NEAR Protocol has officially launched a new staking feature that enables users to pay for confidential artificial intelligence inference and always-on agents. The novel approach lets NEAR holders stake tokens without needing a credit card, cloud account, or a custodian to manage credentials, marking a significant step toward privacy-first blockchain applications.
Simultaneously, asset manager Bitwise released its latest Staking Report, highlighting NEAR’s growing revenue, stable staking activity despite halved inflation, and increasing momentum in NEAR Intents. The report frames the network as a standout performer amid mixed crypto-market signals, with steady staking metrics and the rise of confidential execution potentially drawing more institutional interest.
The AI staking launch has already generated strong community engagement, with the official announcement tweet seeing high interaction. While immediate trading data remains subdued—possibly as the market digests the news—the combination of user-friendly, non‑custodial staking and positive independent research may bolster NEAR’s ecosystem and attract both developers and investors seeking privacy-oriented AI capabilities.
