This article would not be possible without web 2.0, which gave rise to the internet and allowed users to interact with data. This technology has facilitated the sharing of information and brought people together.

Web 3, which is still in development, promises even more advances in this area. Startups are raising millions of dollars every day to get in early and take advantage of this revolutionary technology.

Social media networks are buzzing with news about Web 3.0, which is said to be powered by blockchain technology. Some people think it will be a lasting trend, while others aren’t so sure.

It’s important to have a basic understanding of Web 3.0 before you form an opinion about it. In this article, we’ll take a look at the history of the internet and how it has evolved up to this point. We’ll also explore what changes Web 3.0 could bring about in our lives.

The Evolution of the Web.

The internet has come a long way since its early days. It’s gone through different evolutionary stages, Web 1.0, Web 2.0, and Web 3.0. Each stage brought with it new and innovative changes.

What is Web 1.0?
In this very first iteration of the web, most users were mere content consumers, and the creators/publishers were the developers. They were the ones who built the information (in text or Video format) displayed by these websites.

Looking back now, we endured this for an estimated thirteen years. This web-only allowed users to read, there was no interaction between humans and data. The content was served up from a file system rather than from a database as we have it in today’s dynamic HTML web.

What is Web 2.0?
The internet as we know it today is commonly referred to as web2. It is the interactive and social web, this saw the rise of several applications and software that easily allowed anyone to be a part of the content creation process.
Humans could interact with the data (be it in text, video or image format) shared. Let’s call it the Like, share, save, & comment era of web evolution shall we?
The simplicity of Web2 is simple, allowed millions of people around the world to become creators, thus birthing the influencer era!

Web 3.0
This new frontier of internet technology seeks to ensure that ownership rights and power is properly distributed. The driving force behind this vision is Blockchain technology. To foster a more democratic internet governance users, can contribute or determine how platforms are run and also allow users to create content or generally participate without monetising their personal data.

What is wrong with Web 2.0?
In today’s internet Apps, Websites, and Software all follow the same life cycles. A look at some popular apps like YouTube, Twitter etc we’ll see the same trend, Launch, onboarding as many users as possible, and then monetizing the user base.

All the information gathered from users is then used to inform personalized ads, which leads to more revenue for these companies. The core of the internet as we know it today is user data mining and its centralization.

Web 3.0 makes web 2.0 better uu, it becomes decentralized, information is verifiable, users decided what happens and permissionless etc.

What is the difference?
Because, to some folks, the internet is doing just fine with its current state and for the purpose of clarity. We’ll look at a few relatable concepts in web 2 and compare them to web 3 offerings.

Web 2 applications like YouTube and the likes can decide to yank your ads or accounts off their platform without prior warnings. For some folks, this can mean a total loss of intellectual work done over years without an iota of recompense.
Also, power is in the hand of just a few corporations if one of them gets hacked or experiences a glitch. It could result in huge financial losses for the businesses that rely on them. A classic example is that one time Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram shut down for about 7 hours in 2021. Brands, corporate bodies, influencers, and SMEs were in limbo for as long as it lasted.

__Is Web 3.0 really the future? __

Although it is hard to say when Web 3.0 will be in full swing, there are a few things today that already point towards why we should all embrace this new frontier.
Web 3.0 will birth an era where the internet is able to understand you and not just pick up on details from a search query. You're able to find information specifically as you need. A great example of this is Apple’s Siri and Amazon’s Alexa. But then it would be the same for search engines.

As much as Web 3.0 might seem like a concept for the distant future for some, the gaming industry is currently living this reality. The Metaverse is agog with gaming tokens that allow gamers to invest in their favourite games and decide on how things out.

Nike, Amazon, Meta (previously known as Facebook), Ubisoft and a host of web 2.0 companies are creating virtual worlds powered in part by Web 3. Imagine an immersive virtual shopping experience, that allows you to buy all you need without physically going into a store.

Non-fungible tokens (NFT) will go beyond owning exotic JPegs, it will play a role in reshaping the gaming industry by allowing players to become the immutable owners of the items they accrue.