Why should you learn about Crypto & Web3?

You might have heard about Web3 and Crypto a lot over the past few years and have finally got to grips with the basics. Yes, you know what it all means now but why should you actually care or even learn about Crypto & Web3?

Web3 and the tech that will underpin it like blockchain, virtual reality, and AI are exciting digital technologies that could completely change the way we interact and exists online.

Web 3 represents the next generation of the internet, one that focuses on shifting power from big tech companies and proprietary algorithms to individual users and everyday people – you and me.

So Web3, we’ve had Web 1.0, then Web 2.0. Do we really need another version of the internet? What’s wrong with the internet we already have? What benefits will Web 3 provide that don’t already exist?

I’ll lead with one word. Decentralization. The idea of a decentralized web based on blockchain technology currently underpins Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. New search engines, social networks, and markets will emerge with no corporate bosses – controlled instead by its users. The term has been gaining traction over the last few years as people have begun to understand how their data can be used for nefarious and quite suspicious purposes. Web3 is at the forefront of it, giving users back control.

Web 2.0 has been marked by centralization, surveillance, and invasive ads, but the use of decentralized technologies such as blockchain will allow a more open environment where data on the internet is decentralized. Web 3 will allow decentralized apps to displace centralized social networks such as Facebook, and individuals will maintain ownership over their personal data. Users will also be able to interact with data through the use of AI and machine learning – giving rise to the Semantic Web with AI. Technology that interweaves and is interoperable.

Web 3 provides the opportunity for a version of the internet to exist as a truly open avenue that provides virtually endless access to information. The internet is a huge part of our everyday lives and so to empower users and give them control over how they access, use and operate on it is truly exciting.

Okay so you understand the benefits of decentralization – but why should you actually care about Web3?

• Imagine an internet where people do not need permission from a central authority to post, there is no central control and there is no single point of failure – that’s Web3. Customers may move their accounts or avatars from service to service or site to site without having to check in to accounts maintained by different corporations every time they visit a new site. Soon people will be able to carry their data and history of online interactions with them wherever they go on the Internet, rather than being limited to single web platforms – enabled by blockchain technology. Users manage their own data and use a single customizable account to go from social media to email to e-commerce, producing a public record of all of that activity.
• AI will allow data to be provided and transmitted to users faster, and the data that is provided will be more relevant to each user. Personalization makes experiences a whole lot smoother, reduces friction, and gets users from A to B (their end-goal) in the most efficient way. Web 3 is becoming quite relevant as most users are continually focusing on customized and personalized browsing experiences. We have even seen the development of humanized search assistants that are way more intelligent, completely ubiquitous, and powered by semantics, AI, and yes, blockchain.
• Another benefit of Web3 and its associated technologies is that it aims to make the internet more open-source resulting in an avoidance of hacks, leaks, and dependence on centralized repositories.
• If you care about the possibility of regaining ownership of your personal data, you should care about Web 3. A version of the internet will exist that provides equal benefit to all users no matter who they are. Tech giants have abused user data and violated privacy expectations in the past. It’s time for our data to belong to us, and we should be able to decide who uses it and makes money from it.
• Another reason Web 3 is such an important concept is that it gives individuals ownership and control over the content they create. Web 3 is more like a system for the users, ideated by the users, in the form of creator-driven platforms. Individuals and creators on platforms like Medium, YouTube, and Spotify sustain those platforms yet it is the governors of those platforms who profit ridiculously from their content. Creators themselves are disproportionately rewarded. Web 3 hopes to encourage a much fairer rewarding system for content creators and new streams of income such as NFTs where value can be monetized over time. For example, crypto will allow artists to ascribe a digital representation to each piece of digital art (NFTs). They will be able to sell their art as an NFT and collect a royalty on it for the lifetime of the art. Every time it’s sold, the artist gets a cut. For musicians, they will be able to move away from big centralized platforms and go direct to consumers or their fans. No more middlemen. More community-driven platforms.

This new virtual world horizon will see resources, applications, content, and agreements that are accessible to all, enabled by blockchain and other advanced digital technologies. There will be a slew of decentralized options around to make the universe more inclusive for each one of us. Web3 is often regarded as a theoretical grand vision by technologists and cryptographers. However, the movement for a blockchain-powered future has dominated conversations, tech conference keynotes, and social media discourse a lot in recent years. We have even seen the rise of large corporations getting in on the action whether buying land in the metaverse or forming Web3 teams. Despite Web 2.0 being able to adequately serve our needs, Web3 gives us the opportunity to iron out the current inefficiencies that exist, and to allow everyday people to reclaim some of the power. Lastly, If you understand the benefits of decentralization, it’s time to recognize the importance of Web 3.

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