From the beginning, our ultimate goal was to make WiFi access as seamless as possible. Empower users through decentralized solutions. said Jeffrey, co-founder of Roam. Three years later, Roam has become the leading project in the DePIN track, with 1.9 million registered users and 1.1 million self-built WiFi nodes. The wireless network covers nearly 200 countries and regions. Roam is getting closer to the vision described by Jeffrey step by step.
The perfect combination of telecommunications and Web3
Today, the telecommunications industry is facing unprecedented transformation challenges, and user needs have become the key to successful transformation. Traditional telecommunications services have long been unable to meet the expectations of modern users due to rigid packages, outdated technology, and lack of flexibility. At the same time, free applications such as WeChat and WhatsApp have provided convenient and affordable communication options for users around the world, revealing the limitations of traditional telecommunications services. To meet these challenges, it is necessary to change thinking and adopt a new approach - user-centric, empowering communities, and promoting innovation.
Roam was born to meet this challenge. Founded in 2021, Roams original mission was to solve the various problems encountered by the Wireless Broadband Alliance (WBA) OpenRoaming™ program as it expanded globally. Today, Roam has successfully redefined the telecommunications industry with its decentralized free wireless network. By integrating decentralized identity (DID) and verifiable credential (VC) technology, Roam protects user privacy and data security, and provides seamless and secure network connections for users around the world. Most importantly, Roam encourages users to participate in network construction and verification through an incentive mechanism. Users are not only users of the network, but also important contributors and builders of the ecosystem.
Roam is unique in that it can attract both Web3 and Web2 users, becoming a model for the mass adoption of Web3. By providing a network service that everyone can use, Roam cleverly builds a bridge between Web2 and Web3. In the past year, Roam has rapidly expanded the number of registered users and WiFi nodes through a free to use, user-first model, and has won the attention of traditional telecom operators, who have also begun to view Roam as a new paradigm of user-centric telecom services.
Roams success has also attracted the attention of the capital market. At the end of 2023, Roam successfully completed a strategic financing of US$5 million, led by Anagram and Volt Capital. Immediately afterwards, in April 2024, Samsung Next also made a strategic investment in Roam, which was also Samsung Nexts only investment in the DePIN field that year.
By combining Web3 technology with the telecommunications industry, Roam not only reshapes the way we connect, but also lays the foundation for a decentralized future and drives a new chapter in global connectivity.
Multiple incentives to attract users to participate in the Roam network
Roam is well aware that the sustainable development of the ecosystem is inseparable from extensive community participation. Therefore, unlike the centralized operation model of the traditional telecommunications industry, Roam has always taken ecological collaboration and community participation as its core, breaking the closed nature of traditional telecommunications services. Through its open and decentralized network, Roam provides innovative incentive mechanisms for global users, enabling users to directly participate in network construction and operation.
In order to encourage users to actively participate, Roam has launched a WiFi node addition mechanism, and through the update of hardware products Rainier MAX 60 and Baker MAX 30, the router is not only a connection tool, but also a portal for users to upgrade their network and earn Roam Points. By sharing WiFi nodes, users can not only enjoy seamless and secure global connections, but also earn Roam Points and contribute to the expansion of the network.
In September 2024, Roam further launched the eSIM feature, which effectively lowered the barrier to participation. Users only need to sign in daily through the Roam App to get global roaming data and enjoy free mobile data services. Since the launch of eSIM, the number of Roam users has surged from 750,000 to 1 million in just one month, further verifying the effectiveness of Roams community-driven model.
Every interaction with the Roam network brings rewards to users. Roam Points, the core incentive mechanism of the platform, allows users to convert these points into $ROAM tokens after future TGEs. From activating the router to checking in for verification, every action is rewarded, which not only provides users with a sustainable income model, but also helps users lower the threshold for equipment investment and encourages more users to join the Roam ecosystem.
According to the Solana DePIN report released by Syndica Research in November 2024, Roams user growth rate surged 4.6 times in one month, the number of new WiFi nodes added per month exceeded 100,000 for three consecutive months, and the daily interactions on the Roam network exceeded 900,000 times, demonstrating user engagement that exceeds that of traditional telecommunications service providers.
Roams success demonstrates the huge potential of decentralized collaboration in the telecommunications industry. Its ability to build a large user base in a short period of time demonstrates the feasibility of the decentralized model. More importantly, it promotes a fundamental change in the way people connect - in the world of Roam, users are not only consumers, but also builders of the network.
Roam is bringing a movement that empowers everyone to take control of connectivity and be part of innovation. By combining Web3 ideas with real-world needs, Roam is setting a new standard for the future of decentralized communications.
Deeply cultivate the DePIN ecosystem and build Physical Layer 1
Looking back at 2024, Roam has successfully stood out among many DePIN projects with its unremitting efforts. In order to lower the entry threshold, Roam and Huma Finance jointly launched the Roam Loan Program, enabling more users to participate in the construction of the Roam ecosystem.
The Roam Loan Program provides users with a flexible installment payment method, allowing them to purchase Roam mining machines such as Rainier MAX 60 and Baker MAX 30 with a 30% down payment, and the rest is provided by a loan from Huma Finance. Users repay the loan through mining rewards and early airdrops. After the loan is repaid, all future rewards will belong to the user.
In addition, Roam mining machine incentives are very rich. Users can get 3,000 Roam Points by activating the device, and can earn up to 210 Roam Points per day. Users who registered before TGE can also participate in the airdrop of 20 million $ROAM tokens.
The launch of the Roam Loan Program marks the launch of the first phase of Roam Growth, a core component of the Roam ecosystem that aims to help users transform network devices into economic tools, maximize user benefits and simplify operations. Through Roam Growth, Roam not only provides users with a stable source of income, but also promotes innovation and ecological construction of decentralized network applications.
Roam Growth is one of the key modules of Roam to build the Telecom Data Layer. Through decentralized WiFi networks and DID+VC authentication mechanisms, Roam will open up seamless data connections between people, devices, assets and AI, and promote the formation of the BoT (Blockchain of Things) ecosystem.
At the same time, Roam also launched the Roam Discovery platform to promote cooperation among DePIN projects. By providing the worlds largest decentralized wireless network, Roam Discovery provides users and project parties with rich resource support and technical support, promoting the further development of the DePIN ecosystem.
Roam: Leading the Future of Decentralized Wireless Connectivity
In September 2024, Roam proposed a plan to build Physical Layer 1. Three months later, Roam established cooperation with 20 leading projects and steadily promoted the construction of decentralized connections. Since December 2024, Roam has maintained its first place in DePINscan, with more than 1.1 million active nodes and 1.9 million users. In the 2024 DePIN annual report just released by Messari, there are 5 DePIN projects with more than one million active nodes in the world, and Roam is one of them. At the same time, Roam is also one of the typical cases of hardware-based DeWi, and is a representative of popularizing WiFi networks and making network services profitable.
Roam ranks fourth on the DePIN hardware node rankings in Messari’s 2024 annual report
The launch of the Roam Loan Program and Roam Discovery marks an important step for Roam in building a global, open, decentralized wireless network. As Jeffrey envisioned, Roam has become a model for large-scale Web3 adoption. As the 2025 roadmap progresses, Roam is not only redefining the telecommunications industry, but also driving the development of a decentralized ecosystem to create a user-centric future. In this evolving world, Roam is not only connecting devices, but also connecting lives, proving that community-driven innovation can change the world.
