Overview

Celestia is a modular blockchain protocol designed to enhance scalability by separating the data availability layer from the execution layer. This architecture helps decentralized applications (DApps), Rollups, and Layer 2 (L2) solutions overcome the performance limitations of traditional blockchains.

As a publishing network, Celestia simplifies transaction data access for Rollups and L2s while offering high-throughput data availability (DA). It supports lightweight nodes, making the verification process faster and more efficient.

Celestia’s modular design also allows users to launch their own blockchains independently, without relying on centralized validator sets, thus reducing the technical barriers to entry and offering greater flexibility.

Source: https://celehttps://celestia.org/stia.org/

NEAR is a high-performance, decentralized smart contract platform that provides more efficient blockchain technology, helping developers build scalable decentralized applications (DApps). The core goal of NEAR is to simplify the blockchain development experience while addressing scalability issues, enabling it to support large-scale applications on a global scale.

Source: https://pages.near.org/ecosystem/

Tokenomics Comparison Details:

Shared Vision

Celestia and NEAR share the goal of being foundational infrastructure for blockchain scalability, simplifying development for programmers while enabling blockchain applications to run with higher efficiency and lower costs. Both platforms support Layer 2 solutions and aim to attract developers to innovate within decentralized application (DApp) ecosystems.

Key Differences

Founding Teams

The founding teams of Celestia and NEAR Protocol have distinct backgrounds and expertise.

Celestia’s founding team:

• Mustafa Al-Bassam: CEO and co-founder, known for his early involvement in the hacker group LulzSec, pursued a PhD in blockchain scalability, and co-founded Chainspace, which was acquired by Facebook.
• John Adler: Chief Research Officer and co-founder, previously a researcher at ConsenSys specializing in Layer 2 and data availability solutions.
• Ismail Khoffi: Co-founder and former Tendermint engineer, with a focus on developing consensus protocols.

The team has a strong technical background in blockchain scalability, data availability, and consensus mechanisms.

Source: https://www.rootdata.com/Projects/detail/Celestia?k=MTk4NA%3D%3D

NEAR Protocol’s founding team:

• Illia Polosukhin: Co-founder and CTO, a former Google engineer who worked on TensorFlow and contributed to the development of the Transformer neural network.
• Alexander Skidanov: Co-founder, with previous experience at Microsoft and as a core engineer at MemSQL, where he helped build one of the fastest distributed relational databases.

The team has extensive experience in artificial intelligence, distributed systems, and high-performance computing.

Source: https://www.rootdata.com/Projects/detail/NEAR%20Protocol?k=MjUx

Overall, Celestia’s founding team focuses on the modular design and data availability of blockchains, aiming to solve scalability challenges. In contrast, NEAR Protocol’s founding team leverages its expertise in AI and distributed systems to build a high-performance blockchain platform.

Investors

Celestia’s investors primarily come from the modular blockchain and Cosmos ecosystem, including Interchain Foundation, Polychain Capital, Binance Labs, and Bain Capital Crypto. Its funding focus revolves around blockchain data availability (DA) and modular architecture, attracting support from institutions like Galaxy Digital, Placeholder, and Signature Ventures that specialize in decentralized technology. Celestia’s investment strategy emphasizes technology-driven growth, with a focus on the long-term development of Rollups and Layer 2 solutions.

Source: https://www.rootdata.com/Projects/detail/Celestia?k=MTk4NA%3D%3D

NEAR Protocol has received broader institutional investment, including mainstream crypto venture capitals such as a16z, Pantera Capital, Three Arrows Capital (3AC), and Dragonfly Capital. In 2022, it also attracted support from traditional investment firms such as Tiger Global, FTX Ventures, and Alameda Research, securing $350 million in funding. NEAR’s investment strategy leans toward high-performance blockchains and Web3 ecosystem expansion. With significant funding, it supports the continued development of its PoS blockchain and WASM runtime.

Source: https://www.rootdata.com/Projects/detail/NEAR%20Protocol?k=MjUx

Target Market

Celestia is mainly designed for the Rollup and Cosmos ecosystems, offering an independent DA layer tailored for projects requiring dedicated data availability solutions.

NEAR, on the other hand, focuses on DApps and Layer 2 projects, providing a robust platform for developers aiming to create high-performance applications within the NEAR ecosystem.

Technical Architecture: Modular vs. Sharding

Celestia utilizes a modular design, separating the Data Availability (DA) layer from the execution layer. By focusing exclusively on efficient data storage and validation, Celestia allows Rollups or other L2 solutions to determine the execution layer. This design offers developers greater flexibility in selecting their execution environment, enhancing adaptability for different use cases.

