NEAR Launches Near.com Super App Combining Crypto Wallet And AI Tools

NEAR Protocol has launched Near.com, a consumer crypto app that lets users swap assets across more than 35 blockchain networks, trade peer-to-peer, and manage digital assets through AI-assisted tools, all from a single account.

The San Francisco-based project, led by co-founder Illia Polosukhin, is positioning Near.com at the intersection of crypto infrastructure and artificial intelligence. Polosukhin is notable in both fields: he was one of the co-authors of the 2017 paper that introduced the transformer architecture, the model design underpinning systems like ChatGPT and most modern large language models.

What Is Near.com And What Does It Actually Do?

Near.com is designed to remove the friction that has historically made crypto difficult for everyday users. Managing assets across multiple blockchains typically requires separate wallets, careful handling of private keys, and manual management of gas fees, the small charges paid to process transactions on a network.

Near.com consolidates that experience into one interface. 

"You don't need to think about blockchains. You don't need to think about gas, keys," Polosukhin said during the launch presentation. "You just use it as your main wallet."

The app supports a broad range of digital assets, including Bitcoin, stablecoins, NFTs, and other tokens. Users can swap assets across more than 35 networks at speeds the project says are comparable to centralized exchanges, but without requiring an account or identity verification. That permissionless structure is a key distinction from platforms like Coinbase or Binance, where users must register and comply with identity checks before trading.

How The Swapping And Trading Features Work

Market makers compete to fill orders across the supported networks, with the app designed to surface the best available rate within seconds. For peer-to-peer trades, users can create a deal, set their own terms, and share a link. Settlement is handled by smart contracts, meaning neither side needs to trust the other directly. The contract enforces the agreed terms automatically.

Why NEAR Is Betting On AI And Crypto Converging

The broader thesis behind Near.com goes beyond wallet functionality. NEAR is making a deliberate bet that AI agents, software programs capable of completing tasks like booking travel, managing communications, or executing purchases, will need a financial layer to operate effectively.

"We are entering the world where AI is becoming our interface to compute," Polosukhin said during the presentation.

As AI systems become more capable and begin interacting with each other autonomously, they effectively become what Polosukhin describes as "economic actors." Programs that negotiate, coordinate, and pay for services need infrastructure that can handle programmable payments, automated settlement, and global transfers without relying on traditional financial intermediaries. Blockchain networks are built to do exactly that.

Near.com is designed to function as that layer, serving both individual users and AI-driven activity running in the background.

The AI-Assisted Financial Management Layer

Within the app, AI agents surface insights, flag risks, and highlight relevant financial tools based on a user's activity. Critically, the user approves every action before it executes. The design keeps human oversight in place while using AI to reduce the cognitive load of managing assets across a fragmented ecosystem.

What Is Confidential Mode And Why Does It Matter?

One of the more technically significant features in Near.com is what the project calls confidential mode. By default, blockchain transactions are publicly visible. Anyone can view wallet balances and transaction history on a block explorer. That transparency is a core feature of public blockchains, but it creates a practical problem for everyday use.

"Everything you do onchain is transparent," Polosukhin said. "That's not realistic for usual use cases, for day-to-day usage."

Confidential mode keeps balances, transfers, and trading activity private within the network's security framework. NEAR says this makes the wallet more suitable for individuals, businesses, and AI agents that need to transact without exposing sensitive financial data or revealing trading strategy to competitors.

Resources 

Near Protocol on X: Posts on Feb. 23

Near(.)com website: General info

CoinDesk report: NEAR Launches Near.com super app, touting AI capabilities and confidential transactions