When people hear “blockchain,” many immediately think of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin or Ethereum. But in reality, that’s just the tip of the iceberg. The true potential of blockchain extends far beyond that. Imagine it as a “universally shared and unchangeable digital ledger”—a feature that allows it to shine across various industries. Let’s explore a few real-world blockchain application scenarios!
💡 Core Concept: The essence of blockchain lies in “decentralization,” “transparency,” and “immutability.” These three pillars form the foundation of trust in the Web3 world.
Are you tired of the cumbersome processes and high fees of traditional banks? Decentralized Finance (DeFi) was born to solve these pain points. It’s like a 24/7, globally accessible financial Lego world with no intermediaries.
Have you ever bought imported wine that was advertised as direct from the vineyard, only to suspect it might be fake? Blockchain’s “immutability” feature is the perfect remedy for this crisis of trust.
Imagine a bottle of premium wine: every step, from grape harvesting, winemaking, bottling, and transportation to retail shelving, has its information (time, location, responsible party, temperature) recorded on the blockchain. Consumers can simply scan a QR code on the bottle to view the wine’s complete “production history,” making its authenticity clear at a glance. This technology is already being used in luxury goods, pharmaceuticals, food safety, and other fields, significantly enhancing supply chain transparency and efficiency.
NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens), which became wildly popular a few years ago, are far more than just “profile pictures.” Their core value lies in providing a “unique digital certificate of ownership” for any digital or physical asset.
Want to learn more about how NFTs work? Check out our NFT tutorial articles to build a more solid foundation.
If DeFi is disrupting traditional finance, then DePIN (Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Networks) has an even grander ambition—to reshape the physical infrastructure of our world using Web3 principles.
Sounds complicated? Don’t worry, a simple analogy makes it easy to understand. Think of Airbnb or Uber. They don’t own any properties or cars themselves but have created massive service networks by aggregating idle resources through a platform. DePIN does the same thing, but in a “decentralized” way.
DePIN incentivizes individuals and small businesses worldwide to contribute their idle hardware resources (e.g., hard drive space, network bandwidth, GPU power) by rewarding them with tokens. Together, they build a bottom-up infrastructure network. Anyone can be a contributor or a user of the service. This model breaks the monopoly held by large corporations like Amazon AWS and Google Cloud.
DePIN has already demonstrated amazing potential in many areas:
The appeal of DePIN lies in its ability to solve the core problems of high costs and slow expansion in traditional infrastructure development. Through the “flywheel effect” of token incentives, it can launch and scale a global network more quickly and at a lower cost. Crypto research firm Messari has predicted that the potential market size of the DePIN sector could reach trillions of dollars in the coming years, as it targets the largest real-world markets of cloud services and telecommunications.
When a new blockchain project is born, it needs funding to grow and a way to distribute its tokens to early supporters. TGE (Token Generation Event) and IEO (Initial Exchange Offering) are the two most common methods for token issuance. Understanding their differences is the first lesson in entering the world of cryptocurrency investment.
A Token Generation Event (TGE) refers to the moment a project’s native token is “first created on the blockchain.” It is a technical milestone that marks the official birth of the token. In a broader sense, TGE also encompasses the series of distribution activities that follow the token’s creation, which may include private sales, public sales, and airdrops to community members.
An Initial Exchange Offering (IEO) is a specific method of “fundraising and issuance.” It involves a project team collaborating with a well-known centralized exchange (such as Binance or OKX) to conduct the token’s first public sale on the exchange’s platform. You can think of it as the cryptocurrency world’s version of an “IPO lottery,” where the venue is a crypto exchange instead of a stock exchange.
