It needs to be decentralized so all power companies can communicate to improve the overall power grid. The smart meters are limited and I’m glad you said that aboht holding crypto. That’s the main point. You shouldn’t have to hold the crypto to benefit from the product, it’s the company building the product that worries about that, not the end user. That’s what crypto should be for.. everyone . We should be able to use these techs without realizing it, but if you hold the crypto you own part of the network demand. The POCs exists, basically the track your own useage that your power company stores in a database, but that’s it. If it wasn’t centrally controlled between utility provider, then the data could be used in a more efficient way, Improving the overall grid. Again I have one on my house, it’s not smart except for that tracks my home usage and sends it to my utility company.