NEAR Protocol jumped 10.43% on Monday morning to $2.35 as investors moved into decentralized AI projects after the U.S. placed restrictions on Anthropic’s most advanced models.
The rally comes amid renewed interest in blockchain networks positioning themselves as infrastructure for AI agents and open AI ecosystems.
With growing concerns about access limits and centralized control, traders are increasingly supporting projects that offer decentralized options.
NEAR Protocol Benefits From Growing AI Sovereignty Debate
A key turning point came on June 13 when Anthropic said it would suspend access to its Fable 5 and Mythos 5 models for foreign nationals, following a U.S. export-control order. This rule affects people both inside and outside the U.S., including foreign-national employees of Anthropic.
NEAR was one of the first blockchain projects to respond. “If access can be taken away at an instant, it was never truly yours,” the protocol wrote on X. The team said the future of AI requires open networks, open infrastructure, and user-owned agents rather than systems that rely on centralized providers.
Co-founder Illia Polosukhin reinforced the message, stating that a resilient agentic economy cannot be built on infrastructure that requires users to trust a single provider.
This message has caught investors’ attention. Data shows that about $2.87 billion went into AI-related cryptocurrencies in the past week. Tokens like Bittensor, Render, Internet Computer, Venice, and Worldcoin all saw gains over the weekend as traders shifted toward projects focused on decentralized AI infrastructure.
NEAR Protocol has put itself at the center of this trend with projects focused on AI agents, chain abstraction, and user-owned AI systems.
Beyond the narrative, the network is seeing increased activity. NEAR Intents is now bringing in about $34.23 million in annualized fees, close to $34.24 million in total protocol revenue. Nearly $2.75 million in fees came in over the last 30 days. The protocol uses these fees for NEAR buybacks, which adds more demand for the token.
NEAR Price Approaches Key Breakout Zone
The recent rally has strengthened NEAR’s short-term technical outlook. Shorter-term moving averages have turned bullish, with the 50-day EMA at about $2.02 now below the current price. Still, there are bigger resistance levels ahead, like the 100-day EMA near $2.59, the 200-day SMA around $3.00, and the 200-day EMA near $3.37. The NEAR token has risen 51.88% over the past month and almost 14% over the past week.
Given this setup, analysts are discussing whether this move could be the start of a bigger trend reversal.
Crypto analyst TakeProfitNow thinks NEAR is testing an important demand zone as the long-term downtrend line weakens. The analyst says that if the Near Protocol price breaks out, it could face resistance between $3 and $4 and possibly move toward $8. In the long run, there could even be a retest of the 2022 highs near $20 if the market stays strong.
Altcoin Sherpa is also positive but more careful. The trader recently called NEAR “a high time frame bottom in the making” and noted that moving averages on lower timeframes look bullish. Still, he warned that a bigger recovery could take longer than many investors hope.
At the moment, the AI sovereignty story has given the token new momentum. Whether this becomes a lasting trend will depend on whether investors continue to choose decentralized AI infrastructure over centralized options and whether the NEAR Protocol token can turn this attention into a clear breakout above long-term resistance.
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