NEAR Intents: An Overview

NEAR Intents is an intent-focused infrastructure built on the NEAR Protocol that reduces complexity in Web3 interactions by enabling users to declare high-level goals, called intents, rather than constructing detailed transactions. This abstraction offers a clearer route for performing decentralized operations.

Overview

NEAR Intents moves away from conventional transaction-signing flows toward a model centered on declared intents. Users express desired outcomes (for instance, swapping one token for another) and avoid managing granular aspects like wallet flows, gas handling, and individual contract calls; instead, off-chain solver services interpret those declarations and produce the on-chain transactions required.

The protocol was introduced in November 2024 and was highlighted at ETHDenver 2025 as a central element of the Chain Abstraction effort to reduce friction in multichain interactions. Outcomes are specified by users or AI agents as intents, while a marketplace of solvers executes them across chains, markets, or APIs. The launch took place within a wider collaboration under the Open Agents Alliance, involving NEAR AI, Coinbase AgentKit, Eliza Labs, Aethir, Phala, Frax, Akash, and other participants.

Designed to be both permissionless and composable, the system supports integrations across diverse domains including decentralized finance (DeFi), gaming, governance, and DAOs. The framework functions as a part of the broader chain abstraction approach associated with the NEAR Protocol.

History

The NEAR Intents idea originated in 2023 as an effort to improve Web3 accessibility. The NEAR Foundation introduced the project in collaboration with the ZK-based solver marketplace Zingo Labs, initially targeting common flows such as token swaps and NFT acquisitions by encapsulating wallet handling and simplifying on-chain steps.

During 2024, NEAR Intents saw wider integration across the ecosystem, including incorporation into Blockchain Operating System (BOS) frontends and a range of third-party platforms. Those integrations enhanced interoperability and led to NEAR Intents being used in pilot dApps and multiple user journeys.

Technology

Fundamental principles

NEAR Intents is built on the practice of intent specification: instead of issuing detailed procedural instructions, users state target outcomes. These statements are typically formatted as structured JSON objects and are processed off-chain by solver entities. Solvers translate intents into valid on-chain transactions by utilizing smart contract capabilities, available on-chain liquidity, and external data feeds.

System components

Protocol design

The architecture is modular, partitioning user intent definitions, solver logic, and transaction execution. This separation enables composability so that multiple solvers or services can integrate and specialize in different operational areas, such as financial operations or identity services.

• Intent: A structured representation, commonly in JSON format, that specifies a user's desired outcome; intents are high-level and can be posted on-chain, kept off-chain, or exchanged peer-to-peer. Examples include asset swaps, token transfers, NFT or MT withdrawals, and fiat conversions.
• Solver: An off-chain agent (also called a Market Maker) that reads intents, formulates transaction strategies, competes for execution quotes, and carries out transactions via the verifier smart contract; solvers also manage the liquidity necessary to complete intents.
• Verifier Smart Contract: A smart contract deployed on NEAR Protocol responsible for validating and settling transactions produced from intents, ensuring execution integrity and providing mechanisms for dispute handling when required.
• Authorization Layer: Protocol-level mechanisms, such as session keys or delegated access, that permit solvers to act on a user's behalf in a controlled and secure way.
• Permissionless: The protocol allows anyone to create intents and register as a solver without special permission.
• Composable: Intents can be arranged in sequences or nested structures to create more complex workflows.
• Interoperable: The design supports extension to multichain environments through chain abstraction frameworks.

Process Flow

NEAR Intents follows a defined sequence from the moment a user states a desired outcome through to final settlement and any necessary dispute resolution.

This staged workflow enables users to express high-level objectives while off-chain solvers manage the detailed execution across one or more chains.

• Intent Creation: A user or software agent posts an intent using an application interface, an on-chain transaction, or an API call.
• Solver Discovery: Solvers detect newly posted intents, assess requirements, and submit proposed quotes.
• User Selection: The user picks a quote and confirms it by signing on-chain.
• Execution: The chosen solver carries out the request, which may involve actions across multiple blockchains.
• Settlement: The verifier contract completes settlement and solvers rebalance any liquidity used.
• Dispute Resolution: Built-in protocol provisions address execution failures or conflicts.

Supported Intent Types (as of Q1 2025)

By the first quarter of 2025, the NEAR Intents protocol accommodated multiple intent categories, enabling a spectrum of decentralized actions.

These supported categories allow users to conduct activities such as token exchanges, asset movements, and withdrawals of various token standards including fungible tokens (FTs), non-fungible tokens (NFTs), multi-tokens (MTs), as well as native chain assets.

• Swap Intents — intents for exchanging one token for another.
• Transfer Intents — intents to move tokens between accounts.
• FT Withdraw Intents — intents to withdraw fungible tokens from a platform or contract.
• NFT Withdraw Intents — intents to withdraw non-fungible tokens from custody or contracts.
• MT Withdraw Intents — intents to withdraw multi-token standards (MTs).
• Native Token Withdrawals — intents to withdraw a chain's native asset.