The Silencio network is employing over 35,000 smartphones as noise sensors in collaboration with the Peaq Network blockchain ecosystem to tackle global noise pollution issues. This integration was announced on September 19 and signals Silencio's expansion of its noise sensor devices. These sensors span 176 countries and are Projected to operate on 1 million devices by 2024.
Silencio describes its endeavor as "Web3 Citizen Science," where community members are rewarded with tokens for contributing "hyperlocal" noise pollution data. The founders of Silencio, brothers Thomas and Theo Messerer, shared their motivations for tokenizing sound data. Thomas explained that the The idea was conceived over 20 years ago. Growing up with hearing-impaired parents made them highly sensitive to noise pollution in various locations, ultimately leading to the deployment of the Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Network (DePIN) across Europe. They are fascinated by the concept of crowdsourcing geographical data in a decentralized manner. Their vision is to democratize valuable data and improve lives,acknowledging the immense potential of the Web3 community to address real-world problems on a scale unattainable with Web2 technologies.
Theo mentioned that Silencio has collected more than 1 billion data points from over 35,000 devices within the Silencio network. Notably, major contributions have come from Europe, North America, and Southeast Asia. Silencio's Explorer Map reveals variations in average noise levels across countries, with Urban areas typically being noisier than rural ones and developing countries facing more significant noise pollution issues. Theo emphasized that they are still in the early stages of data collection, with smartphone technology deployment commencing in February. Due to the current limitations in data density and diversity , it's too early to provide detailed noise level assessments.
Furthermore, hearing loss is one of the most prevalent health problems globally, as reported by the World Health Organization. The Messerer brothers' personal experiences and aspirations for improving noise pollution data have the potential to contribute significantly to addressing this issue and enhancing the quality of life for many.
Peaq co-founder Till Wendler emphasized that “noise pollution costs the world trillions of dollars in GDP every year” and that citizen science using Web3 mechanisms and “crowdsourced data is critical to solving this crisis.” important".
“Its data will also enable businesses such as hotels, restaurants and real estate companies to make more informed decisions when selecting locations.”
When asked about how user privacy is taken into consideration, Theo said there are a series of "measures" in place to protect users.
"We measure the decibel level, not the actual audio content. The decibel level measures the intensity of the sound," he clarified. "They are logarithmic and can describe sound levels ranging from barely perceptible to loud and potentially harmful noise levels."
Given that location is inherently project-related, he said users can opt-in to location tracking with "explicit" consent. Additionally, all data collected from users in a specific location is anonymized and encrypted within the app.
Silencio's solution to combat noise pollution is one of many new initiatives in the Web3 space, working with physical objects such as smartphones, charging stations or vehicles to increase efficiency and build bridges to the rapidly expanding digital world.
