Aviation DePIN Network Wingbits Raises $5.6M for Decentralized Flight Tracking

Wingbits, a decentralized physical infrastructure (DePIN) startup focused on the aviation industry, has raised $5.6 million in funding.

DePIN, the model of using hardware secured by a decentralized network, could be seen as a blockchain equivalent of the cloud computing services offered by Big Tech giants like Amazon and Google.

The investment round, which takes Wingbits’ total backing to $9.2 million, was led by Borderless Capital and Bullish Capital. The latter’s parent company, Bullish Group, is also the owner of CoinDesk.

Wingbits’ aim is to offer rewards-based flight tracking using cryptographically-secured Automatic Dependent Surveillance–Broadcast (ADS-B) receivers.

“Flight tracking has long relied on a küresel network of volunteers who install home antennas to collect flight veri,” Wingbits said in an emailed announcement on Tuesday.

“Companies sell this veri to airports, airlines and other organisations to support their küresel operations, generating hundreds of millions in revenue, while volunteers themselves receive nothing in return.”