Elywin Michael Lukeera

Web 3.0

Centralization has helped onboard alot of people to the World Wide Web. At the same time, a handful of centralized entities have a stronghold on large “shares” of the World Wide Web, unilaterally deciding what should and should not be allowed. Web3 is the answer to this dilemma. Instead of a Web monopolized by large technology companies, Web3 embraces decentralization and is being built, operated, and owned by its users. Web3 puts power in the hands of individuals rather than corporations.

Before we look at Web3, let’s explore how we got here from web 1.0:

The early web
To understand this better, it’s helpful to break the Web’s short history into loose periods: Web 1.0, Web 2.0 to web 3.0.

Web 1.0: Read-Only (1990-2004)
Web 1.0 was mainly static websites owned by companies, and there was close to zero interaction between users - individuals seldom produced content - leading to it being known as the read-only web, in simple words there was no CSS, dynamic links, interactivity like logging in the users, comments on the blog posts etc.

Web 2.0: Read-Write (2004-now)(the emergence of social media platforms)
Instead of a read-only, the web evolved to be read-write. Instead of companies providing content to users, they also began to provide platforms to share user-generated content and engage in user-to-user interactions. As more people came online, a handful of top companies began to control a disproportionate amount of the traffic and value generated on the web.

Web 3.0: Read-Write-Own
The Web required too much trust. That is, most of the Web that people know and use today relies on trusting a handful of private companies to act in the public’s best interests. Web3 uses blockchains, cryptocurrencies, and NFTs to give power back to the users in the form of ownership.

Core principles that guide web3 creation:

  • Web3 is decentralized: instead of large “shares” of the internet controlled and owned by centralized entities, ownership gets distributed amongst its builders and users.
  • Web3 is permissionless: everyone has equal access to participate in Web3, and no one gets excluded.
  • Web3 has native payments: it uses cryptocurrency for spending and sending money online instead of relying on the outdated infrastructure of banks and payment processors.
  • Web3 is trustless: it operates using incentives and economic mechanisms instead of relying on trusted third-parties.