Pi Network core team releases the complete development history from 2019 to 2025!

Pi Network’s core team released the official roadmap from 2019 to 2025 on January 3, revealing the complete journey from mobile mining to open mainnet. Key milestones include 18.5 million verified users, the launch of the Pi App, and the mainnet上线 in 2025. The core team urges users to trust official updates rather than speculation, aiming to distinguish genuine strength from hype activities.

A Gradual Strategy from Mobile Mining to Open Mainnet

When Pi Network was launched in 2019, it adopted a path vastly different from mainstream cryptocurrencies. The core team provided a low-threshold participation method—mobile mining—allowing users to join without expensive equipment or technical knowledge. This design philosophy reflects a commitment to popularizing cryptocurrency, breaking down the high barriers of projects like Bitcoin that require specialized mining hardware and technical expertise.

In 2020 and 2021, Pi Network placed great emphasis on developing its global community. Millions of users (referred to as “Pioneers”) joined the network, helping to strengthen trust graphs and validate the mobile mining model. The core team prioritized organic growth over speculative trading. This phase saw significant scale and participation increases but also drew external skepticism about the project’s authenticity, given the long period without a real mainnet上线.

As user numbers grew, the core team proposed security-focused solutions. The project implemented “Know Your Customer” (KYC) verification to ensure network integrity and minimize fraud. The slow and often criticized KYC process was deemed necessary by the official team to protect the network from bots and fake accounts.

Meanwhile, Pi Network began building its ecosystem through Pi Apps and developer programs. This initiative enabled internal testing, environment testing, and transaction simulations without exposing the network to external volatility. Pi Apps allows developers to create applications in a closed environment, laying the groundwork for a thriving ecosystem after the mainnet上线.

In 2025, Pi Network finally launched the open mainnet. The core team described this release as the result of years of gradual development rather than a one-time event. This shift marked a maturity in its operations. However, the subsequent sharp decline in token price after the mainnet上线 also revealed that market patience with this incremental approach had been exhausted.

18.5 Million Verified Users and Community-First Philosophy

An official post includes a map of Pi Network’s six-year development journey. This chart highlights many milestones, most notably reaching 18.5 million verified pioneers. This number is extremely rare in the crypto space, even surpassing the active addresses of many mainstream public chains.

Key Data of Pi Network’s Six Years

User Milestones

2019: Launch of mobile mining, first pioneers join

2020-2021: Explosive growth of the global community

2025: 18.5 million verified pioneers (via KYC)

The number of unverified users far exceeds this figure.

Technical Development Milestones

· Completion of mobile mining mechanism verification

· Full implementation of KYC system

· Establishment of Pi App developer ecosystem

· Official launch of the open mainnet in 2025

Community Engagement Indicators

· Organic growth of users across multiple countries

· Strengthening network security through trust graph mechanisms

· Attracting ecosystem builders via developer programs

However, the figure of 18.5 million verified users also raises doubts. Critics point out that verified users are not necessarily active users, let alone users who truly hold and use tokens. The sharp price drop after the mainnet上线 somewhat confirms these concerns. Many early participants may have been attracted solely by free mining rather than genuine confidence in the project’s value; once liquidity was available, they sold immediately.

Throughout its development, the core team focused on practical cases and used this to guide a phased promotion strategy. This community-first, anti-speculation philosophy makes Pi Network stand apart in the crypto world. Mainstream projects often prioritize token prices and exchange listings, whereas Pi invests most efforts into KYC verification and ecosystem building.

The timeline format allows users to clearly understand the development process without reading scattered stories. One manifestation of this is transparency. The core team attempts to address long-standing criticism of opacity regarding project progress through this approach.

Transparency War Against Fake News and Speculative Hype

Given the increasing spread of false and misleading information about Pi Network regarding price, release dates, and utility, the core team reminds users to obtain information only through official channels, whitepapers, and verified statements, rather than believing rumors. This statement reflects Pi Network’s long-standing trust crisis.

In the years leading up to the mainnet上线, numerous predictions about Pi’s price flooded the internet—from $1 to $100 or even higher. Some false reports claimed Pi was already trading on certain exchanges or that it was about to receive investment from major institutions. These fake news not only misled investors but also damaged the project’s credibility.

Throughout its development, the core team focused on practical cases and used this to guide a phased promotion strategy. This approach aims to differentiate Pi Network’s true strength from hype-driven releases. This stance became especially critical after the 2025 mainnet上线, as the sharp price decline caused heavy losses for investors who believed in high-price forecasts.

Reactions within the community vary—some are pleased with the progress, others call for expanding the ecosystem. While some users lack patience, others see this summary report as a sign of rigorous work ethic. Official progress reports help people set expectations based on recorded developments rather than internet rumors.

However, the effectiveness of this transparency war remains to be seen. After the mainnet上线, Pi’s price plummeted from nearly $3 to $0.172, a drop of over 94%. This brutal decline has led to harsh criticism of the gradualist strategy. Critics argue that overly cautious release pacing and continuous token unlocks have created enormous selling pressure, while slow ecosystem development fails to generate enough demand to absorb this pressure.

The core team urges everyone to trust official updates and avoid speculation, but in the context of market crashes, this appeal seems somewhat pale. Investors are more concerned with how to recover losses than with past achievements. Whether Pi Network can rebuild confidence through real-world applications in the future will be crucial to its survival.