Web3 — Mediated Wiki

{{Short description|Concept of a World Wide Web based on public blockchains}} {{Not to be confused|Web3D|Semantic Web{{!}}Web 3.0}} {{Update|date=May 2025}} {{Use American English|date=February 2022}} {{Use mdy dates|date=January 2022}}

'''Web3''' is an idea for a new iteration of the World Wide Web which incorporates concepts such as decentralization, blockchain technologies, tokenomics, and privacy-enhancing technologies.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Fenwick |first1=Mark |last2=Jurcys |first2=Paulius |date=2022 |title=The Contested Meaning of Web3 and Why it Matters for (IP) Lawyers |journal=SSRN Electronic Journal |doi=10.2139/ssrn.4017790 |issn=1556-5068 |ssrn=4017790 |doi-access=free }}</ref> The term is sometimes confused with the Semantic Web, as both have sometimes been referred to as "'''Web 3.0'''".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Khoshafian |first=Setrag |date=March 12, 2021 |title=Can the Real Web 3.0 Please Stand Up? |url=https://www.rtinsights.com/can-the-real-web-3-0-please-stand-up/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210312133316/https://www.rtinsights.com/can-the-real-web-3-0-please-stand-up/ |archive-date=March 12, 2021 |access-date=November 9, 2021 |website=RTInsights |language=en-US}}</ref> Some technologists and journalists have contrasted it with Web 2.0, in which they say user-generated content is controlled by a small group of companies referred to as Big Tech.<ref name="Mak-2021">{{Cite web |last=Mak |first=Aaron |date=November 9, 2021 |title=What Is Web3 and Why Are All the Crypto People Suddenly Talking About It? |url=https://slate.com/technology/2021/11/web3-explained-crypto-nfts-bored-apes.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211109110921/https://slate.com/technology/2021/11/web3-explained-crypto-nfts-bored-apes.html |archive-date=November 9, 2021 |access-date=November 9, 2021 |website=Slate |language=en}}</ref> The term "web 3.0" as applied to blockchain technology was coined in 2014 by Ethereum co-founder Gavin Wood, and the idea gained interest in 2021 from cryptocurrency enthusiasts, large technology companies, and venture capital firms.<ref name="Mak-2021" /><ref name="Read-2021" />

Academic surveys describe Web3 as combining smart contract platforms, peer-to-peer networks, and cryptographic mechanisms, while noting trade-offs involving scalability, interoperability, and governance.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Ray |first=Partha Pratim |date=2023 |title=Web3: A comprehensive review on background, technologies, applications, zero-trust architectures, challenges and future directions |journal=Internet of Things and Cyber-Physical Systems |volume=3 |pages=213–248 |doi=10.1016/j.iotcps.2023.05.003 |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2667345223000305 |url-status=live |access-date=December 29, 2025|doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Liu |first1=Weikang |last2=Cao |first2=Bin |last3=Peng |first3=Mugen |date=2024 |title=Web3 Technologies: Challenges and Opportunities |journal=IEEE Network |volume=38 |issue=3 |pages=187–193 |doi=10.1109/MNET.2023.3321546 |url=https://doi.org/10.1109/MNET.2023.3321546 |url-status=live |access-date=December 29, 2025|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

Critics have expressed concerns over the centralization of wealth to a small group of investors and individuals,<ref name="Kastrenakes-2021" /> or a loss of privacy due to more expansive data collection.<ref name="Allyn-2021" /> Billionaires like Elon Musk and Jack Dorsey have argued that web3 only serves as a buzzword or marketing term.<ref name="Locke-2021" /><ref>{{Cite news |date=2021-12-21 |title=Jack Dorsey Stirs Uproar by Dismissing Web3 as a Venture Capitalists' Plaything |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-12-21/jack-dorsey-stirs-uproar-by-dismissing-web3-as-a-vc-plaything |access-date=2022-07-05 |work=Bloomberg.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Macaulay |first=Thomas |date=2021-12-21 |title=Elon Musk and Jack Dorsey are right to raise concerns about Web3 |url=https://thenextweb.com/news/why-elon-musk-and-jack-dorsey-criticize-web3 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220418132436/https://thenextweb.com/news/why-elon-musk-and-jack-dorsey-criticize-web3 |archive-date=April 18, 2022 |access-date=2022-04-18 |website=TNW {{!}} Hardfork |language=en}}</ref>

