Cointelegraph Team
Cointelegraph
“A student can build an app without needing to learn new languages without needing to learn new skills,” said NEAR founder Illia Polosukhin.
20 million JavaScript developers will now have the ability to write blockchain smart contracts and build applications on the NEAR Protocol, after rolling out JavaScript Software Development Kits (JS SDKs) on Monday.
Speaking with Cointelegraph at the Korea Blockchain Week (KBW) on Aug. 9 (local time), NEAR founder Illia Polosukhin emphasized that the move will open up the niche field of blockchain development to a substantially broader audience:
There's about 20 million JavaScript developers in the world. Probably like every developer one way or another wrote JavaScript in their life. And what we allow you to do is to write smart contracts in JavaScript.
“Before we had Solidity so for Ethereum and other Layer 2s, we had Rust, which is what Solana and Near are mainly. And so Solidity has probably 100,000 developers who are familiar with it, and those who are active is even less. There is even less probably in Rust,” he added.
In an Aug. 8 announcement shared with Cointelegraph, NEAR outlined that the JS SDK includes the “contract framework itself, JavaScript and TypeScript contract examples and tests.”
Polosukhin went on to note that the JS SDKs could be utilized by anyone from students looking to dip their toes into the blockchain, to people in the commercial sector looking to accelerate their projects.
“A student can build an app without needing to learn new languages without needing to learn new skills. It will also be easier for entrepreneurs to hire [devs], so they can actually build teams stronger, faster, and deliver products faster,” he said, adding that:
So kind of the idea from Near is to build a very extensible and powerful system that allows developers to build really anything from simple apps to very complex apps.
Questioned on whether the JS SDKs will be Ethereum Virtual Machine Compatible given that NEAR is an Ethereum competitor, Polosukhin stated that the offering will run specifically on Near, but that it is possible to create EVM compatible smart contracts from the SDK, much like how EVM compatible scaling Aurora was created on NEAR.
NEAR is a decentralized application (dApp) platform launched in April 2020 that is designed to be developer and user-friendly. Its native token NEAR is currently the twenty-fourth largest crypto asset in terms of market cap at $4.1 billion.
The asset is priced at $5.44 at the time of writing and is up a notably 42.8% over the past 30 days according to CoinGecko.
Information on these pages contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Markets and instruments profiled on this page are for informational purposes only and should not in any way come across as a recommendation to buy or sell in these assets. You should do your own thorough research before making any investment decisions. FXStreet does not in any way guarantee that this information is free from mistakes, errors, or material misstatements. It also does not guarantee that this information is of a timely nature. Investing in Open Markets involves a great deal of risk, including the loss of all or a portion of your investment, as well as emotional distress. All risks, losses and costs associated with investing, including total loss of principal, are your responsibility. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of FXStreet nor its advertisers.
Recommended Content
Editors’ Picks
Ethereum fees drops to lowest level since October, ETH sustains above $3,200
Ethereum’s high transaction fees has been a sticky issue for the blockchain in the past. This led to Layer 2 chains and scaling solutions developing alternatives for users looking to transact at a lower cost.
Solana, Base and AI meme coins rally, are speculative tokens making a comeback?
Meme coins are typically considered more speculative than the rest of cryptocurrency categories. Despite the label, hedge funds and institutional investors have warmed up to meme coins this cycle.
RWA narrative could make a comeback after nearly 50% correction in CFG, ONDO, MKR
Bitcoin halving and developments in the AI sector are the key narratives this cycle. The Real World Asset (RWA) tokenization narrative gathered steam with BlackRock’s tokenized asset fund launch on Ethereum in March 2024.
These cryptocurrencies could face selling pressure according to an analyst: STRK, ENA, OMNI, JUP, ONDO
Thor Hartvigsen, investor at Heartcore Capital and a crypto analyst has identified a list of cryptocurrencies that are expected to see a massive increase in their supply. Typically, an increase in selling pressure negatively impacts an asset’s price.
Bitcoin: BTC’s next breakout could propel it to $80,000 Premium
Bitcoin’s (BTC) recent price consolidation could be nearing its end as technical indicators and on-chain metrics suggest a potential upward breakout. However, this move would not be straightforward and could punish impatient investors.