Source: https://docs.celestia.org/

NEAR employs a single-chain architecture combined with its Nightshade sharding technology. This design allows multiple shards to process transactions simultaneously on the same chain, significantly improving scalability and ensuring a stable smart contract execution environment for DApp developers.

Source: https://docs.near.org/concepts/data-flow/token-transfer-flow

Scalability: Modular vs. Parallel Processing

Celestia enhances scalability through its reliance on Rollups and Layer 2 ecosystems. The DA layer is optimized to support various Rollup solutions, making it a suitable choice for decentralized applications that require reliable data availability.

Source: https://docs.celestia.org/learn/how-celestia-works/monolithic-vs-modular

NEAR addresses scalability with its sharding architecture, where each shard operates independently to process transactions. This parallel processing capability boosts overall throughput, enabling NEAR to handle a high volume of transactions efficiently.

Source: https://pages.near.org/blog/phase-2-of-near-sharding-launches/

Data Availability (DA) Solutions

Celestia leverages Data Availability Sampling (DAS) to ensure data availability, allowing light nodes to verify block completeness by sampling small data fragments instead of downloading entire blocks. This significantly reduces hardware requirements while improving the network’s decentralization.

Source: https://docs.celestia.org/learn/how-celestia-works/data-availability-layer

NEAR uses data sharding combined with stateless validation to ensure distributed storage and consistency. This approach secures data availability and minimizes the storage burden on nodes.

Source: https://near.org/blog/blockchain-scaling-approaches-near-sharding-vs-layer-2s

Ecosystem Support

Celestia focuses on supporting Rollups and Layer 2 solutions, offering data availability services critical to the Ethereum and Cosmos ecosystems.

NEAR boasts a robust ecosystem with DeFi, NFTs, and Web3 applications offerings. It also supports Aurora, an EVM-compatible Layer 2 platform, providing Ethereum developers with an easy path to migrate to NEAR.

Developer Experience

Celestia provides DA services with the flexibility for developers to choose their preferred execution environments, making it ideal for Rollup ecosystems.

NEAR offers a built-in smart contract execution platform that supports programming languages like WebAssembly (WASM), simplifying development for DApp creators.

Cross-Chain Interoperability

Celestia is highly compatible with multiple ecosystems, especially Cosmos and Ethereum.

NEAR integrates EVM compatibility through Aurora and supports cross-chain functionality, simplifying migration for Ethereum developers.

Security

Celestia relies on the security of Rollups and Layer 2 solutions, while its DA layer provides a decentralized network for robust data security.

NEAR’s sharding architecture may pose challenges in cross-shard security but uses PoS to reinforce the overall network’s integrity.

Lowering Validator Thresholds

Celestia enables light nodes to verify data using DAS without needing full block storage, reducing hardware requirements for validators.

NEAR’s Nightshade sharding lowers storage demands and computational burdens through stateless validation, making validation more efficient.

L2 / Rollup Support

Celestia serves as an independent DA layer tailored for Rollup and Layer 2 ecosystems, offering reliable data availability.

NEAR supports both DA and smart contract execution, creating a comprehensive environment for L2 development.

Performance and Throughput

Celestia’s DA layer provides strong performance, but its throughput relies on the efficiency of the Rollup implementations.

NEAR’s sharding approach ensures high throughput, allowing for the simultaneous processing of a large volume of transactions.

Tokenomics

Incentive Mechanism:

Celestia: TIA tokens reward validator nodes, ensuring data availability within the network.

Near: Validators are incentivized through NEAR token staking in a PoS system, ensuring secure transaction validation and network operation.

Core Focus:

Celestia: Specializes in modular blockchain structures and data availability services.

Near: Prioritizes scalability, an efficient consensus mechanism, and a developer-centric ecosystem.

Token Application:

Celestia: TIA tokens are designed to reward data validators, ensuring the network maintains reliable data storage and availability.

Near: NEAR tokens are staked in the consensus process, encouraging block and transaction validation while securing the network.

Governance Mechanism

Celestia’s Governance:

• Built on Tendermint consensus and Cosmos SDK.
• Operates a decentralized governance model where token holders can actively participate in decision-making and vote on-chain for network upgrades.
• Encourages strong community involvement, empowering token holders to propose and vote on critical initiatives.

Source: https://celestia.org/glossary/consensus/

NEAR’s Governance:

• Employs a DPoS consensus model, allowing token holders to delegate their tokens to elect validators.
• Implements token-driven governance, enabling participation in network proposals and voting.
• Integrates staking and delegation mechanisms to improve network efficiency, with validators playing a key role in maintaining operations.

Source: https://docs.near.org/concepts/basics/tokens

Core Differences

Governance Structure:

• Celestia offers a fully decentralized governance model where any token holder can actively participate in proposals and voting, with the community driving decision-making.
• NEAR adopts a delegation-based system, where token holders indirectly influence governance by selecting validators they trust.

