Introduction
In recent times, there has been a lot of buzz around Web 3.0 but very few people have a basic understanding of what Web 3.0 is and how it is the next big tech innovation.
The Internet is undoubtedly the most important technological revolution in human history. It is constantly evolving and impacting our daily lives. Web 3.0 will be the next generation of the Internet. It will change the way we think about the Internet. In Web 3.0, users will take back the control from the centralized corporations that currently dominate the web.
This gives rise to the question: Why is there a need to restructure the current Internet?
The main reason why many individuals are restructuring the current Internet is due to the majority of today’s most-used Internet platforms (eg. Instagram, Google, Facebook, Youtube) being controlled by only a handful of major companies (eg. Amazon, Meta, Alphabet Inc.), who profit from the data users provide.
Web 3 is a new way for people to utilize the Internet without giving up their privacy or sensitive information. All the websites, applications or services in Web 3.0 will be controlled by the users.
In this guide, we will explain the basic concept of Web 3.0, the Decentralized Internet.
Brief History
To understand Web 3.0 better, we need to look into the history of the Internet. We’ve already witnessed huge developments in the last two decades:
Web 1.0 (1989–2005)
The earliest form of the Internet is known as Web 1.0. In the 1990s, the pages of the website were static which means ready only web experience. Users can only read the information displayed on the web pages with little to no user interaction. In simpler words, Web 1.0 was all about reading not writing. Creating user pages or simply commenting on articles wasn’t a thing back then.
Web 2.0 (2005 — Present)
The next phase of the Internet, Web 2.0 or the Social Web is all about interactivity and users. With the advanced developments in web technologies such as Javascript, HTML5, CSS3, and others, companies were able to create interactive web platforms such as YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Wikipedia, and many more.
Web 2.0 users can read and write content on websites and applications and share it across different sites and applications.
This form of Internet is more social and collaborative but it came at a cost. The drawback of this more interactive Internet was that by generating the content, users were providing their personal information and data to the firms that control these platforms.
Most of the user data is owned by these small groups of big tech companies. Large centralization of the user data results in data breaches/leaks and personal information being hacked, which have now become common occurrences in Web 2.0 applications. These big tech companies are also exploiting the user’s privacy by selling them for a profit.
Web 3.0 (The Future)
Web 3.0 is the next generation of the Internet. It will be fully decentralized, driven by machine learning, artificial learning, and blockchain technology. This term was coined by Gavin Wood, the founder of Polkadot and a co-founder of Ethereum.
Data will be connected in a decentralized manner, which would be a significant improvement over our current Internet technology (Web 2.0), in which data is mostly stored in a central authority.
However, Web 3.0 often refers to an Internet-powered by decentralized networks such as PolkaDot, Ethereum, etc, where applications and websites will run on blockchain-based technology in a decentralized manner. These platforms have no single control entity and yet everyone trusts it because all users and operators of these networks must follow the same set of hard-coded rules known as the consensus mechanism.
These networks enable the transfer of value or money across accounts without intermediaries. In Web 3.0, decentralized and digital economies will also play a crucial role.
The main objective of Web 3.0 is to provide open, decentralized, connected, and intelligent websites and web apps with incredible user utility.
Keep an open mind that Web 3.0 is still in the development stage and it is constantly changing. So there is no single established definition to define it yet.
What makes Web 3.0 better than Web 2.0 & Web 1.0?
1.No central point of control: One of the key benefits of Web 3.0 is that it aims to solve the biggest issue that has arisen as a result of Web 2: the gathering of user’s personal or sensitive information by private companies, which is subsequently sold to advertising for a profit or potentially stolen by hackers.
Web 3.0 will provide people more control over their online data, while Web 2.0 relies on user-created content stored on centralized websites. Web 3.0 users will be able to sell or trade their data without losing its ownership, jeopardizing their privacy, or relying on third parties. Users can log into a website without having their internet identity tracked. It aspires to empower consumers and reclaims the value they generate.
When decentralized infrastructure and application platforms replace centralized tech companies, people will have full ownership over their data in a decentralized web.
2. Open source: In Web 3.0, the network is fully decentralized, meaning it is not controlled by a single body, and the decentralized applications (Dapps) created on top of it are open. A decentralized web means no single party controls the data or limits the access. Anyone can build and connect with various dapps without any need for permission from a central company.
