuelled by Pi, the world’s most widely used cryptocurrency“.
How does it work?
There are four roles in the Pi Network:
Pioneers
Contributors
Ambassadors
Node
Pioneers are users of the Pi Network Mobile App on their smartphone (only one app per person is permitted). The users must verify daily, with the push of a button in the app, that they are a real person and not a robot.
Contributors are users of the Pi Network Mobile App who provide a list of pioneers they know and trust. In doing so, they help to build a global trust graph.
Ambassadors are Pi Network Mobile App users who introduce other users into the Pi Network.
A Node is a desktop app (currently available for Mac and Windows) that runs the Stellar Consensus Protocol, or SCP. The main objective of a Node is to be correctly connected to the main Pi Network.
The Pi Network is inclusive of all of the four above mentioned mining roles. Since each role can earn Pi coins, any one person who holds multiple roles has the potential for higher earnings.
Who gets the most Pi coins?
Each role within the Pi Network nets different earnings; An Ambassador can earn up to 25% in addition to the base mining rate for inviting users to the network. Each member of that team also gets a 25% boost.
The Contributor role is reserved for Pioneers who have completed 3 mining sessions. After inviting 3-5 people, one has the potential to earn Contributor status.
The Pi Network also rewards early adopters with higher earning rates, so the earlier you jump on board and the more people you invite along, the higher your earning potential.
What Differentiates the Pi Network from a Blockchain Based Crypto Currency:
The protocol and the algorithm used by the Pi Network offers more options than a blockchain based crypto currency such as Bitcoin or Ethereum.
While the blockchain computes mining rewards on every block, the Pi Network computes the rewards only once per day. A blockchain based currency rewards one lucky miner who is able to solve a random, albeit extremely complicated computational task with 6.25 bitcoin (at the time of writing, a value equalling 279,800 CAD) every 10 minutes. Given the number of big mining farms worldwide, it is nearly impossible to come out on top in this scenario. Because of this, miners are organized into groups, or so called mining pools, to increase their chances (and then split the profits). The Pi Network, on the other hand, rewards miners once daily, so there is no need for mining pools. Sounds fair, doesn’t it?
Where is the catch? I’m glad you asked…
As of 29. December 2021, Pi Network launched the mainnet (Phase 3). According to the white paper of the Pi Network, this is the stage in which the software is ready for production. When I first installed the app a week ago, it had the tendency to crash frequently and displayed, more often than not, errors on the screen related to network tasks. I was unable to register for 24 hours and continually received errors while trying to submit contact details. After retrying several times in a row, the app crashed completely. Finally, I was able to sign up, but could see nothing more than a white screen with a message that an error occurred while syncing with the Pi Network and to try again later. Only after turning off the wifi connection and running it on a cellular data connection was I able to get the app up and running. Rather strange that an app would function on cellular data but not wifi. I have reached out to the Pi Team regarding this issue on their contact form of their website (https://minepi.com) but so far have not received a response.
Secondly, the Pi coins are not (yet) an official crypto currency (not connected to an exchange), so it’s currently not possible to cash in any of the mined Pi coins (as they have 0.00 value). With the launch of the mainnet in Phase 3, this could change.
To take part in the Pi Network requires an invitation code. These codes can easily be found online (or use my invitation code: mbuchser), which makes this a bit questionable along with the roles and the rewards model.
Moreover, what struck me as suspicious is the fact that there are only two people listed on the Pi Network website - Dr. Nicolas Kokkalis, Head of Technology and Dr. Chengdiao Fan, Head of Product but no staff. Despite this, it is clearly stated on the website that ‘Pi Is not a scam. It is a genuine effort by a team of Stanford graduates to give everyday people greater access to cryptocurrency’.
In the Pi Network app and on their Facebook page, the creators post that, as of the 8th of December 2021, they have reached 25 million engaged pioneers and in a post on the 29th of December it says that the mainnet has been launched (meaning it is ready for production). This may sound rather promising, but on the other hand, I was not able to get someone from the Pi Network to respond to my inquiries about the Pi Network or problems I encountered with the app (or any other questions I had, for that matter). Furthermore, no response on my messages through the online contact form on the Pi Network website or through LinkedIn. And there is no hint from the Founders on when the Pi coins are going to be connected to an exchange. However, if you are reading this, you are obviously still interested, so here is how you can get started:
How To Get Started:
Download the Pi Network App for the iPhone from the Appstore or the Android version from the Google Playstore
Make sure you are connected with a cellular data connection and not wifi! As of the time of writing, the iPhone version of the app did NOT work with a wifi connection!
Sign up (either with your phone number, facebook or Apple login)
Find an invitation code online - or use mine (mbuchser), thanks!
Start mining Pi coins by opening the app once a day. (*Note - to continue mining, the app does not need to be open. It will continue to work in the background. However, you need to check in once a day and hit the lightning icon in order to confirm that you are not a robot).
If you are looking to improve your earnings as a pi coin miner, consider becoming a Contributor and/or Ambassador and run a Node on your desktop. I, myself, have tried running a Node but so far have been unsuccessful. As soon as I am successful you will read about it here, so stay tuned!! And…remember to subscribe to our newsletter so you don’t miss any updates!
For more information about the Pi Network, check out their website and the white paper they published:
https://minepi.com/white-paper
For more information on the Stellar Consensus Protocol (SCP):
https://www.stellar.org/papers/stellar-consensus-protocol
For more information on FBA:
https://towardsdatascience.com/federated-byzantine-agreement-24ec57bf36e0
(+) Pros
The app runs in the background so the battery life on your smartphone does not drain overly quickly
Requires only your name and phone number to sign up and get started
Is accessible to everyone with a smartphone - no big investments/mining rigs required
(-) Cons
No real world value (yet…)
No timetable to planned next steps (connection to exchange, buying something with Pi coins)
No response received to inquiries
App does not work with a wifi connection (cellular data connection is required)