NEAR.AI Master Plan: A Simple Guide

NEAR.AI wants to create advanced AI that everyone can use and own. Here’s the plan:

1. Teaching Machines to Code: AI Developer – First, they will create an AI that can learn to code.
2. Researching with AI: AI Researcher – Next, this AI will learn to do research.
3. Creating Advanced AI for Everyone – Finally, they will use this research to create powerful AI that belongs to everyone.

Promises:

• Open Source: Everything will be open for everyone to use and improve.
• Non-Profit: The NEAR Foundation, a non-profit organization, will lead this effort.
• User Ownership: The goal is for users to own their AI.

NEAR Ecosystem:

• Millions of Users: NEAR has tens of millions of users.
• Growing Developer Community: More and more AI projects are joining NEAR.
• Strong Funding: NEAR has the money needed to succeed.

NEAR’s Current Product:

• Easy-to-Use Blockchain: NEAR has a blockchain that is simple to use and develop on.
• Many Active Users: More active users than any other blockchain.

Future Vision:

• User-Owned AI: AI that works for you and keeps your data private.
• Full Customization: Users can customize their AI experience completely.
• Community and Brands: AI will help communities and brands work together and make transactions directly.

Building AI Developer:

• Started in 2017: NEAR began by trying to create an AI-driven autocomplete.
• Pivoted in 2018: They switched to building a decentralized platform.
• Progress by 2024: Now, NEAR has millions of users and many daily active users.

Challenges in Blockchain:

• Fragmentation: Products are spread across many blockchains.
• Few Developers: Less than 7,000 full-time Web3 developers.
• High Value of Web3 Code: Web3 code is valuable and costly to develop.

AI Developer’s Role:

• Efficiency Leap: Create Web3 products easily using simple language inputs.
• Open Source Development: All software, datasets, and models will be open source.
• Collaboration: Work together with other AI and Web3 projects.

Community Engagement:

• New Applications: Involve the community to create new applications.
• More Infrastructure: Need more than just blockchain, like peer-to-peer communication and private computation.
• Leveraging NEAR Ecosystem: Use NEAR’s existing token-based economy.

Benefits to NEAR Ecosystem:

• More Applications: Attract more users with new applications.
• Economic Opportunities: Create new economic opportunities and network effects.

Advancing AI:

• AI Researcher: Discover new insights by combining existing information.
• End Goal: User-Owned AGI: AI that is smarter than human experts, transforming computing.

Principles:

• Serving Users: AI must serve and be owned by individuals and communities.
• Open Source AGI: To benefit everyone, all AI and AGI must be open source and user-owned.

Conclusion:

NEAR.AI’s vision is to democratize AI, ensuring it’s open and user-owned. By engaging the community, leveraging NEAR’s robust ecosystem, and focusing on open-source development, NEAR.AI aims to transform how we interact with technology. This journey, starting with teaching machines to code and progressing towards advanced AI, promises a future where AI empowers everyone. Together, we can build a more inclusive and innovative digital world.

Updated: June 19, 2024