To help you understand more clearly, we have prepared the following comparison table:
| Comparison Metric | TGE (Token Generation Event) | IEO (Initial Exchange Offering) |
|---|---|---|
| Core Definition | The technical event of a token’s initial creation, covering various distribution methods. | A public fundraising and issuance conducted through a centralized exchange platform. |
| Issuing Body | The project team itself. | The project team + a centralized exchange. |
| Basis of Trust | Relies on the project team’s own reputation, technical strength, and community consensus. | The exchange conducts a preliminary review of the project, providing a layer of credibility for investors. |
| Pros | High flexibility, diverse distribution methods; can directly target the early core community. | Comes with massive traffic and exposure; usually listed for trading immediately after the offering, ensuring good liquidity. |
| Cons | High demands on the project team’s marketing abilities; investors must assess risks themselves. | High barrier to entry, projects must pay hefty listing fees; retail participation often requires a lottery or rush, with limited allocation. |
For novice investors, an IEO is generally a more friendly starting point. This is because the exchange has already filtered out many obvious scams or low-quality projects. However, this does not guarantee profits, as market risks still exist. Participating in an early-stage TGE or private sale requires stronger research skills and a higher risk tolerance, as you are dealing with a project in its infancy, where both potential returns and risks are higher.
After reading this far, you might be eager to jump in. But hold on—participating in new project launches is like a treasure hunt, filled with both opportunities and risks. Following these steps can help you start your journey more safely.
Keep an eye on announcements from major exchanges (like Binance Launchpad, OKX Jumpstart), as they are the primary sources for IEO projects. Once you find a project you’re interested in, you need to investigate its fundamentals like a detective.
To participate in an IEO, you must be a compliant user of the exchange. Therefore, be sure to complete your identity verification (KYC) in advance. Also, based on the IEO rules, prepare the designated platform tokens (like BNB, OKB) or stablecoins (USDT), as these are often the only way to subscribe.
⚠️ Risk Warning: All investments carry risks, especially in the highly volatile cryptocurrency market. Before investing, always Do Your Own Research (DYOR) and only invest funds you can afford to lose.
This is the most critical step and what separates informed investors from speculators.
Participating in IEO investments is a skill. If you want to learn more about evaluation and participation techniques, you can read our IEO investment tutorial articles.
From basic blockchain applications and the revolutionary DePIN sector to the key token issuance models of TGE and IEO, we have journeyed through the core landscape of the current Web3 ecosystem. Understanding these seemingly complex terms is not just about keeping up with technological trends; it’s the crucial first step in identifying potential investment opportunities and recognizing risks in the next digital era. This guide provides you with a clear knowledge map, and we hope it will serve as a solid starting point for your future explorations into the infinite possibilities of Web3. Remember, continuous learning and independent thinking are your most important compasses for navigating this new world.
The main risks include: 1. Market Risk: The overall cryptocurrency market is highly volatile, which could cause the token’s price to drop below the issue price after listing. 2. Project Risk: The project’s development may not meet expectations, failing to deliver on the promises made in the whitepaper. 3. Liquidity Risk: If the project has low visibility, there may be insufficient trading depth after listing, making it difficult to buy or sell. 4. Regulatory Risk: The regulatory policies for token issuance are unclear in many countries, posing a risk of policy changes. Always conduct a thorough assessment before participating.
The biggest difference is that DePIN projects are closely integrated with the physical world. Most general crypto applications (like DeFi, GameFi) operate in a purely digital environment, whereas DePIN projects require users to contribute real hardware resources (like servers or network hotspots). The value of their tokens is directly linked to the scale and usage of the physical infrastructure network, giving them a more grounded business model.
Not at all! Understanding blockchain applications is like driving a car—you don’t need to know how the engine works internally to know how to drive and follow traffic rules. This article aims to explain the “application logic” and “value proposition” of these technologies in the most accessible way. Focusing on what problems they solve is more important than delving into complex code.
Generally, IEOs are more friendly to retail investors. Because they are conducted on reputable exchanges, the projects are vetted, and the participation process is relatively standardized, which reduces the risk of encountering scams. Many early stages of a TGE (like private sale rounds) have high entry barriers that are inaccessible to the average retail investor. However, regardless of which you participate in, it should be based on thorough research.
DePIN is considered by many industry insiders to be the next major growth area in Web3 because it directly challenges the multi-trillion-dollar traditional infrastructure market, offering enormous potential. However, it also faces challenges, such as how to effectively incentivize a large number of users to join and maintain network stability. Investing in DePIN projects requires patience and a focus on network growth data and real-world use cases, making it a long-term value play.