==Background== {{Main|History of the World Wide Web|Web 2.0}}

Web 1.0 and Web 2.0 refer to eras in the history of the World Wide Web as it evolved through various technologies and formats. Web 1.0 refers roughly to the period from 1991 to 2004, where most sites consisted of static pages, and the vast majority of users were consumers, not producers of content.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Cormode |first1=Graham |last2=Krishnamurthy |first2=Balachander |date=June 2, 2008 |title=Key differences between Web 1.0 and Web 2.0 |url=https://firstmonday.org/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/2125/1972 |url-status=live |journal=First Monday |volume=13 |issue=6 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121025113431/http://firstmonday.org/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/2125/1972 |archive-date=October 25, 2012 |access-date=November 9, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Carter |first=Jamie |date=April 18, 2015 |title=Back to basics: is Web 1.0 making a comeback? |url=https://www.techradar.com/news/internet/web/is-web-1-0-making-a-big-comeback-1291121 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211212185137/https://www.techradar.com/news/internet/web/is-web-1-0-making-a-big-comeback-1291121 |archive-date=December 12, 2021 |access-date=December 12, 2021 |website=TechRadar |language=en}}</ref> Web 2.0 is based around the idea of "the web as platform"<ref name="Hosch-2017">{{Cite encyclopedia |title=Web 2.0 |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Web-20 |access-date=November 9, 2021 |last=Hosch |first=William L. |date=September 7, 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220120110407/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Web-20 |archive-date=January 20, 2022}}</ref> and centers on user-created content uploaded to forums, social media and networking services, blogs, and wikis, among other services.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hosch |first=William L. |date=September 7, 2017 |title=Web 2.0 |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Web-20 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220120110407/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Web-20 |archive-date=January 20, 2022 |access-date=December 12, 2021 |website=Encyclopedia Britannica |language=en}}</ref> Web 2.0 is generally considered to have begun around 2004 and continues to the current day.<ref name="Hosch-2017" /><ref name="oreilly">{{Cite web |last=O'Reilly |first=Tim |author-link=Tim O'Reilly |date=November 30, 2005 |title=What Is Web 2.0 |url=http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/a/oreilly/tim/news/2005/09/30/what-is-web-20.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130424204457/http://oreilly.com/web2/archive/what-is-web-20.html |archive-date=April 24, 2013 |access-date=November 9, 2021 |website=O'Reilly}}</ref><ref name="Mak-2021" />

==Terminology and concept== Web3 is distinct from Tim Berners-Lee's 1999 concept of a Semantic Web, which was also sometimes referred to as Web 3.0.<ref name="a100">{{Cite web |last=Shannon |first=Victoria |date=2006-05-23 |title=A 'more revolutionary' Web |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/23/technology/23iht-web.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111126061920/http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/23/technology/23iht-web.html |archive-date=2011-11-26 |website=The New York Times}}</ref> While the Semantic Web envisioned a web of linked data, web3 in the blockchain context refers to a decentralized internet built upon distributed ledger technologies.<ref name="a100" /> Ethereum co-founder Gavin Wood first popularized the use of the term Web 3.0 in a blockchain context in 2014.<ref name="Edelman" /> Wood used the term to refer to a "decentralized online ecosystem based on blockchain."<ref name="Edelman">{{Cite magazine |last=Edelman |first=Gilad |title=What Is Web3, Anyway? |url=https://www.wired.com/story/web3-gavin-wood-interview/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220210233332/https://www.wired.com/story/web3-gavin-wood-interview/ |archive-date=February 10, 2022 |access-date=December 3, 2021 |magazine=Wired |language=en-US |issn=1059-1028}}</ref> "Web3" and "Web 3.0" have been used interchangeably by later writers, leading to confusion between the two concepts.<ref name="crunch2">{{Cite web |last=Alford |first=Harry |date=September 16, 2021 |title=Crypto's networked collaboration will drive Web 3.0 |url=https://social.techcrunch.com/2021/09/16/cryptos-networked-collaboration-will-drive-web-3-0/ |access-date=November 9, 2021 |website=TechCrunch |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Khoshafian |first=Setrag |date=March 12, 2021 |title=Can the Real Web 3.0 Please Stand Up? |url=https://www.rtinsights.com/can-the-real-web-3-0-please-stand-up/ |access-date=November 9, 2021 |website=RTInsights |language=en-US}}</ref> In popular and industry usage, "Web 3.0" is sometimes used interchangeably with "web3" to refer to blockchain-based proposals rather than the Semantic Web.<ref name="crunch2" /><ref name="crunch">{{Cite web |last=Alford |first=Harry |date=September 16, 2021 |title=Crypto's networked collaboration will drive Web 3.0 |url=https://techcrunch.com/2021/09/16/cryptos-networked-collaboration-will-drive-web-3-0/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211110034411/https://social.techcrunch.com/2021/09/16/cryptos-networked-collaboration-will-drive-web-3-0/ |archive-date=November 10, 2021 |access-date=November 9, 2021 |website=TechCrunch |language=en-US}}</ref>

