2026-04-10 –, Limmat (Y15-G-60)
Infrastructure doesn't change overnight. While the crypto world moves in weeks, the rollout of critical utility layers—telecom towers, energy grids, and high-precision positioning networks—is measured in years. In this panel, Daniel Ammann (Co-Founder of u-blox and onocoy) joins leading VCs and founders to discuss the "DePIN Reality Check." We’ll move past the speculative hype to explore why token incentives are the only way to bootstrap global hardware grids, why enterprise clients are notoriously difficult to migrate, and why 2026 marks the year DePIN transitions from a technical experiment to essential industrial infrastructure.
This panel deep-dives into the friction between Web3 speed and Web2 reliability. Topics include:
Founder Perspective: Daniel’s journey from co-founding u-blox (Web2) to onocoy (Web3)—what has changed and what never will.
The Hype Cycle: Why DePIN is currently "unfamous" compared to AI or Stablecoin, and why that’s a competitive advantage for builders.
The Revenue Struggle: The challenge of "sticky" infrastructure and how to convince a Fortune 500 company to trust a community-owned provider.
Tokenomics vs. CAPEX: Using incentives to fund global hardware without the traditional venture capital "burn."
Mihai builds and invests in emerging technologies. Previously, he was Director of Digital Asset Research at Messari, founded two tech ventures, and worked in AI at UBS and Swiss Re in Zurich, Switzerland.
Mihai's background is in Information Technology and Mathematics. He holds a PhD in Information Systems from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, ETH Zurich.
Building at the intersection of energy markets and onchain infrastructure at Powerledger.
Always to be found where TradFi meets DeFi, especially on Solana and Ethereum.
Personal interest in prediction markets for energy: what happens when real-world commodity flows get a price discovery layer that actually clears in real time?
Entrepreneur with a demonstrated history of shaping the satellite navigation industry, now combining GPS with Blockchain in the DePIN project onocoy.
Experienced in International Business, BD, R&D, General management, Organization, Strategy, Leadership, M&A, Exits
Co-founded u-blox (IPO 2007, Unicorn status) and lead the GPS/GNSS business unit until 2021.
Started dammven (Consulting in GPS/GNSS) 2021 and acting as managing director.
Initiated onocoy (Web3 DePIN for High precision GPS/GNSS) and acting as president, thought leader and chief architect,
Electronics Engineer from ETH Zurich, a passionate Tech-geek, a Jazz nerd, husband and father