Governance Flexibility:

• Celestia’s use of Tendermint and Cosmos SDK allows for modular, highly adaptable governance, capable of handling intricate on-chain decision-making processes.
• NEAR’s DPoS simplifies governance by delegating authority to validators, enhancing operational efficiency, though at the cost of more centralized governance control.

Summary: Celestia takes a more decentralized and inclusive governance approach, while NEAR prioritizes performance and efficiency through validator-focused governance.

Community Participation:

• Celestia focuses on fostering growth in the Rollup ecosystem through its decentralized governance framework.
• NEAR boasts a robust developer community and a diverse application ecosystem, with strong support for cross-chain governance.

Energy Efficiency:

• Celestia employs light node validation to significantly reduce energy consumption.
• NEAR utilizes PoS consensus combined with sharding to optimize energy use further.

Maturity and Adoption:

• Celestia remains in its nascent stage with rapid development underway.
• NEAR is a well-established public blockchain platform with widespread developer adoption and a rich ecosystem.

Ecosystem Layout and Impact

Celestia: Focused on Ethereum Layer 2 Support

Celestia mainly enters the Ethereum Layer 2 market through Blobstream, enabling Rollup solutions like OP Stack to reduce DA costs.

Lower Layer 2 Costs: Ethereum DA fees are expensive, but Celestia offers low-cost DA solutions, making it easier for small Layer 2 solutions to survive.

Rollup-Driven Growth: Celestia does not provide an execution layer itself but relies on Rollup solutions like Arbitrum, Optimism, and zkSync.

Challenges EigenDA: Eigenlayer also provides DA solutions but cannot reduce Layer 2 costs, giving Celestia a stronger competitive edge.

Source: https://celestia.org/build/

NEAR: Builds an Independent Layer 1 Ecosystem

NEAR leverages Nightshade sharding technology to construct its own Layer 1 ecosystem while attracting more developers through Aurora and NEAR DA solutions.

Sharding Scalability: NEAR relies on its sharding architecture rather than modular Rollup solutions.

Web3-Friendly: NEAR has more applications in social, gaming, and NFTs, rather than purely serving as a Layer 2 solution.

Source: https://pages.near.org/ecosystem/

Competitor Analysis

Celestia’s Competitors

As a modular Data Availability (DA) layer, Celestia provides efficient solutions for Rollups and L2s. Key competitors in the DA space include:

Ethereum Danksharding（Proto-Danksharding / EIP-4844）

Ethereum aims to lower Rollup DA costs through innovations like Danksharding and EIP-4844 (Blob transactions).

Once these technologies mature, Rollups may prefer Ethereum’s native DA over Celestia.

EigenDA (EigenLayer’s DA Solution)

EigenDA leverages Ethereum’s restaking mechanism to enhance security and reduce costs for DA services.

If widely adopted, EigenDA could limit Celestia’s market share.

Source: https://www.eigenda.xyz/

Avail (Polygon’s DA Solution)

Avail is Polygon’s modular DA offering, targeting a market similar to Celestia.

Avail may attract more Rollup and L2 projects looking to rely on the Polygon ecosystem.

NEAR Data Availability (NEAR as a DA Provider)

NEAR is also exploring DA solutions to serve L2 and Rollup projects.

If NEAR strengthens its presence in the DA sector, it will become a direct competitor to Celestia.

Source: https://near.org/data-availability

NEAR’s Competitors

NEAR primarily serves as a high-performance Layer 1 blockchain and seeks to develop its scalability through an L2 ecosystem. In this field, it faces the following competitors:

Ethereum and Its L2 Ecosystem (Optimistic & ZK Rollups)

Ethereum scales its performance through L2 solutions like Arbitrum, Optimism, zkSync, and Starknet.

Many DApps still prefer to build on Ethereum and its L2 solutions rather than NEAR.

Solana (High-Performance Single-Chain Architecture)

Solana adopts a high-throughput single-chain model, similar to NEAR’s sharding architecture, but with a more mature ecosystem.

Many high-performance DApps, especially in DeFi and NFTs, tend to favor Solana over NEAR.

Source: https://solana.com/

Aptos & Sui (High-Throughput Chains Built on the Move Language)

These chains enhance TPS through parallel processing (Aptos’s Block-STM and Sui’s Narwhal & Bullshark), competing with NEAR’s sharding architecture.

Emerging DApp developers may consider Aptos or Sui instead of NEAR.

Cosmos (Cross-Chain Interoperability)

Cosmos offers flexible cross-chain interoperability through IBC, while NEAR mainly relies on Aurora for Ethereum compatibility.

If developers prioritize cross-chain interoperability, Cosmos might be a better choice.

