Unveiling the Next Generation Internet: How Web3.0 Is Reshaping Data Value?

What Is Web3.0 Really? The Essential Difference from Previous Internet Generations

When mentioning Web3.0, many people react with fear—indeed, there are too many projects claiming to be Web3.0 to scam investors, making it hard to distinguish truth from falsehood. But this is not Web3.0’s fault; it’s the current market situation where chaos and sand coexist.

So, what exactly is Web3.0? The answer varies from person to person, but the definitions by two key figures are most insightful:

The father of the Internet, Tim Berners-Lee, first envisioned in 2006 that Web3.0 should give users full ownership of their data. Twelve years later, Ethereum co-founder Gavin Wood reinterpreted it as a censorship-resistant, non-monopolized, low-threshold network protocol capable of cryptographically protecting user data security.

Simply put, Web3.0 is the third-generation Internet built on blockchain technology, with the core goal of enabling users to own their data, assets, and governance rights. Because Web3.0 is based on blockchain, it naturally inherits all the features of this technology: decentralization, immutability, traceability, full transparency, permissionless access, and trustlessness.

Why Do We Need Web3.0? How Deep Are the Real-World Pain Points?

Imagine you are a content creator, posting works daily on Instagram, X, Facebook, gaining likes, comments, followers, and monetizing through ads and live streams. It seems like a win-win situation, but hidden dangers lurk:

Who owns the content rights? How are ad revenues distributed? Will personal privacy data be leaked? Big platform giants have absolute control over user data. If the centralized system fails or is hacked, everyone suffers losses. These are not fictional risks but real phenomena that have already occurred in the Web2.0 era.

The mission of Web3.0 is to solve these issues—using blockchain and smart contract technology to ensure data security, protect users’ property rights, and maintain privacy control. In short, Web3.0 aims to truly return everything originally belonging to users (data, assets, identities) back to them, eliminating unnecessary intermediaries.

This is not just an idealistic vision. If platforms continue to exploit user interests, users will eventually leave, and the platform cannot sustain development—resulting in losses for all parties involved. Therefore, data democratization is not optional; it is an inevitable evolution of the Internet.

The Turning Point of the Third Generation of the Internet: From Passive Consumption to Active Ownership

The Internet has gone through three stages, each representing a transformation in user power and technological foundation:

In the Web1.0 era, users could only passively read static web pages. Web2.0 enabled users to create content but was heavily exploited by giant platforms. With Web3.0, users not only produce content but also hold all rights to it—this is a fundamental shift in power.

Web3.0 Ecosystem Overview: How Do Blockchain, Crypto, and NFT Collaborate?

Many people conflate Web3.0 with various concepts, but in reality, they are upstream and downstream relationships:

Blockchain is the underlying infrastructure, providing tamper-proof and decentralized technical support.

Web3.0 is the application layer vision, defining how the future Internet should operate—users hold ownership.

Crypto, NFT, DeFi, and the Metaverse are concrete implementations of Web3.0. Among them:

• Crypto solves incentives and value transfer
• NFTs realize digital asset ownership verification
• DeFi offers decentralized financial services
• The Metaverse demonstrates ownership economy in virtual worlds

In short, Web3.0 requires blockchain as the technological foundation, crypto and NFTs as economic tools; all three are indispensable.

Web3.0 Investment Landscape: Finding Projects That Truly Solve Problems

According to market data, the total market cap of the Web3.0 sector has reached $23 billion, accounting for 2.18% of the overall Crypto market, ranking 59th among all tracks. There are about 200 related projects, with notable ones including:

• Polkadot (DOT)—Interoperability infrastructure across chains
• Chainlink (LINK)—Decentralized oracle network
• Filecoin (FIL)—Distributed storage network
• ApeCoin (APE)—Web3.0 community token
• Other infrastructure and application projects

However, this field is a mixed bag, with many hype concepts. Investors must abandon the habit of chasing concepts and instead focus on projects with real technological achievements. Projects like DOT, LINK, and FIL are worth attention because they address the core needs of Web3.0—cross-chain communication, data oracles, distributed storage—these are fundamental infrastructure requirements.

Such projects can form a solid moat, providing valuation support in bear markets and explosive potential in bull markets. In contrast, purely conceptual projects are like castles in the air—easily dispersed by the wind.

The Future of Web3.0: Bubble or Opportunity?

The concept of Web3.0 has been around for over a decade, but its standardized development has only recently begun, and the scale remains in its early stages. Some market skeptics believe it might repeat the bubble of early AI—hot for a while, then ruthlessly abandoned by capital.

But there is a key difference: Web3.0 addresses real existing problems, not false needs. Data monopolization, privacy violations, property rights being sidelined—these are not illusions but chronic issues of today’s Internet.

Although Web3.0’s achievements have not yet met market expectations, this highlights the vast development space. Just as AI moved from skepticism to widespread acceptance, Web3.0 is undergoing a similar process—many doubts, but a bright future ahead.

For investors optimistic about this track, it is advisable to allocate with risk capital that can be tolerated, avoiding chasing highs recklessly while not missing this wave of transformation entirely. The key is to select the right projects, control risks, and patiently wait for technological and application maturity.