Decentralization and web3 in 2022: The future early internet pioneers imaged is finally coming

The origins of the internet were focused on decentralization

Early internet pioneers saw the world wide web as an open, democratic space with equal access for everyone and no centralized control. Tim Berners Lee, inventor of the world wide web saw the web as decentralized: no central computer, no single network, and no organization ‘running’ the web.

This is not how the web currently operates. In 2021, just six companies generated 57% of global network traffic, up from the 43% those same companies controlled in 2019. These six companies Google, Facebook, Netflix, Apple, Amazon, and Microsoft dominate and organize the majority of all network traffic.

That means these six companies set the rules and dominate digital culture. These networks are the core infrastructure of our digital lives. It’s not possible to opt-out without being excluded from a large part of digital culture, communication and work. These six companies aren’t neutral: they prioritize their own content and their advertising networks.

The core of web3 is decentralized, trustless, and permissionless.

Trustless – means contracts and transactions execute automatically based on code.
Permissionless – allows anyone to participate in the network, and no central authority can decide who is allowed to participate.

The point is, in a web2 environment you need to trust the person on the other end of the transaction. You need to trust that Google is showing you the search results you want to see, not just filtering and emphasizing the content they are profiting from.

Web3 is trustless: you don’t need to trust the platform when anyone can examine and verify exactly how the code works.

Universal access: The indexing and querying layer of web3

Moving beyond centralization means removing the choke points where just a few companies have disproportionate control over the network.

The Graph is one company that creates decentralized infrastructure for indexing and querying web3 data. Instead of one search engine giant with proprietary algorithms, The Graph creates a foundation for a network of independent, open-source coders who can access, search and organize data within the web3 ecosystem.

Data from The Graph is available to anyone, so anyone can actively participate in, and build on that web3 infrastructure. Everyone who uses the network can have a stake in the network.

All network participants and stakeholders receive rewards based on their contribution to the functioning of the network. It’s a bit like when people install solar panels onto their houses and are compensated for selling energy back into the grid. Network users pay for the resources they use and are compensated for running and powering the network.

Decentralization is the heart of web3 growth

As the web3 ecosystem expands, there are vast amounts of data and financial value within that ecosystem. At the end of 2021, there was over USD$200 billion total value locked (TVL) in Decentralized Finance (DeFi). Finance is not the only activity in web3 space, but it is a good indicator of how the space is growing and its’ importance in the digital economy.

The future of web3 will be built on decentralized, open-source platforms where data is available to everyone.  Any shop, any app developer, or any investor can have the same access to information that the largest tech companies have.

By Ian MacRae

Ian MacRae is the author of six books, the most recent of which is Dark Social. He is a work psychologist, consultant, speaker, and author who writes about a variety of psychology and workplace topics.

See his book reviewed here.

More about his book ->

From Donald Trump’s outrageous tweets to the impact of the GRU (Russia’s military intelligence agency) on foreign elections, through to echo chambers and amplification by bots and networks – the negative side of social media is becoming ever more apparent. Now far removed from a comfortable landscape of cat videos and family pictures, social media is now open to exploitation from a range of sources, from disgruntled employees to ‘fake news’.

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