News hardware By using the Bitcoin network, the former CEO of Twitter wants to revolutionize the Internet more strongly than Elon Musk
We already learn every day about the new internet technologies that constitute the concept of Web3, but Jack Dorsey, former CEO of Twitter decided that it was necessary to take the next step: Web5. An anonymous internet based on Bitcoin blockchain. Where has web4 gone?
A Web5 before Web4
To understand what Jack Dorsey means by Web5, we must already look at the different generations of the Web.
The Web1, which appeared in the 1990s, constitutes the beginnings of the web that we know today. It is defined by its pages allowing few interactions. This generation of the web was mainly used to get information by reading content.
Then, we talk about Web2 for the early 2000s. A more permissive internet for users through social networks in particular. The Internet user then became for the first time a real player on the web by publishing content on blogs, social networks or forums.
Web3 is the worthy successor to web2. This generation, which appeared after the creation of Bitcoin, refers to a more decentralized internet, not belonging to any large company. The ultimate goal of web3 is to replace intermediaries with blockchain in order to obtain direct interactions between individuals. For example, the Bitcoin blockchain replaces banks as intermediaries. Thus, bitcoin makes possible direct transactions between people.
But while Web4 still does not exist, even in an embryonic state, Jack Dorsey informs us that he is already working on a “Web5” internet based on the Bitcoin blockchain.
The Web5 on the Bitcoin Network
Jack Dorsey, who left his post at Twitter in November 2021, intends to stay in the game. With the TDB subsidiary of his company Block, a digital payment company, he announces that he is currently developing a “Web5”.
By adding Web2 and Web3 to form Web5, the company skips the fourth generation.
The goal here is to keep the innovations of Web2 by actively incorporating the bitcoin blockchain.
For this web5, the subsidiary wishes to develop a decentralized identity system (DID) where each Internet player would be the owner and responsible for their personal data.
@Namcios, expert blockchain journalist, explains:
“@TDB54566975 just announced that they are building ‘Web5’. This new decentralized web relies on #Bitcoin to put users back in control of their data and identity – once and for all…”
In this vision of the future internet, the GDPR is over, companies will no longer store your data, it will only be on the Bitcoin blockchain and only you will have access to it thanks to a private key.
Concretely, when you enter a site on a web5 site, it will communicate directly with the bitcoin blockchain to obtain the information.
Thus, thanks to the “zero-knowledge proof” the site will be able to validate your age without having access to this information. The site will not be able to store this data since it will only obtain validation from the Bitcoin blockchain.
With this system, the company explains that each individual will be technically able to protect their identity on the Internet of tomorrow. If the promise is kept, this web5 could solve the growing data breaches. Indeed, in 2021 the CNIL noted a 79% increase in data theft compared to the previous year.