2026 Robot Race Track Practice: Who's Building the Road, Who's Mining, Who's Creating the System?

The three most representative projects: peaq, PrismaX, and OpenMind. They each occupy a different niche within the robotics economy.

In the 2026 crypto narrative, the integration of AI with physical infrastructure—DePIN—is becoming a new battleground. The market is no longer satisfied with mere hype concepts but is beginning to seek practical application scenarios.

This article selects the three hottest and most representative projects in the current track: peaq, PrismaX, and OpenMind. They each occupy a different niche within the robotics economy. We will set aside marketing rhetoric and analyze their current status and potential through actual data and case studies.

TL;DR

• peaq ($PEAQ): Focuses on network infrastructure and asset tokenization. The core highlight is “Real Yield,” with automated farms within its ecosystem distributing cash flow to NFT holders. Current market cap is about $35 million, viewed by the market as an undervalued infrastructure asset.
• PrismaX: Focuses on AI training data and human-machine collaboration. Its core highlights include a $11 million backing led by a16z and an airdrop expectation of “earning points by remotely controlling robots.” It addresses the scarcity of “physical world interaction data” for robots.
• OpenMind ($ROBO): Focuses on operating systems and application distribution. Its core narrative is “Android system for robots” and the controversy over its high valuation with a $400 million FDV. It aims to establish a unified robot app store standard.

1. @peaq : A Layer-1 Network That Lets Machines Make Money ============================

Positioning: A Layer-1 blockchain designed specifically for the machine economy. Core logic: Machines are not just tools but economic entities capable of owning wallets, signing transactions, and earning income. This is akin to turning every device into an autonomous earning agent.

Practical Case 1: Tokenized “Robot Farm”

While most DePIN projects are still selling nodes, peaq has already demonstrated a real cash-flow-generating example.

By the end of 2025, a project within the peaq ecosystem launched the world’s first tokenized robot farm (Robo-farm) in Hong Kong, using automation robots to grow hydroponic vegetables. Its operation logic is straightforward:

1. Users purchase NFTs representing farm shares.
2. Farm robots work, planting and selling vegetables.
3. Income from sales (real-world fiat revenue) is converted into stablecoins.
4. Profits are directly distributed on-chain to NFT holders.

Based on on-chain data and community feedback, by the end of January 2026, the farm completed its first profit distribution:

• Distribution amount: a large holder reported approximately 3,820 USDT
• Annualized yield (APY): early participants estimated around 18%

This “profit from selling vegetables without relying on token inflation” model offers a strong reassurance for current crypto investors seeking stability and low risk. RWA (Real World Assets) implementation here is a significant positive signal.

Practical Case 2: Partnerships and Industrial-Grade Validation

peaq has partnered with several industry giants:

• Bosch: Focused on IoT sensors and decentralized identity (peaq ID), testing devices that automatically record data on-chain; future possibility of appliances or industrial equipment coming with “wallets” built-in.
• Mastercard: Exploring payment gateway integration, connecting traditional fiat systems with peaq’s machine wallets (e.g., EV charging payments via credit card settled through peaq).
• Airbus: Conducted supply chain tracking tests.

These collaborations are currently more proof-of-concept (PoC) rather than large-scale commercial revenue, but they demonstrate peaq’s technical standards can meet industrial-grade security requirements—something other projects cannot match.

Fundamentals and Market Performance (as of 2026-02-15)

• Current price: ~$0.019
• Circulating Market Cap (MC): ~$34.25 million
• Fully Diluted Valuation (FDV): ~$78 million
• Ecosystem scale: Over 50-60 DePIN applications either running or in development; connected to over 2 million to 5.2 million physical devices, robots, and sensors. Industry coverage spans 21-22 sectors, including mobility (EV charging, navigation), energy, telecom, agriculture, and smart cities.
• Risks: As a Layer-1, the token is mainly used for gas and staking; ecosystem application explosion is needed to support token price. Total supply is large (~4.3 billion), which may lead to inflationary pressures.

peaq’s advantage lies in its operational closed loop with industrial backing. Its FDV is below $100 million, making it relatively undervalued compared to other AI infrastructure projects—suitable for conservative investors bullish on infrastructure.

2. @PrismaXai : Data Goldmine Backed by a16z ============================

Positioning: An AI robot data layer based on human-in-the-loop reinforcement learning (RLHF). Core logic: Making robots smarter requires vast amounts of data. PrismaX enables ordinary people to remotely control robots to complete tasks, generating high-quality training data and incentivizing users. This addresses the “last mile” problem of AI models—bridging digital intelligence and physical intelligence.

Practical Case: Teleoperation

PrismaX has built a platform allowing users to remotely control real robotic arms (e.g., lab equipment) via a web interface:

• Users operate robotic arms to perform actions (e.g., moving objects).
• The system records operation data.
• Data is sold to robot companies for AI training.
• Users earn points, which can be exchanged for tokens in the future.