The definition of the term has been described by ''Bloomberg'' journalist Olga Kharif as "hazy", but it revolves around the idea of decentralization and often incorporate blockchain technologies, such as various cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens (NFTs).<ref name="Mak-2021" /> Kharif has described web3 as an idea that "would build financial assets, in the form of tokens, into the inner workings of almost anything you do online".<ref name="Bloomberg 2021">{{Cite web |last=Kharif |first=Olga |date=December 10, 2021 |title=What You Need to Know About Web3, Crypto's Attempt to Reinvent the Internet |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-12-10/web3-is-crypto-s-attempt-to-reinvent-the-internet-here-s-what-you-should-know |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220208152235/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-12-10/web3-is-crypto-s-attempt-to-reinvent-the-internet-here-s-what-you-should-know |archive-date=February 8, 2022 |access-date=December 12, 2021 |website=Bloomberg}}</ref> Web3 has been proposed as a possible response to the over-centralization of the web in a few Big Tech companies.<ref name="Chaffer 2022">{{Cite journal |last1=Chaffer |first1=Tomer Jordi |last2=Goldston |first2=Justin |date=November 2022 |title=On the Existential Basis of Self-Sovereign Identity and Soulbound Tokens: An Examination of the "Self" in the Age of Web3 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/366165823 |doi=10.33423/jsis.v17i3.5637 |access-date=July 19, 2023 |journal=Journal of Strategic Innovation and Sustainability }}</ref><ref name="Mak-2021" /><ref name="Feiner-2021" /> Web3 could potentially improve data security, scalability, and privacy.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Zarrin |first1=Javad |last2=Wen Phang |first2=Hao |last3=Babu Saheer |first3=Lakshmi |last4=Zarrin |first4=Bahram |date=May 15, 2021 |title=Blockchain for decentralization of internet: prospects, trends, and challenges |url=https://doi.org/10.1007/s10586-021-03301-8 |url-status=live |journal=Cluster Computing (journal) |language=en |volume=24 |issue=4 |pages=2841–2866 |doi=10.1007/s10586-021-03301-8 |issn=1573-7543 |pmc=8122205 |pmid=34025209 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220924191349/https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10586-021-03301-8 |archive-date=September 24, 2022 |access-date=November 10, 2021}}</ref> According Kharif in December 2021, skeptics say the idea "is a long way from proving its use beyond niche applications, many of them tools aimed at crypto traders".<ref name="Bloomberg 2021" /> DuPont et al (2024) describe web3 as an umbrella term for NFTs, cryptocurrency, and blockchain which appeals to users who are "not necessarily plugged into the cypher-punk or crypto-anarchist ideals of Bitcoin".<ref>{{cite book |last1= DuPont |first1=Quinn |last2= Kavanagh |first2=Donncha |last3= Dylan-Ennis |first3=Paul |title=Defining Web3: A Guide to the New Cultural Economy |chapter=Introduction |date=1 July 2024 |pages=1-2 |doi=10.1108/S0733-558X202489 |publisher=Emerald Insights}}</ref> Rohn (2025) describes the term as synonymous with "blockchain economy".<ref>{{cite book |last1=Rohn |first1=Ulrike |editor1-last=Gershon |editor1-first=Richard A. |title=De Gruyter handbook of media technology and innovation |date=2025 |publisher=De Gruyter |location=Berlin ; Boston |isbn=9783111145693 |page=1941 |chapter=9. Web3:Exploring Technologies, Challenges, and Innovative Applications in the Media and Creative Industries}}</ref>

