Web3: The future

Turning centralized apps into decentralized protocols

In Web3 (or Web 3.0) the user is considered to be the owner of the content that they create. This means that when the user posts something online, the user becomes the owner of that data and has full control of his/her data.

At the same time the powerful Big Tech companies like Facebook, Google, Twitter, Amazon and Netflix do not own the user data. But the users do.

According to one of the founders of Ethereum and the founder of Polkadot Gavin Wood :” This version of the web (Web3) is decentralized and blockchain-based with technologies that verify information through various protocols.”

This emphasizes the importance of

  1. Blockchain technology
  2. Decentralisation

 

  1. In practice DAO’s (decentralized autonomous organizations) are being used to create a new internet ecosystem (Web 3) based on blockchain technology. This technology operates on a platform based on smart contracts which should reduce the amount of trust to private third parties that currently have the control of the internet which gives more power to the user: In Web3 the users host the services (peer-to-peer hosting) and control the internet as well.

 

  1. Decentralization requires a decentralized decision making process based on DAO’s, which are trustless and decentralized organisations. They do not have a CEO or board members. Instead, the power of the new internet lies in the hands of the ones with the most tokens, who get to decide what should take place in the new internet.

 

It is possible that in the future Big Tech companies might be disassembled by legislature and will be replaced by DAO’s. For example Facebook has been caught many times violating user privacy rights. And Twitter has blocked user accounts based on ideological or political opinions. The reality is that if the violations of the Big Tech continues only one court case can end the current control from the Big Tech status quo.

Another feature of Web3 is that in the new internet there is no censorship. The user blog posts or pictures sent online will not be removed and user accounts will not be blocked because of wrong opinions. This might mean more liberty and free speech but it can mean more unhealthy content on the internet at the same time.

Web3 is trying to be the most secure version of the internet, too: No more data hacking or violations of privacy like in the previous versions of the internet.

There are of course potential dangers involved in Web3. Back in 2021, Twitter co-founder and former CEO Jack Dorsey warned people that companies will own Web3. “You don’t own Web3,” he wrote. There is also a risk with Web3 that ownership over blockchain networks will not be equally distributed. Instead the network might be concentrated in the hands of early adopters and venture capitalists.

At the moment Web3 is in the early phase of funding and building new infrastructure for the new internet.

It is true that Web3 has a lot of potential to be the future of the internet. But it remains to be seen how this potential will be turned into practical solutions and real-life user benefits.