TADA: Proof of the Successful DePIN Model — MVL DePIN Ecosystem (Part 2)

In today’s landscape, various DePIN projects are emerging across diverse industries, with many still in their early stages, focused on attracting initial users through token incentives. As the DePIN sector grows at a rapid pace, the success achieved by MVL and TADA in becoming widely adopted public services has garnered significant attention within the global crypto community.

Back in late 2018, the TADA ride-hailing service was launched, grounded in blockchain philosophy and technology that prioritizes transparent incentives and community-driven decision-making. TADA’s initial market strategy under “value-sharing mobility”, including its zero-commission model and MVL incentives, quickly gained traction among drivers. This approach posed a formidable challenge to the established norms of the mobility market, dominated by monopolistic platform companies.

Fast forward six years, and MVL’s TADA ride-hailing service has navigated numerous obstacles to establish itself as a prominent mobility provider in Southeast Asia. Along the way, the decentralized physical infrastructure network (DePIN), facilitated by robust MVL incentives and a strong driver network, played a pivotal role in TADA’s initial growth.

In this blog, we delve into the compelling growth journey and history of MVL and TADA, topics that have piqued the curiosity of many.

TADA’s Growth History

TADA’s growth story over the past six years involves numerous challenges and the efforts of local team members to overcome them, making it difficult to simplify into a few points. Notably, after successfully entering initial markets in 2019, the outbreak of COVID-19 presented significant hurdles for MVL and TADA’s expansion efforts. Consequently, TADA had to strategically prioritize certain countries for service growth amidst the global pandemic’s constraints.

From the perspective of MVL’s blockchain, TADA’s journey over these six years can be segmented into three distinct stages:

1. Initial Market Development Stage: This phase focused on attracting crypto-friendly drivers in Singapore, establishing a foothold in a supportive regulatory environment and building initial user trust.
2. Growth Stage: Here, TADA concentrated on enhancing service applications based on feedback from its driver community. This iterative improvement process aimed to refine user experience and operational efficiency.
3. Stable Stage: During this phase, TADA demonstrated sustainability and scalability by expanding its service offerings further across Southeast Asia. This stage highlighted TADA’s ability to adapt to diverse markets while maintaining service quality and reliability.

In this blog series, we will delve into detailed explanations of TADA’s growth journey at each of these pivotal stages, offering insights into the challenges faced and the strategies employed to achieve success

Initial Stage (2019–2020): MVL Token Incentives and Community Building

Since TADA’s launch in Singapore in 2018, it entered the market with innovative strategies like Zero-Commission and MVL Incentives. These approaches resonated strongly with drivers who were grappling with high commission rates ranging from 20% to 30% imposed by monopolistic companies. As a result, many drivers started flocking to TADA. The introduction of MVL incentives further encouraged their active participation, fostering the growth of a robust driver community.

At that time, TADA drivers across different countries had the opportunity to earn MVL points based on their consistent driving and customer service ratings, which they could optionally convert into MVL tokens. These MVL incentives played a crucial role in addressing TADA’s driver supply issues and enhancing overall service quality.

However, many drivers were initially unfamiliar with cryptocurrency and faced challenges using blockchain wallets. Despite this, driver communities actively engaged in sharing questions and answers about managing MVL tokens. This collaborative effort not only helped drivers overcome technical hurdles but also fostered strong bonds among them, creating a core support base for TADA. Particularly during the COVID-19 lockdowns, when the ride-hailing service faced significant stagnation, driver communities were more active than ever, sharing short-term job opportunities and encouraging each other.

In summary, by securing loyal drivers through MVL incentives, TADA was able to partially solve the initial driver supply issue. Additionally, driven by enthusiastic drivers’ recommendations, the number of drivers tripled within the first year of launch. While the platform transitioned to offering mission-based cash incentives instead of tokens since late 2022, over 20,000 drivers in Singapore alone continue to hold MVL tokens.

Growth Stage (2021–2022): Service Quality Improvement for Mass Adoption

TADA entered the traditional mobility market with a distinctive strategy centered around cultivating a robust driver community, which soon became its strongest supporters and advisors.

From the outset, ongoing and detailed discussions about the service took place within this driver community. These drivers not only provided valuable feedback but also contributed extensive mobility data through their continuous operations. Leveraging this wealth of data and feedback, TADA embarked on a full-scale service quality improvement, enhancing key aspects such as matching accuracy, reducing waiting times, navigation, and price flexibility to meet public expectations.

As a result, users (riders) experienced noticeable improvements in their ride-hailing experiences with TADA. Despite offering a similar quality of service as existing ones, TADA’s more affordable fare structure made it a service anyone could confidently recommend. This positive response among local riders played a significant role in TADA’s growth as a public service.