In 2019, ''The Conversation'' quoted legal scholars discussing concerns over the difficulty of regulating a decentralized web, which they reported might make it more difficult to prevent cybercrime, online harassment, hate speech, and the dissemination of child sexual abuse material.<ref name="Harbinja">{{Cite web |last1=Harbinja |first1=Edina |last2=Karagiannopoulos |first2=Vasileios |date=March 11, 2019 |title=Web 3.0: the decentralised web promises to make the internet free again |url=http://theconversation.com/web-3-0-the-decentralised-web-promises-to-make-the-internet-free-again-113139 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190314032739/http://theconversation.com/web-3-0-the-decentralised-web-promises-to-make-the-internet-free-again-113139 |archive-date=March 14, 2019 |access-date=November 9, 2021 |website=The Conversation |language=en}}</ref> The concept of Web3 has also been described as a part of a cryptocurrency bubble, and as an extension of harmful and short-lived blockchain-based trends such as NFTs.<ref name="Hatmaker-2021" /> The use of cryptocurrencies, NFTs, and blockchains in general also introduce potential harmful environmental effects.<ref name="Read-2021" /> Others have expressed beliefs that web3 and the associated technologies are a pyramid scheme.<ref name="Read-2021" />

A policy brief published by the Bennett Institute for Public Policy at the University of Cambridge in March 2022 defined web3 as "the putative next generation of the web's technical, legal, and payments infrastructure—including blockchain, smart contracts and cryptocurrencies."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Crypto, Web3 and the Metaverse |url=https://www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Policy-brief-Crypto-web3-and-the-metaverse.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220815091026/http://www.bennettinstitute.cam.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/Policy-brief-Crypto-web3-and-the-metaverse.pdf |archive-date=August 15, 2022 |access-date=2022-06-26 |website=Bennett Institute for Public Policy |language=en-GB}}</ref>

Web3 proposals often include decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) and decentralized finance (DeFi).<ref name="Mak-2021" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Roose |first=Kevin |date=November 5, 2021 |title=Crypto Is Cool. Now Get on the Yacht. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/05/technology/nft-nyc-metaverse.html |url-access=limited |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211105142033/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/05/technology/nft-nyc-metaverse.html |archive-date=November 5, 2021 |access-date=November 9, 2021 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

===Decentralization=== Ethics professor Kevin Werbach said in 2021 that "many so-called 'Web 3.0' solutions are not as decentralized as they seem, while others have yet to show they are scalable, secure and accessible enough for the mass market", adding that this "may change, but it's not a given that all these limitations will be overcome".<ref name="Miller 2021">{{Cite web |last=Miller |first=Ron |date=December 14, 2021 |title=The irrational exuberance of web3 - TechCrunch |url=https://techcrunch.com/2021/12/14/the-irrational-exuberance-of-web3/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220924191342/https://techcrunch.com/2021/12/14/the-irrational-exuberance-of-web3/ |archive-date=September 24, 2022 |access-date=December 16, 2021 |website=TechCrunch}}</ref>

In early 2022, Moxie Marlinspike, creator of Signal, wrote about web3 as not being as decentralized as it appears to be, mainly due to consolidation in the cryptocurrency field, including in blockchain application programming interfaces which are currently mainly controlled by the companies Alchemy and Infura; cryptocurrency exchanges which are mainly dominated by Binance, Coinbase, MetaMask, and OpenSea; and the stablecoin market which is currently dominated by Tether. Marlinspike also remarked that the new web resembles the old web.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Barrett |first=Brian |date=January 8, 2022 |title=Security News This Week: Norton Put a Cryptominer in Its Antivirus Software |url=https://www.wired.com/story/norton-antivirus-cryptominer-nft-thefts-security-roundup/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220108164228/https://www.wired.com/story/norton-antivirus-cryptominer-nft-thefts-security-roundup/ |archive-date=January 8, 2022 |access-date=January 8, 2021 |magazine=Wired}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Marlinspike |first=Moxie |author-link=Moxie Marlinspike |date=January 7, 2022 |title=My first impressions of web3 |url=https://moxie.org/2022/01/07/web3-first-impressions.html |access-date=January 8, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Nover |first=Scott |date=January 19, 2022 |title=Web3 is not the decentralized utopia you've been promised |url=https://qz.com/2112965/web3-is-not-decentralized/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220121153751/https://qz.com/2112965/web3-is-not-decentralized/ |archive-date=January 21, 2022 |access-date=2022-01-21 |website=Quartz |language=en}}</ref>

