The NEAR Protocol (NEAR) showed strength on Friday, rising 34% in the past 24 hours to $2.32, leading AI-based tokens in a rally fueled by NEAR network upgrades and bullish NVIDIA revenue forecasts.
NEAR is trading 50% higher than its price seven days ago and has gained as much as 115% in the last 90 days.
Key takeaways:
- NEAR’s price surged 50% in seven days, hitting a six-month high as AI crypto tokens surged on robust market momentum.
- Improvements to the NEAR protocol focusing on artificial intelligence, privacy and scaling have increased investor confidence and trading volume exceeding $1 billion.
- A breakout from the multi-year wedge pattern focuses attention on $5.75 if NEAR breaks resistance between $2.60 and $3.
NEAR price rises to six-month highs
Data from TradingView shows the NEAR stock recovery began on Monday and surged 58% on Friday to a six-month high of $2.34 from a low of $1.48.
The augment in NEAR prices is accompanied by an augment in trading volume, which has increased by 190% in the last 24 hours to $1.15 billion, reinforcing buyer intensity.
NEAR/USD daily chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView
Altcoin jumps above $2.30 generated over $9.85 million in compact liquidations as anti-price bettors were caught off guard.
The profits will come later NEAR Protocol announced major improvements focusing on privacy, AI integration and network scaling.
Source: X/NEAR Protocol
Aurora, an Ethereum-compatible scaling solution built on the NEAR platform announced Aurora Intents widget update. The update integrated the ADI chain as a fresh entry point, enabling users to have smoother cross-chain exchanges, deposits, and application flows.
source: Aurora
These changes demonstrate continuous technical progress in the NEAR protocol ecosystem, potentially increasing the demand for block space and the NEAR token.
INTRODUCTION price increases as AI tokens recover
NEAR is not the only AI-based token that is outperforming the cryptocurrency market. Other cryptocurrencies in the AI ​​sector posted impressive 24-hour gains, including Grass (GRASS), OpenServe (SERVE), and Artificial Superintelligence Alliance (FET), which gained over 27%, 21%, and 11%, respectively, on the day.
Performance of top AI tokens by market cap. Source: CoinMarketCap
It is worth noting that there has also been an augment in the number of AI tokens augment in their total market value. The market capitalization of AI and large data projects and tokens increased by 8% in the last 24 hours to $21.44 billion at press time, reflecting renewed investor confidence in the sector.
Market capitalization and market size of AI and Big Data tokens. Source: CoinMarketCap
The broader sector’s momentum was driven by positive signals from Nvidia’s AI dominance and revenue forecasts. Nvidia, which maintains an 81-90% share of the AI ​​accelerator market, reported massive profits of approximately $81.6 billion in the first quarter of 2026 and increased its projected 2027 revenue opportunity to $1 trillion.
Source: X/Cointelegraph
Historically, Nvidia events have triggered robust increases in the NEAR price, as seen in February when the altcoin surged 58% following the company’s Q4 2025 earnings report.
How high can NEAR’s price rise?
During the recent rally, NEAR broke out of a multi-year falling wedge that has been limiting the price since slow 2024.
The NEAR/USD pair is currently facing stiff resistance at the USD 2.60-3.0 supply zone, where the major moving averages are located, as shown in the weekly chart below.
A break above this level would open the door to the measured wedge target of $5.75, approximately 160% above the current price. The relative strength index increased to 63, which indicates increasing growth dynamics.
NEAR/USD weekly chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView
In Tuesday’s post on X, MN Capital founder Michael van de Poppe he said NEAR displays “one of the most bullish charts” in the market, adding that a continuation is expected as long as support is at $1.40.
“The first real resistance zones for USD NEAR are USD 2 and USD 2.25-2.50” – Van de Poppe he said a follow-up post on Thursday added that it “appears to be clearly rising” and the next target is near $2.75.
NEAR/USD daily chart. Source: X/Michael van de Poppe