This “Play-to-Train” mode differs from traditional “compute mining,” requiring users to perform real labor, making the data more valuable and creating a data flywheel: more users → more data → better models → more efficient operations → more users.

Fundamentals and Market Performance (as of 2026-02-15)

• Funding background: Seed round of $11 million led by top VC a16z, with Virtuals Protocol participating.
• Current stage: Points system and airdrop anticipation; users can earn points through daily sign-ins, whitepaper quizzes, and paid training ($99).
• Ecosystem scale: Over 500 remote operation participants worldwide have completed remote robotic arm operations; two full systems (Unitech Walker “Tommy” and “Bill”) are online, allowing direct user interaction.
• Risks: Currently, many “scam studios” are farming points. If the project cannot effectively filter high-quality training data, these points will become worthless, leading to sharp sell-offs during airdrop realization. The industry still debates whether remote operation data can truly train commercial-grade robots.

PrismaX’s core appeal is its endorsement by a16z plus the unique “data flywheel” mechanism, enabling participation at zero cost and targeting the most scarce resource in robot training. With a16z backing and its unique approach, it presents an early alpha opportunity.

3. @openmind_agi ： The Android System for Robots ==========================

Positioning: A universal operating system (OS) and app store for robots. Core logic: Solving hardware fragmentation issues by enabling developers to write code once and run it across different brands of robots (e.g., Unitree, Fourier), similar to Android in smartphones.

Practical Case: App Store Prototype

OpenMind has launched an app store and recently announced partnerships with 10 robotics companies, mainly top Chinese and US manufacturers, such as:

• Unitree: Leader in quadruped robots.
• Fourier: Focused on humanoid robots.
• UBTECH: The first listed humanoid robot company.
• Deep Robotics: Industrial quadruped robots.

Details: https://x.com/openmind_agi/status/2015671520899817620?s=20

According to multiple official reports from late January and early February 2026, the OpenMind robot app store initially includes five real-time applications, focusing on areas such as: autonomous mobility, social interaction, privacy protection, education, and skill training.

Although the number of hardware partners is still limited, it proves that its “cross-hardware operation” technology is feasible.

Fundamentals and Market Performance (as of 2026-02-15)

• Latest funding round: Participated by top institutions like Pantera Capital and Sequoia China.
• Previous valuation: About $200 million.
• Kaito Launchpad pre-sale valuation: $400 million FDV (double premium).
• Ecosystem scale: Over 5 applications in the app store (as of end January); over 10 hardware partners; more than 1,000 developers globally have joined the ecosystem.
• Risk analysis: High valuation with low liquidity: $400 million FDV at launch is high, risking secondary market pressure and early VC lock-up. Big tech competition: Traditional robot manufacturers (like Tesla Optimus) prefer closed systems (like Apple iOS). Whether OpenMind’s open-source Android model can survive among giants depends on its ability to attract enough mid-tier manufacturers.

OpenMind is currently in a “small entry, broad compatibility, high ceiling” strategic phase. While application numbers are still in early stages, it has already covered 10 hardware vendors and built a technical base with thousands of developers. Its real potential lies in providing a unified cognitive layer for global hardware and solving the hardest data problems in AI training through decentralized networks. A future where robots can update skills like smartphones and share knowledge across machines is beginning to take shape through this app store.

Comparative Analysis

To better understand the differences among these three projects, we compare them across core dimensions:

By 2026, decentralized “embodied intelligence” applications are no longer just concepts but real. The three projects analyzed here represent the most prominent niches in this emerging track—network layer, data layer, and system layer.

Imagine a scene at the end of 2026: a robot on an automated farm working efficiently. Its operation depends on three supporting layers:

① Data support (PrismaX): How does it learn “how to farm”? Through PrismaX’s remote operators teaching it. Data from 1,000 global teleoperators enables the AI model to learn complete agricultural operation logic.

② System support (OpenMind): What brand is this robot? How does it compete with others? It runs on OpenMind OS, which can download “agriculture optimization apps” from the app store, competing on the same system.

③ Network support (peaq): How are the earnings distributed? The USDT from farm sales of hydroponic vegetables is automatically settled via peaq’s smart contracts and distributed according to NFT shares.

These three layers are indispensable. Without PrismaX’s data, the robot cannot become smarter; without OpenMind’s system, applications cannot be deployed cross-platform; without peaq’s incentives, participants lack motivation to sustain the cycle.

Conversely, when these three layers work together, they form a positive feedback loop—more participants → higher data quality → better applications → higher economic incentives → more participants. This is the core value of Web3 combined with the physical world.

The opportunity in the robotics track in 2026 is not about which project will be the “winner,” but how these three layers collaborate to push embodied intelligence from concept to large-scale application.