==Reception== In 2021, interest in the web3 concept began to increase.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Nield |first=David |date=December 14, 2021 |title=What Is Web3 and Why Should You Care? |url=https://gizmodo.com/what-is-web-3-and-why-should-you-care-1848204799 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220209174815/https://gizmodo.com/what-is-web-3-and-why-should-you-care-1848204799 |archive-date=February 9, 2022 |access-date=December 19, 2021 |website=Gizmodo |language=en-us}}</ref> Particular interest spiked toward the end of 2021, largely due to interest from cryptocurrency enthusiasts and investments from high-profile technologists and companies.<ref name="Mak-2021" /><ref name="Read-2021">{{Cite web |last=Read |first=Max |date=October 24, 2021 |title=Why Your Group Chat Could Be Worth Millions |url=https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2021/10/whats-a-dao-why-your-group-chat-could-be-worth-millions.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211024132258/https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2021/10/whats-a-dao-why-your-group-chat-could-be-worth-millions.html |archive-date=October 24, 2021 |access-date=November 9, 2021 |website=Intelligencer |language=en-us}}</ref> Executives from venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz traveled to Washington, DC, in October 2021 to lobby for the idea as a potential solution to questions about regulation of the web, with which policymakers have been grappling.<ref name="Feiner-2021">{{Cite web |last=Feiner |first=Lauren |date=October 13, 2021 |title=Prominent Silicon Valley VC firm Andreessen Horowitz embarks on major crypto policy push in Washington |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2021/10/13/vc-firm-andreessen-horowitz-to-make-crypto-policy-push-in-washington.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211013101315/https://www.cnbc.com/2021/10/13/vc-firm-andreessen-horowitz-to-make-crypto-policy-push-in-washington.html |archive-date=October 13, 2021 |access-date=November 9, 2021 |website=CNBC |language=en}}</ref> ''The New York Times'' and ''Fortune'' reported in December 2021 that $27{{Nbsp}}billion had been invested in blockchain projects due to interest in the Web3 concept.<ref name="The New York Times 2021">{{Cite news |date=December 5, 2021 |title=Welcome to 'Web3.' What's That? |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/05/business/dealbook/what-is-web3.html |url-access=limited |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211228/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/05/business/dealbook/what-is-web3.html |archive-date=December 28, 2021 |access-date=December 16, 2021 |work=The New York Times}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref name="Goodkind 2021">{{Cite news |last=Goodkind |first=Nicole |date=December 6, 2021 |title=What is Web3? |url=https://fortune.com/2021/12/06/what-is-web3-investment/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211216204548/https://fortune.com/2021/12/06/what-is-web3-investment/ |archive-date=December 16, 2021 |access-date=December 16, 2021 |work=Fortune}}</ref>

In late 2021, Reddit, Discord, and other Web 2.0 companies experimented with incorporating web3 technologies into their platforms.<ref name="Mak-2021" /><ref name="Hatmaker-2021">{{Cite web |last=Hatmaker |first=Taylor |date=November 9, 2021 |title=NFTs and crypto wallets could be in Discord's future |url=https://techcrunch.com/2021/11/09/discord-nfts-metamask-crypto/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211110021057/https://social.techcrunch.com/2021/11/09/discord-nfts-metamask-crypto/ |archive-date=November 10, 2021 |access-date=November 9, 2021 |website=TechCrunch |language=en-US}}</ref> On November 8, 2021, Discord CEO Jason Citron tweeted a screenshot suggesting the platform might be integrating cryptocurrency wallets into their platform. Two days later, and after heavy user backlash,<ref name="Hatmaker-2021" /><ref name="discord backlash1">{{Cite web |last=Hatmaker |first=Taylor |date=November 10, 2021 |title=Discord pushes pause on exploring crypto and NFTs amidst user backlash |url=https://techcrunch.com/2021/11/10/discord-nfts-crypto-jason-citron/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211111211424/https://social.techcrunch.com/2021/11/10/discord-nfts-crypto-jason-citron/ |archive-date=November 11, 2021 |access-date=November 12, 2021 |website=TechCrunch |language=en-US}}</ref> Discord announced they had no plans to integrate such technologies and that it was an internal-only concept that had been developed in a company-wide hackathon.<ref name="discord backlash1" />

