From a billion-dollar dream to a harsh reality: Where is Pi Network going?

From Consensus 2025 to a shock of confidence

At the Consensus 2025 blockchain event, Pi Network founder Nicolas Kokkalis envisioned an AI era that combines decentralized blockchain, with a public mainnet and over 1,000 real-world Pi applications. However, the crypto community was immediately hit with a cold shower as experts warned that things were far from reality.

Dr. Altcoin, a well-known analyst on the X platform, commented: it will take 2.5 to 5 years for Pi Network to create real value. The major difficulties facing this project include the lack of a clear startup support mechanism, the long project selection and disbursement time, and the current poor quality of DApps.

Even if it is listed on a major exchange and the price increases to $2-3, this is still just a speculative effect and does not reflect sustainable value. Some more optimistic forecasts put Pi's price at $314 in the next 5 years, but this depends heavily on actual implementation and cooperation with exchanges like Binance.

Dr. Altcoin's blunt advice to the Pi community is: "Lower your expectations for the next 5 years."

Từ giấc mơ tỷ đô đến thực tế phũ phàng: Pi Network đang đi về đâu? - 1 — Many experts warn it could take years for Pi Network to create real value (Illustration: Coingape).

$100 million fund: Strategic boost or betrayal?

Amidst doubts about the development progress, on May 14, the Pi Core Team announced the launch of Pi Network Ventures - a $100 million investment fund, combining USD and Pi tokens. The fund's goal is to support startups and businesses to build practical applications using Pi in life, described as a "strategic turning point" to accelerate the launch of useful applications and promote the daily use of Pi.

However, the announcement was met with harsh criticism from the Pioneer community and analysts. Dr. Altcoin called it “nothing less than a betrayal.” He wrote: “We waited, believed, and contributed. Now we are being told that the real DApps the team promised do not exist and that $100 million in value will be used to finally start building them. That value comes from the trust and hard work of the Pioneer community.

Many users feel left out as the development team seems to be focused on new big and ambitious projects, instead of acknowledging the contributions of the community that has accompanied the project for many years. The lack of transparency about advertising revenue in the Pi Network app over the years is also a point of dissatisfaction.

Furthermore, the fact that many users failed to earn 1,000 Pi tokens due to the team not rewarding referrals further makes the community feel that their efforts are being overlooked. "The silence from the development team is deafening," Dr. Altcoin commented. "Pioneers are not just users, they are the foundation of the Pi Network."

Pi Price Slide: The Lesson of "Buy the Rumor, Sell the Fact"

Amid high expectations, the cryptocurrency market witnessed a strong price increase of Pi token in early May, pushing Pi price up more than 200% in just a few days, at one point peaking at $1.62 - the highest level since March 2025. This price increase was fueled by information "teased" by Pi Foundation about an "important announcement" on May 14 and speculation about the possibility of Pi being listed on major exchanges such as Binance.

However, when the official announcement of Pi Network Ventures was made (a long-term initiative rather than an immediate boost to the token value), the market reacted with deep disappointment. The Pi token price plunged more than 50%, to below $1.

This example is typical of the phenomenon of "buy the rumor, sell the news" - a familiar rule in the cryptocurrency market, where investors rush to buy in anticipation of good news, but sell off as soon as the information is announced as not as expected.

Despite the drop, some signs suggest that Pi token prices are stabilizing around the pre-spike price range, suggesting that volatility may be returning to normal levels. However, the recent volatility (up 14.3% in 30 days, up 18.6% in 14 days, but down 18.4% in 24 hours and 2.7% in 1 hour as of the original posts) suggests that Pi remains an extremely volatile asset.

The Harsh Reality: What Does Pi Network Need to Survive?

Pi Network has succeeded in building a huge global user community. However, transforming this community into a real economic ecosystem with real-world applications is a huge challenge. The project still faces many unanswered questions about the transparency of the development team, the fully open Mainnet roadmap, and the intrinsic value of the Pi token when it has not been widely accepted for real-world transactions.

Compared to other blockchain projects such as bitcoin or ethereum, Pi Network has fundamental differences in terms of "mining" mechanism and level of acceptance. While bitcoin or ethereum have proven their value and liquidity, Pi Network is still in the development stage and looking for a foothold. The lack of prominent practical applications and the participation of large organizations or investment funds is a significant barrier.

At Consensus 2025, Nicolas Kokkalis mainly talked about the vision, without making many specific commitments on mainnet progress or solutions to controversial issues. This made the community even more skeptical.

Pi Network is at a crossroads: On one side is the dream of democratizing digital currency, on the other is the reality of limited resources and lack of transparency. While Pi Network Ventures may be a step in the right direction, it also shows that the project is just beginning its truly important phase.

The real value will not come from promises or user numbers, but from a practical application ecosystem, reliable technology and widespread adoption. Until that happens, Pi is still a risky gamble - where only the sane will survive.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/kinh-doanh/tu-giac-mo-ty-do-den-thuc-te-phu-phang-pi-network-dang-di-ve-dau-20250517201857699.htm