ICP crypto faces fresh pressure – Why DFINITY accuses NEAR of IP theft

Dominic Williams, founder of DFINITY, claims that Near Protocol stole its intellectual property (IP) behind its cross-chain stack, $NEAR Intents. DFINITY is the developer of the Internet Computer ($ICP) blockchain.

Williams labelled Near’s cross-chain execution as a ‘fake decentralization’

The $NEAR Intents saga just got much more crazy on further investigation. Much is missing from Intents, but key enabling component turns out to be stolen proprietary DFINITY tech. I’m stunned.

William added that Near Protocol used a former DFINITY employee they fired in 2021. According to him, the ex-employee helped Near Protocol develop its cross-chain $NEAR Intents, warning of potential “legal implications.’

$NEAR Intents uses Chain Abstraction (powered by our proprietary tech) to custody assets on different chains, and then Intents basically just uses a market maker paid by them to swap them across chains according to people’s wishes.

DFINITY and Internet Computer claimed that the IP theft harmed them financially. In fact, William said that even $ICP crypto holders have been impacted by alleged $NEAR Intent theft. However, he didn’t mention any pending lawsuit, but noted that “something has to be worked out.”

$NEAR Intents’ response to Internet Computer claims

As of writing, Illia Polosukhin, founder of Near Protocol, had not responded to the allegations. However, Alex Shevchenko, an executive at Near Protocol, responded with a sarcastic post, indirectly urging his followers to short the $ICP token.

It’s unclear whether DFINITY will escalate the alleged IP theft to court. That said, $NEAR Intents has seen more traction than Internet Computer. The cross-chain hit a record $5 billion volume in September with over $8 million in cumulative revenue.

On the other hand, Internet Computer has seen a sustained drop in network activity. Its total value locked (TVL) has declined from $200 million to about $4 million. The liquidity has also decreased to $4 million from $7 million.

Impact on $ICP crypto

Some community members claimed that the allegations were mere FUD (fear, uncertainty, and disinformation). Critics warned that the FUD would backfire and impact $ICP market sentiment.

Sentiment analysis showed users were neutral on the altcoin as of writing. This was down from its ‘greed’ level of 68 seen on Thursday and last month. On the price charts, $ICP dipped 6%, which coincided with a broader market decline.

Final Summary

• DFINITY founder claimed that $NEAR Intents stole its proprietary tech, financially harming the Internet Computer and $ICP token holders.
• The founder warned of ‘legal implications’ but did not clarify whether it will sue Near Protocol.