While focusing on enhancing service quality, MVL also ventured into experimental initiatives to integrate cryptocurrency usage within TADA. One notable endeavor involved conducting field tests in Cambodia, where general passengers unfamiliar with cryptocurrency participated. These tests provided valuable insights for MVL’s future strategies aimed at mass crypto adoption.

Some interesting cases include testing whether incentives using more well-known cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin (BTCB) and Tezos (XTZ) could be attractive to general passengers. Consequently, several field campaigns such as “Ride TADA and Earn Bitcoin,” “Invite a Friend to TADA and Earn Bitcoin,” and “Ride TADA and Earn Tezos” were conducted. However, contrary to expectations, these campaigns did not receive significant uptake. Survey results highlighted that the inconvenient user interface and user experience for cryptocurrency usage posed significant barriers. Moreover, convincing individuals who had never used cryptocurrency for investment to purchase crypto solely for ride-hailing purposes proved to be a challenging proposition.

These trials provided significant experience to the MVL blockchain team, leading to substantial improvements in MVL blockchain services. Firstly, a separate Clutch Wallet was developed to easily connect services and accounts between TADA and MVL wallets. A point-to-token exchange mechanism was introduced to facilitate easy transfer of assets between the two applications, and indirect payment methods such as purchasing TADA coupons with MVL tokens were adopted to comply with regulations.

Moreover, to promote crypto mass adoption in the mobility sector, MVL is considering providing various routes for existing cryptocurrency users to easily use TADA services rather than encouraging general passengers to use cryptocurrency.

Stable Stage (2023-Present): TADA as a Public Service

Having evolved through DePIN strategies, TADA has matured into a public service that consistently generates revenue and profits. This indicates that the majority of TADA users today are members of the general public who may not be familiar with cryptocurrency.

In response to this evolving user base, there is a need to adjust the existing Token Incentive strategy to better align with public demand. Consequently, MVL incentives are undergoing restructuring. The previous system, which distributed small amounts of MVL tokens to many drivers, has been replaced with a mission-based incentive model aimed at fostering ecosystem growth. For example, a driver mission program now incentivizes increased activity during busy Friday nights.

Furthermore, to cater to user convenience, drivers now have the option to choose cash incentives instead of token incentives. This adjustment reflects MVL’s commitment to adapting its incentive structures to better serve its growing and diverse user base.

Furthermore, strategies aimed at distributing the value generated by the growing ecosystem to MVL token holders are actively being implemented. A portion of the revenue generated from TADA is allocated towards buying back MVL tokens, which are then distributed to holders through a circulating token economy.

Since the end of 2023, approximately $1 million worth of MVL tokens have been repurchased and distributed to holders through a staking mechanism on the MVL-Fi website. This differentiated staking program, grounded in real business activities, offers the advantage of providing a consistent and stable mechanism for sharing value.

This initiative not only enhances the value proposition for MVL token holders but also reinforces the sustainability and attractiveness of the MVL ecosystem.

Future: Towards Crypto Mass Adoption with Payment and DePIN

Today, TADA has established itself as a regional powerhouse and the second-largest player in the region. With over 2.5 million riders and 250,000 drivers, TADA is expected to reach around $1 billion in trip payments within this year. Building on TADA’s success, MVL’s mobility ecosystem is expanding into new areas, including ONiON Mobility electric vehicles and energy infrastructure.

As TADA continues to expand under the DePIN narrative, current crypto projects are closely monitoring MVL and TADA’s future blockchain initiatives with great interest.

Moving forward, TADA aims to adopt more crypto-friendly strategies. This includes increasing its engagement with the crypto community within the TADA platform. While specific details cannot be disclosed currently, preparations are underway to facilitate various cryptocurrencies for trip payments through partnerships with payment license companies and prominent projects in the crypto industry.

Moreover, TADA plans to enhance its role as a significant provider of extensive mobility data. MVL’s current data framework encompasses diverse mobility data categories such as trips, vehicles, and energy usage. Over the past decade, MVL has developed comprehensive mobility solutions that span various services including ride-sharing, delivery, freight, and chauffeur services. Looking ahead, MVL intends to leverage its expertise in geospatial mobility information to make substantial strides in the crypto sector, particularly in areas critical for fields like data storage and artificial intelligence applications.

Furthermore, MVL is actively developing a stronger token economy to ensure that the MVL token becomes a crucial and valuable component in all upcoming processes.

In the next blog, we will delve into the structure and utilization of the vehicle and energy network within the DePIN framework. Specifically, we will introduce several concepts from the perspective of data’s significance in the financialization of vehicles, such as vehicle RWA.

Thank you.