Crypto entered 2026 with a familiar dichotomy: the industry is maturing, but its decentralized identity is at risk. Still, after years heavily dominated by speculation, 2025 became the year that pushed developers and investors towards fundamentals and proved that blockchain can support real-world goods, services and infrastructure.
In this week’s episode Byte size insightCointelegraph examines what this change looked like in practice, especially through the prism of the emerging “machine economy.”
DePIN brings “real world” cryptocurrencies closer to you.
Leonard Dorlöchter, co-founder of peaq, argues that 2025 was a turning point in the way projects are assessed.
“Fundamentals started to matter more and more,” he said
He added that “protocol revenues were the most important thing” after an earlier period of memecoin-based speculation. The drive to basics has been fueled in part by DePIN, decentralized physical infrastructure networks where projects aim to create services that generate measurable revenue.
Dorlöchter said: “We have already seen early revenues, real revenues under DePIN,” and added that some networks are already proving that “you can build a decentralized network of IoT devices… and funnel them back into tokens.”
Related: Web3 and DApps in 2026: a year based on cryptographic tools ahead of us
For construction companies, the lesson is clear: revenue matters, but so does the type of value created, especially as the industry strives for broader adoption.
Machine economics and chain coordination
Dorlöchter described the machine economy as “any device, robot or agent that autonomously transacts among itself or also with humans.” He said the past year has seen significant progress in standardization, including the release of protocols that assist agents discover services and interact between systems.
“A lot of the basic standardization work was done last year,” he said, adding that “it’s really going into production now.” For Dorlöchter, the stakes go beyond convenience:
“Blockchain technology is an enabling technology that allows us, as a global society, to build neutral infrastructure.”
Nevertheless, he also stressed that decentralization must remain fundamental, even as regulation accelerates and is adopted by the mainstream.
Looking to the future, he expects an boost in the number of autonomous agents transacting online:
“Agents will make money independently… and they will also purchase resources independently to keep operating.”
To listen to the entire conversation Byte size insightlisten to the entire episode on the Cointelegraph Podcasts page, Apple Podcasts Or Spotify. And be sure to check out our full lineup of other Cointelegraph programs!
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