Instead of relying on traditional financial networks tied to government and constrained by borders, money on Web 3.0 is permissionless, global, and instant. It also implies that tokens and cryptocurrencies may be used to create entirely new business models and economies.
For example, UniLend is a permissionless Dapp. UniLend is a Multichain protocol for Lending & Borrowing all ERC20 tokens permissionless. They are developing a Futuristic Base Layer for all Defi applications. Anyone can utilize the cutting-edge Defi services and become a lender and borrower of any token.
3. More efficient browsing: Web 3.0 will give consumers more accurate and relevant search results due to improved understanding and data interpretation. Online browsing becomes more convenient for users, allowing everyone to discover the information they want quickly.
4. Better Marketing and Advertising: Nobody enjoys being swamped with online advertisements. However, if the advertisements are appropriate to your requirements, they may be beneficial rather than annoying. By employing advanced AI algorithms and targeting specialized audiences based on consumer data, Web 3.0 intends to enhance advertising.
How do you use Web 3.0?
Currently, there are a lot of Web 3.0 Dapps out there right now. Decentralized finance (or DeFi) tools, which allow users to lend and borrow like as UniLend Finance, tokenize real-world assets, make forecasts, invest in, and trade crypto assets, are one of the most popular and promising technologies. Web 3 is also used for playing games, gambling, and making predictions.
Features of Web 3.0
Here are the key features of Web 3.0:
1. Semantic Web: Semantic is the study of the relationship between words. Web 3.0 is termed the Semantic Web by Tim Berners-Lee, the creator of the World Wide Web. Machines have gotten better over time at interpreting the data and information that people generate. There is still room for a lot of improvement for a seamless experience where semantics are fully understood. For example:
- I love UniLend
- I ❤ UniLend
Both these sentences mean the same but it is quite difficult for a machine to understand this. With the help of more data to study and technologies such as Big Data and Artificial Intelligence (AI) will be able to decode the meaning and analysis of the data on the Web efficiently. The user experience progresses to a new degree of connectivity that will make information accessible everywhere.
2. Artificial Intelligence: AI is the key to converting human-created information into machine-readable data is artificial intelligence.
For Example Customer care bots, but this is only the beginning.
AI will be a seamless tool in Web 3.0, enabling blogs and other online platforms and customize to the preferences of each user. It will provide content to the users faster and with more relevant results.
In order to deliver more accurate data, the internet need AI to learn how to genuine from fake in order to provide reliable data.
3. Ubiquity: It means the ability to be everywhere, accessibility especially at the same time, is referred to as ubiquity. Currently, Web 2.0 is already ubiquitous. For example, A Instagram user can instantly post an image and share it, making it ubiquitous since it is accessible to everyone no matter where they are as long as they have access to the social media platform.
Web 3.0 will simply take this a step further by making the internet available to anybody, at any time, everywhere. It will make the content accessible everywhere on multiple applications and websites.
In Web 2.0, IoT (Internet of Things) technology will bring out a variety of new sorts of smart gadgets and internet-connected devices will no longer be concentrated on PCs and smartphones.
4. 3D Graphics: As the internet constantly evolves and innovates from a simple two-dimensional web to a more realistic three-dimensional cyberworld, Web 3.0 will have a significant impact on its future. The three-dimensional design will be used extensively on Web 3.0 websites and services, such as e-commerce, online gaming, and the real estate market. Metaverse is one such area pioneering in this experience where thousands of people throughout the world are currently interacting and socializing through their personalized avatar in a virtual reality platform.
For example: Decentraland and Sandbox.
The Future
The Internet is constantly evolving and innovating throughout the years. The future of Web 3 will increase usage, usability, scalability, and enhance user experience. Websites and applications are shifting to a more immersive web experience as a result of the tremendous growth of available data. Web 3 will revolutionize the Internet and give the power back to the user. With more innovative Dapps emerging like UniLend Finance and advances in new technical realms like blockchain and digital assets in the ecosystem, we are witnessing the paradigm shift of the Internet which will integrate more into our daily lives. This is an exciting time to be in this space for innovation.
In the upcoming EdUniLend blog series, we’re going to release more guides related to blockchain aspects. Stay Tuned!
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