Web3: Voodoo or Vector for Future?

WebWhat?

There's a buzzword that tech, crypto, and venture capitalists have recently been obsessed with. It's now sprinkled throughout conversations, and you're not serious about the future until you include it in your Twitter bio: Web3.

It's a catch-all word for a variety of concepts aimed at cutting out the large middlemen on the internet. Navigating the web in this new era no longer entails signing up for Facebook, Google, or Twitter.

Web 1.0 was the first version of the Internet in the 1990s. The web was considered as a tool to democratize information access, but there were few good ways to navigate it beyond visiting a friend's GeoCities page. It was a bit chaotic and overpowering.

Then, starting in the mid-2000s, came Web 2.0. Google, Amazon, Facebook, and Twitter were created to provide order to the Internet by making it simple to connect and transact online. Critics claim that these corporations have accumulated too much influence over time.

The goal of Web3 is to reclaim some of the power.

People in a Web3 world control their own data and use a single personalized account to go from social media to email to shopping, generating a public record of all of their activities on the blockchain.

The Good, the Bad, and the Unknown

All of this appears to be intriguing. But if Web2 has taught us anything, it's that even the most exciting technology has drawbacks and unanticipated consequences. At first glance, Twitter appeared to be a fun method to tell others what you had for lunch, and then for a brief time, it appeared to be a tool that may aid in the liberation of oppressed people. It took us a long to learn that it might also be a hotbed of hatred and deceit. This time, we need to be far more cautious about potential drawbacks.

To begin with, some argue that blockchain is a terrible way to use computing power and that cryptocurrency "mining" — stringing together racks of computers to generate cryptocurrency — is an irresponsible waste of energy in a world facing a dire climate crisis; some estimates put annual bitcoin electrical usage at the equivalent of a country the size of Sweden.

Another daunting obstacle is that Web3, at least in its current state, is not at all user-friendly. Also, because Web3 is still so young — and because its whole premise opposes centralized control or management — there isn't much in the way of consumer protection at the moment. Basically, none. Web3 supporters believe that because their system of linked computers provides a "trustless" economy, you don't need government agencies or mega-platforms to secure you and your possessions. You shouldn't need the oversight of huge governments or big enterprises because every transaction is recorded in public and confirmed by the blockchain. In actuality, Web3 is riddled with incompetence, costly flaws, and outright scams, such as intriguing projects that vanish once the organizers have taken your money. You've been "rugged," which means you've had the rug yanked out from under you in crypto terms.

We are not a new species because of new technology. This means that even the most hopeful version of Web3 could resurrect some of Web2's or the rest of the world's problems.

While advocates like to point out that Web3 allows anyone with a web connection to join, regardless of who they are or what they look like – many Web3 users and supporters are fully anonymous — its early user base and supporters appear to be as male-dominated as traditional tech. The fact that some of the most outspoken supporters adopt a public tone that alternates between evangelizing and defensive also makes me skeptical of the whole enterprise. Perhaps this is because so much of the Web3 conversation takes place on Twitter, which still appears to be geared to bring out the worst in people.

On Web3, basic supply and demand still exist, which means that we may still have hierarchies in which individuals in developing nations are willing to perform more work for less money than people who are already wealthy.

The ability of platforms to de-platform is something to be afraid about in the Web3 environment. We might find out soon, especially if the value of the cryptocurrencies that power so much of Web3 continues to plummet. On the other hand, if even any of the claims made by Web3 supporters turn out to be true, the computing world will be reshuffled at the very least.

The Wrong Solution to a Real Problem?

The web's concentration is a real problem that entrepreneurs — and even governments — will have to confront. Is Web3 the answer, though?

People want solutions that are quick, slick, and easy to use. They also want someone to turn to in the event of a mishap. That is something that Web3 does not provide. It may continue to generate attention in the future years, but unlike Web 1.0 and 2, it is unlikely to transform the world.

Baffled King that is Web3 with a Promise to Behold

The total value of all cryptocurrencies is currently $2.3 trillion. Venture capitalists are one of the greatest drivers of the crypto boom, having spent more than $27 billion on crypto-related companies last year, more than in the preceding ten years combined.

Despite the fact that blockchain technology has been around for more than a decade, it has yet to find many practical applications for people who aren't crypto speculators or criminals. Even still, much of Web3's potential remains speculative.

The idea of a decentralized internet is cast as a bulwark against tyranny at the highest levels of Web3 discourse. Web3 is inherently more favorable to Western liberal democracies that prioritize democracy and personal privacy from a conceptual standpoint. Through firewalls, censorship, and coercion of technological platforms, China and Russia have already set up methods to spy on and control the current Web2 infrastructure. Such totalitarian controls would be considerably more difficult with Web3.

Both Web3's proponents and detractors may be found to be somewhat correct in the coming years. The objectives of the Web3 crowd must be regarded seriously: It appears to have the cash, clout, and sheer marketing that might make the fantasy a reality, but accepting its bullies' narrative — and dismissing the skeptics — is to hand over control of the future to a small group of noisy and powerful individuals. That is precisely what Web3 is designed to prevent.