In November 2021, James Grimmelmann of Cornell University referred to web3 as vaporware, calling it "a promised future internet that fixes all the things people don't like about the current internet, even when it's contradictory." Grimmelmann also argued that moving the internet toward a blockchain-focused infrastructure would centralize and cause more data collection compared to the current internet.<ref name="Allyn-2021">{{Cite news |last=Allyn |first=Bobby |date=November 21, 2021 |title=People are talking about Web3. Is it the Internet of the future or just a buzzword? |url=https://www.npr.org/2021/11/21/1056988346/web3-internet-jargon-or-future-vision |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211121110540/https://www.npr.org/2021/11/21/1056988346/web3-internet-jargon-or-future-vision |archive-date=November 21, 2021 |access-date=2022-01-21 |work=All Things Considered |publisher=NPR |language=en}}</ref> In December 2021, software engineer Stephen Diehl described Web3 as a "vapid marketing campaign that attempts to reframe the public's negative associations of crypto assets into a false narrative about disruption of legacy tech company hegemony."<ref>{{Cite web |title=The irrational exuberance of web3 |url=https://techcrunch.com/2021/12/14/the-irrational-exuberance-of-web3/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220924191342/https://techcrunch.com/2021/12/14/the-irrational-exuberance-of-web3/ |archive-date=September 24, 2022 |access-date=2022-01-30 |website=TechCrunch |date=December 14, 2021 |language=en-US}}</ref> Liam Proven, writing for ''The Register'', concluded that web3 is "a myth, a fairy story. It's what parents tell their kids about at night if they want them to grow up to become economists".<ref name="Proven 2021">{{Cite web |last=Proven |first=Liam |date=December 15, 2021 |title=Web3: The next generation of the web is here… apparently |url=https://www.theregister.com/2021/12/15/web3_apparently_the_next_generation/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211215181723/https://www.theregister.com/2021/12/15/web3_apparently_the_next_generation/ |archive-date=December 15, 2021 |access-date=December 16, 2021 |website=The Register}}</ref> That same month, Jack Dorsey, co-founder and former CEO of Twitter, dismissed web3 as a "venture capitalists' plaything".<ref name="Bloomberg 2021 Jack Dorsey">{{Cite web |last=Vlad Savov |date=December 21, 2021 |title=Jack Dorsey Stirs Uproar by Dismissing Web3 as a Venture Capitalists' Plaything |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-12-21/jack-dorsey-stirs-uproar-by-dismissing-web3-as-a-vc-plaything |access-date=December 21, 2021 |website=Bloomberg}}</ref> Dorsey opined that web3 will not democratize the internet, but it will shift power from players like Facebook to venture capital funds like Andreessen Horowitz.<ref name="Kastrenakes-2021">{{Cite web |last=Kastrenakes |first=Jacob |date=December 21, 2021 |title=Jack Dorsey says VCs really own Web3 (and Web3 boosters are pretty mad about it) |url=https://www.theverge.com/2021/12/21/22848162/jack-dorsey-web3-criticism-a16z-ownership-venture-capital-twitter |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211224164513/https://www.theverge.com/2021/12/21/22848162/jack-dorsey-web3-criticism-a16z-ownership-venture-capital-twitter |archive-date=December 24, 2021 |access-date=December 22, 2021 |website=The Verge}}</ref> Also in December 2021, SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk expressed skepticism about web3 in a tweet, saying that web3 "seems more marketing buzzword than reality right now."<ref name="Locke-2021">{{Cite web |last=Locke |first=Taylor |date=December 20, 2021 |title=To Elon Musk, Web3 seems more like a 'marketing buzzword' than a reality |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2021/12/20/elon-musk-web3-seems-more-marketing-buzzword-than-reality-right-now.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211224190646/https://www.cnbc.com/2021/12/20/elon-musk-web3-seems-more-marketing-buzzword-than-reality-right-now.html |archive-date=December 24, 2021 |access-date=December 24, 2021 |website=CNBC |language=en}}</ref>

==References== {{reflist}} {{Authority control}}

Category:Web3 Category:2020s in Internet culture Category:Blockchains Category:Decentralization Category:2014 neologisms