What makes Near (NEAR) special?

Welcome to the cryptohunt jam where we spend one minute a day to explain crypto. In plain english.

Today, let’s talk about NEAR.

The Near protocol is a blockchain that allows developers to build products and services on top of it, similar to how they might use Amazon's or Google's servers to create a website.

Near brands itself as a community as well as a platform, bringing together community members who maintain the network and developers who use it to build. It's a little bit like a community garden - there is something to do for everyone.

But besides the technical advantages of high speed and lower transaction costs than it's biggest competitor Ethereum, Near also wants to solve other problems a real-world user might not want to deal with.

First, it gets rid of those cryptic wallet addresses nobody can remember and replaces them with something much more useful. Those Near addresses look very similar to websites addresses, for example jonsmith.near. That makes them easy to remember and share. You might remember: Celo is another blockchain with the same idea, but they use phone numbers or emails instead.

Second, Near makes a deliberate effort to be a green blockchain and it is carbon neutral certified. Their approach is two-fold: They constantly look at their software to eliminate any wasteful code, and they offset carbon emissions by donating to the planting of trees.

And that is Near, another example of a blockchain that is trying to solve not only technical challenges, but also the human side of being able to use it, and use it responsibly.

Disclaimer: This podcast references our opinion and is for information purposes only. It is not intended to be investment advice. Do your own research and seek a duly licensed professional for investment advice.