Nockchain is activating its AI Inference Market upgrade at the end of June 2026, adding matrix-multiplication proofs that let GPU miners apply AI inference compute directly toward block-reward claims on the zero-knowledge proof-of-work chain.
GPU operators running matrix-multiplication work for AI inference and training can simultaneously satisfy Nockchain's proof-of-work requirement. The same hardware cycle earns block rewards while serving an inference job, reducing what would otherwise be separate costs for mining and compute. The team describes this as the first such coupling on a live ZK chain.
Nockchain's official roadmap lists three milestones: AI Inference Market code live at the end of May 2026, the network upgrade at the end of June 2026, and the Nock Markets builder framework in H1 2027.
The chain fair-launched in May 2025 with no pre-mine, no VC allocation, and no team reserve. All 2^32 NOCK tokens, roughly 4.3 billion, distribute exclusively through mining. Nockchain describes itself as "the largest proving network in the world"; that claim could not be confirmed from independent on-chain data.
CoinGecko shows NOCK trading near $0.023 on June 28, down 47.5% over the prior seven days. The token hit an all-time high of $0.2102 on October 17, 2025, before sliding to an all-time low of $0.0046 on April 15, 2026, a base from which it has since recovered roughly 400% to current levels.
CryptoRank put the market cap at approximately $53 million and circulating supply at 2.21 billion NOCK as of June 28.
Blocmates placed Nockchain and Pearl as the two leading proof-of-useful-work contenders, noting Pearl already offered matmul while Nockchain's implementation was still pending. The upgrade directly closes that gap.
The next roadmap item, Nock Markets, is not due until H1 2027. It is planned as a framework opening the network to third-party builders.