Storage sits at the intersection of DePIN and Web3's older decentralized file layers. Filecoin and Arweave pioneered proof-based storage incentives; newer DePIN projects emphasize hot storage, CDN-like delivery, and enterprise SLAs rather than cold archival alone.
Economic attacks plague storage networks: providers can fake capacity or disappear after collecting upfront rewards. Robust designs combine collateral slashing, spot retrieval challenges, and reputation that gates higher-paying jobs.
When evaluating storage DePIN, test retrieval latency yourself, read redundancy assumptions, and check whether demand is Web3-native (NFT media) or traditional (video, backups). The margin structure differs sharply between those segments.