Pi Network continues to keep protocol work at the center of its April update cycle.
In a Pi Day 2026 post, the team said that mainnet and Testnet2 migrated to v19.6 on February 15th, v19.9 on March 1st, and v20.2 on March 13th. Pi said these upgrades are part of the foundation of smart contract functionality across the network.
This work moved forward again on April 17th, when Pi Network introduced subscription smart contract functionality to Testnet. The team said the feature is aimed at supporting regular blockchain-based services and business models. Pi described the release as part of its efforts to build “real, regular, utility-driven” use cases within its ecosystem.
PiRC2 opens features to technical review
Alongside the testnet feature, Pi Network has released Pi’s second request for comment, PiRC2. According to the project, this document will expose the subscription smart contract to technical review and community feedback before mainnet deployment. Pi said this process gives developers and reviewers the opportunity to check the design, identify edge cases, and suggest changes.
Pi said the contract is structured to allow users to approve defined budgets without having to re-sign each billing event. The project added that approved funds will remain in the wallet until the claim is processed. Pai also said that an external auditing service is reviewing smart contracts. This setting refers to payment models for subscriptions, commerce, and other recurring on-chain actions.
Additionally, Pi Network is also facing an upcoming node deadline. A PiCoreTeam notice seen by Coindar states that mainnet nodes must upgrade to Protocol 22 by April 27 to “maintain connectivity to the network.” As Pi continues to add smart contract-related tools, this deadline focuses on infrastructure readiness.
In addition to network updates, Pi Network is listed as a sponsor of Consensus 2026 in Miami. Chengdiao Fan will be speaking in a session titled “Aligning Web3, AI, and Blockchain for Utility,” and Nicolas Kokkalis will be on the panel “How to prove you’re human in an AI world (without exposing yourself).” On the event page, both sessions are structured around utility, identity, and online authentic participation.
PI prices remain under pressure in the face of new catalyst
Despite new development activities, PI has not received a strong response from the market. CoinGecko showed a PI (PI) of $0.1687 on April 23, with a 24-hour trading volume of approximately $11.17 million, a market capitalization of approximately $1.73 billion, and is ranked 49th on the site. Over the past 7 days, the token has fallen by 1.0%.
The token also remains well below its previous peak. According to CoinGecko data, PI reached an all-time high of $2.99 on February 26, 2025, and is currently trading 94.4% below that level.
For now, traders seem to be focused on Protocol 22’s deadline, testnet progress, and whether the emergence of Consensus 2026 can give the project new momentum.
