London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Jul 25, 2025

What is Web3 and why is Jack Dorsey attacking it?

What is Web3 and why is Jack Dorsey attacking it?

In theory, Web3 will allow you to go online without the need for search engines such as Google or social media like Facebook. But some say Web3 is under the control of the venture capital industry.

Web3 is the latest Silicon Valley buzzword, which is being dubbed as the next phase of the Internet. It has got tech and cryptocurrency enthusiasts buzzing but others, Jack Dorsey in particular, argues it is already in the hands of deep-pocketed venture capitalists.

But what is Web3 and can this future vision of a decentralised and egalitarian Internet work?

What is Web3?


Put simply, Web3 is an umbrella term for an online ecosystem that cuts out the big middlemen on the Internet. Platforms on Web3 are not owned by central gatekeepers and you wouldn’t navigate the Internet through search engines such as Google.

It uses blockchain, the same system used by cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

What’s so bad about Web 1.0 and Web 2.0?


The first version of the world wide web was launched by Sir Tim Berners-Lee in 1989. Back then, the few people who had the knowledge to could put information online in a decentralised way.

Web 2.0 came some 10 years later and started with the development of tools that were easy to use, allowing anyone to upload content online via the tech giants such as Google, Twitter and Facebook (now Meta).

But these free tools supplied by the tech companies, that allowed everyone to become publishers, was also harvesting our personal data to be used for tailored advertisements and marketing campaigns.

In theory, Web3 will be a combination of the two earlier versions of the Internet but will take the power away from the tech giants and corporations and put it back into the people’s hands.

And instead of exchanging our data to upload content online, users can become participants and shareholders by earning tokens on the blockchain system, which will allow you to have a say over a network.

“Web 2.0 is the transmission of information but Web3 is the transmission of values,” said Pascal Gauthier, CEO of the crypto hardware wallet Ledger, one of France’s unicorns.

“We can see that currently on the Internet, your experience becomes bad as soon as you have to take out your credit card,” he told Euronews Next, adding, Web3 basically fixes issues such as payments.

How does it work?


In the Web3 world, search engines, marketplaces and social networks will have no overriding overlord.

So you can control your own data and have a single personalised account where you could flit from your emails to online shopping and social media, creating a public record of your activity on the blockchain system in the process.

A blockchain is a secure database that is operated by users collectively and can be searched by anyone. People are also rewarded with tokens for participating.

It comes in the form of a shared ledger that uses cryptography to secure information. This ledger takes the form of a series of records or “blocks” that are each added onto the previous block in the chain, hence the name.

Each block contains a timestamp, data, and a hash. This is a unique identifier for all the contents of the block, sort of like a digital fingerprint.

Don’t we already have Web3?


The idea of a decentralised Internet has been in the works for the last decade with the explosion of cryptocurrencies and blockchain, and there are arguably some early Web3 applications that already exist. Big tech companies are already betting big on it and even assembling Web3 teams. But we are not officially in the Web3 world.

Can Web3 be egalitarian?


A decentralised and egalitarian Internet may sound far-fetched but it already appears doomed to fail.

The people currently pouring in tens of billions of dollars into Web3 services are tech companies, software developers, venture capitalists and hedge funds.

Meanwhile, many current blockchain networks are not equally distributed and are in the hands of venture capitalists and early adopters. Crypto company Hashed raised €175 million and venture funds Kraken Ventures Fund and Brinc have also raised millions.


This week, the former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey suggested that Web3 is under the control of the venture capital industry, particularly the venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, an early Facebook backer and a Web3 advocate. It was reported that representatives from the firm visited Capitol Hill in November to try and influence regulation around Web3.

“You don’t own Web3. The VCs and their LPs do. It will never escape their incentives. It’s ultimately a centralized entity with a different label,” the CEO of Block (the payments company formally known as Square) tweeted.

On Thursday, Dorsey tweeted in response that he had been blocked on Twitter by Marc Andreessen, co-founder of Andreessen Horowitz.


Meanwhile, Tesla chief Elon Musk says Web3 is more of a “marketing buzzword” than reality.

"I’m not suggesting web3 is real – seems more marketing buzzword than reality right now – just wondering what the future will be like in 10, 20 or 30 years. 2051 sounds crazy futuristic," he wrote on Twitter.

Musk also asked where it was, to the annoyance of Web3 devotees.

What are the challenges?


Experts have expressed concerns over how to regulate a decentralised internet, which would make it even more difficult to prevent cybercrime, hate speech and misinformation.

Web3 can also be hard to use but Gauthier says the challenge is not if people can access it easily but if they know how to manage their data securely.

“Anyone on the planet can access Bitcoin or Ethereum today, as long as you have an internet connection. So there are billions of human beings that can access Web3 systems while the same human beings cannot necessarily access the banking system,” he said.

“To understand how Web3 works, there are some mistakes you should be aware of and you have to pay attention to your safety.

“Before, in the financial world, security was provided by your bank. All of a sudden, now, you have to do it yourself since you own the privileges and you can manage your money online. So that means that there is a whole education and understanding part of the security issues that are important.”

Building the technology to make Web3 fully decentralised, which has never been done before, is also one of the challenges.

“Creating decentralised tools is not easy. Centralised systems are easier to build but less transparent,” said Úrsula O’Kuinghttons, director of public relations of the blockchain infrastructure company Parity Technologies, who also works with the Web3 Foundation.

“Some blockchain hybrids are a combination of centralised and decentralised systems but creating 100 per cent decentralised tools is the hardest and the longest part. But this is what Web3 is truly about,” she told Euronews Next.

Comments

Claire 4 year ago
If Jack Dorsey is against it, I am FOR it!

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
Thai Civilian Death Toll Rises to 12 in Cambodian Cross-Border Attacks
TSUNAMI: Trump Just Crossed the Rubicon—And There’s No Turning Back
Over 120 Criminal Cases Dismissed in Boston Amid Public Defender Shortage
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
×