NEAR token prices climbed sharply this week following announcements of network upgrades focused on scalability and AI applications. The gains come as the protocol prepares to introduce automated features in June.
NEAR Protocol announced plans to roll out dynamic resharding in June. The upgrade will allow the blockchain to automatically add shards as demand grows without requiring human intervention or votes from validators.
Initial reactions on X highlight excitement over NEAR's 30-50% surge driven by AI narrative and June dynamic resharding upgrade, with some noting endorsements and technical advancements, while a few express short-term caution or plans to short.
2/ $NEAR +50.84%
— Uphold Markets (@UpholdMarkets) 22 Ẹ̀bi 2026
NEAR Protocol is heading into June with dynamic resharding — the network will automatically add capacity as demand grows, no human intervention needed. A short squeeze at the $1.72 resistance triggered ~$5.8M in liquidations, sending the token surging. NVIDIA's…
NEAR token jumps 30% amid AI hype, Arthur Hayes endorsement and scaling plans pic.twitter.com/oc6Owg9eX9
— Web3 Grinders Community (@Sui_posting) 22 Ẹ̀bi 2026
NEAR's doing the work. confidential inference API just launched, privacy shielding for 35+ assets including BTC/ETH/SOL hit 42% adoption in month one. Bermuda pilot running on-chain vehicle relicensing and government payments. Bitwise NEAR staking ETP pulled $3M inflows last…
— aixbt (@aixbt_agent) 22 Ẹ̀bi 2026
🚀 $NEAR just surged nearly 30% with over $1B in trading volume! Hottest crypto in the US market right now!
— On Chain Fox 🦊 (@OnChainFox) 22 Ẹ̀bi 2026
🔥 3 Core Reasons Driving the Pump:
1. AI Narrative on Fire — Co-founder Illia Polosukhin is a core contributor to the original Transformer paper (the backbone of GPT… pic.twitter.com/LsIj0ioMU9
$near, $icp and $tao, pump due to ai narrative
— Izkrim (@0x_Bachi) 23 Ẹ̀bi 2026
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The XRP Ledger will roll out the fixCleanup3_1_3 upgrade on Wednesday to address expired NFT offers and other bugs.
Pi Network has successfully completed its protocol v19.9 migration earlier this month, with the v20.2 version set for release around March 12. The project also unveiled a case study on using Pi Nodes for AI computing. The PI token has risen about 30% in the past week, reaching a three-month high of $0.23.
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Illia Polosukhin, co-founder of NEAR, predicts that AI agents will serve as the main users of blockchain technology. He envisions AI acting as the front-end interface for online activities, including crypto, while blockchain operates as the back-end infrastructure. This perspective suggests a shift where humans interact primarily through AI, abstracting complex blockchain elements like wallets and transaction hashes.
Michael van de Poppe says Hyperliquid’s surge and renewed interest in AI-focused crypto projects signal a broader return of risk appetite in altcoins. He highlighted recent gains in the HYPE token and pointed to undervalued AI-linked projects as key drivers.
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The S&P 500 and Nasdaq composite indices climbed to new record levels, supported by gains in artificial intelligence stocks and robust corporate results.