Polkadot (Shared-Security Multi-Chain Architecture)

Polkadot provides scalability through its parachain model, which has similarities to NEAR’s sharding architecture.

Polkadot may appear more attractive if projects seek dedicated chains while benefiting from shared security.

Source: https://polkadot.com/

How to Choose?

Choose Celestia

Ideal for Rollup Ecosystems: If you are building Rollup or Layer 2 (L2) solutions, Celestia provides a more flexible modular solution as an independent Data Availability (DA) layer.

Focus on Data Availability: Celestia specializes in solving DA issues, allowing developers to freely choose execution environments without being tied to a specific Layer 1 ecosystem.

Greater Openness: Celestia is compatible with multiple blockchain ecosystems, such as Cosmos and Ethereum, making it suitable for projects that wish to maintain independence.

Choose NEAR

Ideal for DApp and L2 Development: If you want to build high-throughput decentralized applications, NEAR offers an integrated solution as a combined L1 + DA ecosystem.

Built-in Smart Contract Execution Environment: NEAR provides a native smart contract execution environment supporting WASM, offering a smoother development experience.

Robust Ecosystem Support: NEAR has a relatively mature ecosystem, covering areas like DeFi, NFTs, and Web3, making it suitable for projects seeking quick deployment.

Which Model is Better?

Celestia and NEAR represent two different approaches to blockchain scalability:

• Celestia uses a modular architecture, focusing on DA, and is suitable for Rollup and L2 developers.
• NEAR adopts a sharding architecture, combining L1 + DA, and offers an integrated high-throughput solution.

If your project requires a flexible Rollup ecosystem, Celestia is more suitable. If you want to leverage a mature L1 ecosystem to quickly build DApps or L2s, NEAR might be the better choice.

For projects aiming to build high-throughput decentralized applications, NEAR could be the superior option as a mature L1 solution. For those wishing to build on an existing high-performance L1, NEAR offers an integrated development environment and ecosystem support.

Market Performance Comparison

Celestia (TIA)

As of January 19, 2025, Celestia (TIA) is priced at approximately $4.91. This marks a 77% drop from its all-time high of $21 but a notable 159% increase from its lowest recorded price of $1.90.

Despite the price correction, Celestia’s trading volume hasn’t shown significant signs of heavy selling, indicating relatively low market pressure. This suggests investors remain cautious, adopting a wait-and-see attitude rather than rushing to sell their holdings.

Source: https://www.gate.io/trade/TIA_USDT

NEAR Protocol (NEAR)

On the same date, NEAR Protocol (NEAR) is trading at around $5.49, a 73% drop from its peak of $20.44 but a remarkable 960% increase from its lowest price of $0.52.

Since its launch in October 2020, NEAR has seen substantial price swings. Recently, its performance has been shaped by shifting market sentiment and macroeconomic conditions, with notable volatility. Over the past week, NEAR’s price fell nearly 12%, reflecting ongoing market uncertainty.

Investors are advised to stay alert to market trends and carefully assess risks, particularly given the high volatility in the current climate.

Source: https://www.gate.io/trade/NEAR_USDT

Forecast and Outlook

Celestia’s Future

As a modular blockchain, Celestia stands out for its scalability and flexibility, offering great potential for future development. Its modular approach addresses diverse development needs, and as blockchain applications expand, its unique strengths are likely to shine.

While competition is intense, Celestia’s innovative architecture sets it apart. Although short-term fluctuations may occur, its focus on innovation and adaptability positions it for long-term growth.

NEAR Protocol’s Future

NEAR Protocol is a high-performance blockchain platform with a user-friendly design and strong scalability. It shows great promise for growth, driven by increasing demand for DApps and DeFi solutions. By enhancing interoperability with other blockchains and expanding its ecosystem, NEAR is poised to strengthen its market position further. In the long run, NEAR is expected to secure a prominent role in the blockchain industry, delivering sustained growth.

Conclusion

Celestia and NEAR offer two distinct approaches to blockchain scalability. Celestia’s modular design focuses on delivering efficient data availability, making it ideal for supporting Rollups and Layer 2 (L2) solutions while enhancing decentralized application scalability. In contrast, NEAR utilizes a sharding architecture with a high-performance consensus mechanism, providing an all-in-one solution for DApps and L2 projects to improve transaction throughput on-chain.

Looking ahead, Celestia is poised to drive further advancements in modular blockchain technology. At the same time, NEAR will likely continue attracting developers with its growing ecosystem and effective scalability solutions.

For developers, the choice between Celestia and NEAR ultimately depends on project needs. If the priority is an independent data layer for Rollups and L2 ecosystems, Celestia is likely the better fit. On the other hand, NEAR’s comprehensive platform and high transaction throughput make it a strong choice for developers looking to build quickly on a mature ecosystem.