As the internet expands at an unparalleled rate, the term Web 3.0 has been popping up around the tech and venture capital world. If you’ve found yourself wondering what in the world it means, you are not alone. Originally called the Semantic Web by World Wide Web inventor Tim Berners-Lee, it was conceived as a more autonomous, intelligent and open internet. Web 3 is seen as the third generation of the internet, a decentralized online ecosystem based on blockchain technologies. Some tech experts are unconvinced that Web 3 could scale globally. Skeptics like Tesla CEO, Elon Musk, have called it a marketing buzzword. However, venture capitalists have invested billions into this version. Here we’ll discuss why most see Web 3.0 as the future of the internet.
The Evolution of The Internet
The largest advancement leading to entering Web 3.0 is the application of semantics everywhere within the web. Tim Berners-Lee had said that the Semantic Web is meant to 'automatically' interface with systems, people and home devices. This would allow computers to digest deeper meaning from users through analyzing data in real-time. This internet would involve AI and ML which would process content like a 'global brain', with all data being connected in a way that is contextual and conceptual.
Machines would be able to make decisions for the user faster and more accurately than any human or current system, leading to users on any platform experiencing more tailored made content and decisions processes driven by enhanced data connectivity. Data collected from any site will be added to your online profile and would be used to make more in-depth decisions on any other site you visit.
A key feature of Web 3.0 is the ability for data to be stored securely and distributed across many devices, no longer tied down by centralized servers. All data will be maintained through constant routine checks from other devices across the network. Decentralizing data greatly increases its resilience to compromise, reducing the risks of massive data leaks and making it near impossible for users’ information to be sold without their consent.
Consumers in the Web 3.0
The biggest advantage Web 3.0 brings to the financial world is the removal of all the clutter between consumers and companies. Consumers would have a more impactful voice in the products they obtain. Web 3.0 prioritizes socialization and collaboration between brands and their consumers, making input from consumers affect every step of a company’s production leading to more defined and personal shopping experiences.
Web 3.0 would give a home to the Metaverse as well, a more personalized internet that revolves around the ability of users to interact with any brand online and purchase digital assets for use in their own virtual world. People will be able to purchase digital real estate and content to populate it with, creating their own individual online ecosystem that they can experience all to themselves or share their worlds with friends.
A crucial role played in both the metaverse and the jump to Web 3.0 is the introduction of NFTs (Non-fungible tokens). These tokens are near impossible to recreate or steal allowing for sensitive data to be stored, moved or even sold much easier than in the past. Many are used as the currency of the web in crypto blockchains. Some of the most popular are Ethereum (ETH) and Solana (SOL).
The decentralization of data and the use of blockchain technology is being utilized by all parts of the internet. The gaming industry has already taken advantage of these new techniques with games relying much more on tokens generated by the users to use and lock away like any other crypto. The world of digital finance has also taken note by using decentralized finance that allows people to lend or borrow both digital and physical currency without having to use central financial institutions such as banks. They are held together by smart contracts with the use of blockchains that make sure every transaction is maintained and followed through.
The Global Strategic Development in Web 3.0 Battlefield
Companies are scrambling to be in the first fold of pioneers in Web 3.0. Right now some major players in the market include Polkadot (Web3 Foundation), Helium Systems Inc., Filecoin, Ocean Protocol Foundation Ltd., Livepeer Inc., and Decentraland. They are among the first to take advantage of cutting-edge blockchain technology to stake a claim in the Web 3.0 financial marketplace.
The world’s current largest cryptocurrency exchange, Binance, is launching its own venture capital fund. The company’s venture arm, Binance Labs, has raised $500 million for its debut start-up fund, securing backing from partners at DST Global and Breyer Capital and other investors. They estimate that there are currently 300 to 500 thousand active Web 3.0 developers, a number that continues to grow exponentially as more try to catch on, and these developers are expected to grow the Web 3.0 market size to a monumental $81.5 billion by 2030.
Everyone is racing each other to invest more and more towards accelerating the Web 3.0 digital market. Another leading global cryptocurrency trading platform, KuCoin, announced a USD 100 million ‘Creators Fund’ by its venture firm KuCoin Ventures and KuCoin NFT Marketplace-Windvane. This will go towards up-and-coming NFT projects and content ranging from arts, sports, and games. They are even inviting the top 99 NFT creators into their exclusive Windvane NFT marketplace.
We’re Already Here
An application of the semantic internet that is already being used today is Apple’s Siri. One of its major features is its voice recognition software, which facilitates connecting user input outside of the screen to the device. This application of Web 3.0 helps provide insight into the way we communicate leading to developers enhancing how machines process voice inputs and communicate with each other to provide better and more accurate results each time a question is asked. In the not-so-distant future, we may have a Siri-like personal assistant application that could understand your complex voice inputs and connect you to exactly what you were trying to accomplish, from paying taxes to buying property, with extreme accuracy.
Another top Web 3.0 application is Wolfram Alpha, a product from Wolfram Research. It is one of the most advanced computational knowledge engines aimed at collecting sufficient information from databases across the Web to make it easily obtainable through its easy-to-understand user interface. One can easily type any kind of question and be provided with an accurate answer efficiently. This is the real cornerstone of Web 3.0 and gives us a perfect glimpse of what can become from the advancement of data collection and interpretation.
Looking Beyond Web 3.0
Before we’ve even reached Web 3.0, people have already begun discussing the next steps toward Web 4.0. There is no doubt that the next stage of web technologies will revolve around augmented reality and Big data. Web 4.0 will completely change the customer experience using methods gained from previous web developments. The sector most are looking at is online retail shopping. Web 4.0 will introduce 3D browsers that will allow users to virtually go to showrooms and stores to search for products they like, further blending the line between physical and digital commerce. For example, if a shopper decides to purchase, their personal assistant will warn them if the same item is cheaper on another site. Companies need to start preparing for the digital renaissance that is progressively taking place if they intend to stay ahead and not get left behind on the old internet.
Nir Netzer | C.P.A (LL.B, MBA) | Founding Partner at Equitech Group | Chairman of the Israeli FinTech Association - FinTech-Aviv |
