NEARCON is the flagship gathering of the NEAR Protocol ecosystem. This guide covers the February 2026 San Francisco event, speakers, AI and blockchain announcements, and future dates for developers, investors, and community members.
NEARCON 2026 took place on February 23–24, 2026, at Fort Mason Center in San Francisco, California. Organized by the NEAR Foundation, the two-day conference focused on user-owned AI, blockchain infrastructure, and agentic commerce. For developers, investors, and NEAR ecosystem participants, the event provided updates on NEAR Protocol technology, autonomous agents, and decentralized applications.
Key Takeaways
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NEARCON 2026 was held on February 23–24 at Fort Mason Center, San Francisco.
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The conference's official theme was "Private. Intelligent. Yours.", emphasizing privacy, user-owned AI, and open infrastructure.
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Major discussions covered NEAR AI, NEAR Intents, AI agents, verifiable privacy, and blockchain-based commerce.
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NEARCON 2026 included keynotes, technical sessions, developer challenges, and ecosystem demonstrations.
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NEARCON 2027 has been announced, but its official dates and location remain unconfirmed.
NEARCON 2026: Event Dates and Location
NEARCON is the flagship gathering of the NEAR ecosystem, connecting developers, founders, researchers, investors, and industry leaders working on blockchain technology and artificial intelligence.
The 2026 edition followed a different format from earlier conferences, emphasizing focused discussions and practical development.
| Event Detail |
Information |
| Event |
NEARCON 2026 |
| Dates |
February 23–24, 2026 |
| Location |
San Francisco, California, USA |
| Venue |
Fort Mason Center |
| Organizer |
NEAR Foundation |
| Theme |
Private. Intelligent. Yours. |
| Main Focus |
User-owned AI, AI economy, blockchain, privacy |
| Participation |
Invite-focused conference format |
| Official Website |
NEARCON |
| Next Edition |
NEARCON 2027 announced; details pending |
The conference brought together teams developing open infrastructure for the agentic era, when software agents increasingly perform tasks and transactions on behalf of individuals and businesses.
NEARCON 2026 Themes and Ecosystem Announcements
NEAR AI and User-Owned Artificial Intelligence
NEARCON 2026 placed user-owned AI at the center of its discussions.
The event explored how AI systems could operate through open networks rather than depending entirely on centralized platforms.
Topics included autonomous AI agents, private computation, trusted AI deployment, and verifiable actions.
Sessions examining formal verification and responsible AI addressed how developers could establish greater confidence in autonomous systems.
NEAR Intents and Agentic Commerce
NEAR Intents was another important subject, particularly its role in cross-chain transactions and agentic commerce.
NEAR Intents enables users and applications to express desired transaction outcomes while supporting infrastructure coordinates their execution.
At NEARCON, discussions covered stablecoin swaps, onchain agents, and financial workflows in which AI agents control capital or initiate transactions under defined permissions.
The broader objective was a unified commerce layer connecting intelligence, blockchain networks, and economic activity.
NEAR Protocol and Network Infrastructure
NEAR Protocol developments also featured prominently.
NEAR CTO Bowen Wang presented Nightshade 3.0, discussing the next evolution of NEAR's sharded blockchain architecture.
Other sessions examined the network layer required for AI agents, confidential execution, infrastructure stacks, and privacy-preserving applications.
These subjects complement the broader development of NEAR Protocol's blockchain infrastructure.
NEARCON 2026 Speakers and Industry Participants
NEARCON featured researchers, founders, technical executives, and ecosystem contributors discussing AI infrastructure and decentralized technology.
| Speaker |
Topic or Contribution |
| Illia Polosukhin |
Unified Commerce Layer for the Agentic Era |
| Alex Skidanov |
Formal verification for AI |
| Lukasz Kaiser |
Scaling intelligence and generalization |
| Christian Szegedy |
Formal verification for AI |
| Bowen Wang |
Nightshade 3.0 and NEAR Protocol |
| Austin Federa |
Network infrastructure for AI |
| Marvin Tong and Jerry Yu |
Trusted AI in production |
The program also included discussions about private AI, operational security, and economic value in a world of converging intelligence.
The official NEARCON website provides session highlights and recordings.
Developer Workshops and Community Activities
NEARCON 2026 included practical activities alongside visionary keynotes and technical deep dives.
The NEARCON Innovation Sandbox brought together developers building applications involving private AI, stablecoins, decentralized infrastructure, and NEAR-native technology.
Another activity, NEARCON Agent Wars, took place on February 24. Participating AI agents completed development challenges, including information retrieval, prototype creation, and smart contract deployment.
These activities demonstrated practical applications rather than limiting discussions to future concepts.
Previous NEARCON Dates and Locations
| Edition |
Dates |
Location |
| NEARCON 2021 |
November 2021 |
Lisbon, Portugal |
| NEARCON 2022 |
September 11–14, 2022 |
Lisbon, Portugal |
| NEARCON 2023 |
November 7–10, 2023 |
Lisbon, Portugal |
| NEARCON 2024–2025 |
No flagship editions held |
— |
| NEARCON 2026 |
February 23–24, 2026 |
San Francisco, USA |
| NEARCON 2027 |
Not yet announced |
To be confirmed |
NEARCON 2023 included a dedicated AI and Open Web track, reflecting the ecosystem's early emphasis on decentralized artificial intelligence.
Following the absence of flagship conferences in 2024 and 2025, the event returned in 2026 with greater attention to AI agents, privacy, and infrastructure.
NEARCON 2027: Next Event Announcements
The official NEARCON website confirms that NEARCON 2027 is coming. However, the next edition's dates, venue, registration arrangements, and complete agenda have not been published.
Future announcements are expected through the NEAR Foundation and NEARCON official website.
Participants should verify registration instructions and speaker announcements through these channels rather than relying on unofficial event listings.
Frequently Asked Questions
When was NEARCON 2026 held?
NEARCON 2026 took place on February 23–24, 2026, at Fort Mason Center in San Francisco.
What was the main theme of NEARCON 2026?
The official theme was "Private. Intelligent. Yours." It focused on user-owned AI, verifiable privacy, open infrastructure, and autonomous systems.
Who organizes NEARCON?
The NEAR Foundation organizes NEARCON as a major gathering for NEAR Protocol developers, ecosystem projects, researchers, and industry participants.
Was NEARCON 2026 invite-only?
NEARCON 2026 used an invite-focused participation format rather than the broad public-conference approach associated with some earlier editions.
When is NEARCON 2027?
NEARCON 2027 has been announced, but its exact dates and location were not confirmed as of October 23, 2026. Updates are available through official NEAR channels.
* The information is not intended to be and does not constitute financial advice or any other recommendation of any sort offered or endorsed by Gate.
