• Jack Dorsey first coined the image of the web5 network after vividly expressing his grievances.
• Decentralized Web Nodes are the primary structures of the decentralized network and will form a peer-to-peer network for all web5 users.
• Web5 network uses Decentralized Identifiers or DID and verifiable credentials.

The Web3 ecosystem has revolutionized the concept of the Internet. Creating a decentralized network has unravelled our perception of how the Internet and other industries work. Blockchain technology, its underlying concept, has made numerous decentralized applications ranging from digital currency to decentralized supply chain systems. Since the past decade, web3 and its multiple applications have advanced our very notion of technology, ushering in a global digital transformation. Africa is at the forefront, breaking records never seen before. This evolution has brought us a new notion called web5.

According to its innovators, web5 is the improved version of web3 but not all see it in such a light. Many have questioned its applications, and some have stated its pure mimicry of web3. This article will shed some light on this new variation of web3 and decide whether this new decentralized network is an improvement or meekly a copyright infringement.

Evolution of the Web

Today the Internet plays an integral role in society, connecting millions of users worldwide. Businesses, homes and multiple industries rely on the Internet for connecting, information gathering, and processing. It had played such an integral role in society that many cannot think of a time when the Internet did not exist. In actuality, the Internet is less old than many people believe. Compared to other technologies that have gained global recognition, the Internet is barely four decades old, dating back to its first roots, Web1, from the early 1990s.

Web1

Web1, or the synthetic web, was the first invention of the Internet, and back then, it was a revolutionary concept that would usher in a new era.

Berners-Lee pioneered the early development of Web1 when he wrote the fundamental technologies. This would later power virtually every Internet variation, including the Web3 ecosystem.

It also included the very first webpage editor, the WorldWideWeb.app. It used HyperText Markup Language(HTML), Uniform Resource Identifier(URL) and HyperText Transfer Protocol(HTTP).

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His work led to the development of the Netscape Navigator, which ushered in the era of Web1.

Web1 was a static website where information only ran two ways between the client and server. The concept of content creation only existed for those who had access to servers which presented slight improvement. Fortunately, as the years progressed, so did the reach of Web1. More clients emerged, delivering more information and expanding the servers. Later developers revamped the concept of web1 entirely and created the next iteration of the Internet, Web2.

Web2.0

Web 2.0 represented an entirely new paradigm shift for the Internet. This variation is the most lasted far more and is still the backbone of global communication despite the existence of the web3 ecosystem. Web 2.0 presented an interactive social and compelling technology that stemmed globally, giving rise to today’s most known technology, such as virtualization, cloud computing and data centres.

Centralized networks have brought in numerous innovations but have also made hacking through the various available tools easier. In addition, it presented a single point of failure. Centralized networks have at least one severe, which governs the entire network. With enough time, resources and access, hackers can compromise a complete system. In addition, it gave owners and administrations enough power to determine who gets access to information, relatively limiting control to a few parties.

These flaws late gave birth to the web3 ecosystem.

Understanding web5 and how it works

The Web5 network is a new concept invented during the initial stages of the web3 ecosystem. At the tie, the idea of a decentralized network gained plenty of sanction, and many users dived into the concept of blockchain applications. However, only a few were happy with how the idea of digital currency work in the decentralized network. Jack Dorsey first coined the image of the web5 network after vividly expressing his grievances.

He stated that the web3 ecosystem does not meet its main objectives. Jack initially gained the fundamental concept of the Emotional web from Berners, who noted that the Internet needed a new iteration to create a new open, connected and intelligent web. According to many individuals, this was the Web3 ecosystem; however, Jack stated otherwise.

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The Web5 network will be a notch higher than its predecessors, and its functioning will incorporate decentralized networks, blockchain associations, AI, IoT and digital currency in its rawest form.

The Web5 network will encompass all its predecessors (Web 1,2, and 3), but it will go beyond the capabilities of web3 and include an emotional state. Essentially this network will become the emotional bridge between humans and machines. Its primary concept revolves around independence and controls with interactive features.

To achieve this mission, Jack created Block Inc, an organization dedicated to making the Web5 network while incorporating it with the original digital currency, Bitcoin.

How it works

According to its creators, the Web5 network will become the “true” decentralized network by incorporating several functionalities. First, Decentralized Web Nodes are the primary structures of the decentralized network and will form a peer-to-peer network for all web5 users.

Furthermore, the Web5 network uses Decentralized Identifiers or DID and verifiable credentials. Jack emphasized this factor since it presents actual data ownership directly to them. Essentially users can create self-sovereign identities within the blockchain applications. This creates a decentralized identity allowing users to interact with each other without storing their credentials in a single server. Verifiable credentials are used to prove different aspects of an identity. 

This technology creates an identity layer that the web3 ecosystem needs to improve.

Is the web5 network a mimic of web3, or does it upgrade

The main objective of the Emotional web is to create an ideal platform that allows users to expand their creativity. If implemented correctly, it can significantly improve Ecommerc since its system can focus on interpreting the users’ emotions, which businesses can leverage and enhance their products. Creating an Identity layer is a fundamental difference from the web3 ecosystem.

Currently, most blockchain applications focus on finding a way to co-exist with the web2 network. In doing so, most blockchain applications have compromised the main objectives adding a few centralized faros that many have frowned upon. Today digital currencies exist in the web2 platform, and some have claimed that various decentralized networks have lost sight of their main objectives.

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The web5 network effectively rejects the notion of web2. Due to its identity layer, its implementation cannot co-exist with any major network. Furthermore, Jack Dorsey intends to build his web5 network based on digital currencies such as Bitcoin. Incorporating ist fundamental blockchain application will significantly improve its security but further stretch the gap between itself and web2.

Difficulty in Deployment

This is a significant problem since transitioning between two variations of the Internet will take some time. It took almost two decades for web2 to completely assimilate web1, and both have the same fundamental aspects. The web3 ecosystem is steadily transitioning, but its pace is slow, incorporating something like a web5 network that will require a complete overhaul.

Furthermore, the main difference between web3 and web5 is their basic functioning. The web3 ecosystem is a decentralized network based on intelligence and smart contracts, and thus it heavily relies on blockchain applications. While on the other hand, web5 mainly banks decentralized web applications that are not blockchain-based but communicate similarly to DWNs.

When broken down to it, the web5 network defines the concept of a decentralized network. Unfortunately, despite its proven concept, it will face significant hurdles when attempting global deployment. On the other hand, the web3 ecosystem mainly hinges on parallel deployment, and it seeks to phase out the use of web2 rather than constantly discard it.

Conclusion

The Web5 network believed that the web3 ecosystem needed to be revised. However, web3 will transition much better because it can co-exist with web2. Despite their functionalities, web5 and web3 represent decentralized networks; the only difference is how they go about it. Web5 believes in digital currency but still has ways to go before fully realizing a global deployment.