What is POKT?

Image:https://pocket.network/

POKT, short for Pocket Network, is a protocol aimed at providing decentralized blockchain data access services. In simple terms, POKT acts like a “data relay station” for blockchains, helping developers connect to data interfaces (RPC) across multiple chains through a distributed network of nodes. As of now, POKT supports over 50 chains, including popular networks such as Ethereum, Polygon, and BSC.

The mission and vision of POKT

The mission of POKT is very clear: to provide the world with unstoppable, user-governed open infrastructure. The team believes that the future digital economy will be dominated by decentralized systems, and that critical digital infrastructure—such as on-chain data services—should belong to the users, rather than being monopolized by tech giants.

The vision of POKT is to create an infrastructure network maintained jointly by global developers and node operators, achieving high reliability, scalability, and low-cost services.

How does the POKT protocol work?

On a technical level, POKT is an early project in the DePIN (Decentralization Physical Infrastructure) field. It coordinates tens of thousands of node operators around the world through an economic incentive mechanism, providing data relay services for developers. These nodes are responsible for responding to API requests from applications, allowing dApps to reliably read and write on-chain data.

Node operators need to stake a certain amount of $POKT tokens (usually between 15,000 and 60,000 POKT) to qualify for the service. At the same time, the data gateway accesses these services by paying a small fee of $POKT per relay (approximately $0.00000085).

More importantly, all gateway payment fees will be regularly burned by the Pocket Network Foundation to maintain inflation control and token value.

The role of the $POKT token

$POKT is the native token on the Layer-1 blockchain developed by Pocket Network, with the following main uses:

1. Payment: All data requests sent through nodes must use $POKT to pay fees;
2. Staking: Node operators must stake $POKT to join the network;
3. Governance and ecological incentives: In the future, $POKT may also be used for DAO governance, ecological project incentives, and the modular expansion of services.

Since $POKT is a utility token, its value is highly tied to the usage frequency of the entire network and the number of nodes.

Shannon Upgrade: A Turning Point for POKT’s Future

In the second quarter of 2025, POKT will launch a major upgrade — Shannon. This upgrade is seen as a key step for Pocket Network in moving from “server-side decentralization” to “fully permissionless.”

Shannon will introduce multiple technological highlights:

• Relay Minting: Supports verifiable proof of work for API requests.
• Token Logic Modules: Achieving modular and customizable token economics
• Native multi-chain support: $POKT can provide cross-chain services, expanding application scenarios.

Even more excitingly, Shannon will expand its support scope, no longer limited to blockchain RPC. In the future, the POKT network is expected to serve a wide range of data service scenarios such as AI reasoning, Decentralization indexing services, oracles, relay bridges, and more.

POKT Market Performance

Figure:https://www.gate.com/trade/POKT_USDT

On June 17, 2025, POKT is approximately $0.065, and it has been subject to significant fluctuations recently. Please trade cautiously and be aware of the risks.

Summary: Why is POKT worth paying attention to?

POKT is currently the only fully decentralized RPC network operating on the mainnet, with a wide service range, low cost, and high availability. As the infrastructure connecting developers to the multi-chain world, POKT serves the role of a “data router” in the Web3 era. In the future, with the implementation of the Shannon upgrade, POKT will not only achieve comprehensive openness from the supply side to the demand side but is also likely to become the “Amazon Cloud” for AI and decentralized application infrastructure.

If you are looking for a Web3 infrastructure project with long-term development potential, POKT is a name worth paying attention to.