Unleashing the Power of Web4: An Intelligent and Decentralized Web Ecosystem

Unleashing the Power of Web4: An Intelligent and Decentralized Web Ecosystem

Dirk Kreuter is Europe’s most successful sales trainer. He shares his expert knowledge, which has been proven a thousand times over, in specialist books, online courses and seminars, which has been proven to work. Dirk has invited Anndy Lian to give a keynote speech to his guests on what is Web4 and how a decentralised web can transform the way we operate.

 

The internet has transformed the way we live, work, and connect with each other. From the early days of the World Wide Web to the rise of social media and e-commerce, the internet has become an integral part of our daily lives. However, it is clear that the current internet infrastructure has its limitations, including issues related to centralization, data privacy, and lack of intelligence. Enter Web4, a new vision for an intelligent and decentralized web that addresses these challenges and unlocks a world of new possibilities.

 

Understanding Web4:

Web4 represents a paradigm shift in how we envision and interact with the internet. It builds upon the principles of Web3 (decentralization) and integrates advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain, and the Internet of Things (IoT) to create a more intelligent and decentralized web ecosystem. Web4 aims to empower individuals, enhance privacy, and foster innovation while leveraging the potential of AI to provide personalized and context-aware experiences.

 

Key Features of Web4:

Decentralization: Web4 embraces the core tenets of Web3, ensuring that power and control are distributed across a network of interconnected nodes. By moving away from centralized entities and adopting decentralized architectures such as blockchain, Web4 reduces the risk of single points of failure, censorship, and data breaches. This decentralized approach fosters trust, transparency, and resilience in the web infrastructure.

Artificial Intelligence: AI is at the heart of Web4, enabling intelligent automation, data analysis, and decision-making. Through machine learning, natural language processing, and computer vision, Web4 systems can understand and interpret user data, preferences, and behavior. This allows for personalized recommendations, intelligent assistants, and context-aware applications that adapt to individual needs and provide a more intuitive and efficient user experience.

Enhanced Privacy and Security: Web4 prioritizes user privacy and data security. It leverages cryptographic techniques and decentralized identity systems to empower individuals with greater control over their personal information. With Web4, users can choose how their data is shared and accessed, reducing the risks associated with centralized data storage and surveillance. This focus on privacy strengthens user trust and encourages widespread adoption.

Interoperability and Open Standards: Web4 promotes interoperability and open standards, allowing different applications and platforms to seamlessly communicate and share data. By embracing common protocols and APIs, Web4 enables the creation of a vibrant ecosystem where innovative solutions can easily integrate and collaborate. This fosters competition, diversity, and rapid technological advancements, benefitting users and driving innovation forward.

Democratization of Innovation: Web4 empowers individuals and small businesses by reducing barriers to entry and enabling participation in the digital economy. Through decentralized platforms and smart contracts, Web4 enables peer-to-peer transactions, crowdfunding, and new funding models such as initial coin offerings (ICOs) and decentralized finance (DeFi). This democratization of innovation ensures that the benefits of the web are accessible to all, irrespective of geographical location or financial resources.

 

Potential Applications:

Web4’s intelligent, decentralized nature opens up a wide range of potential applications across various sectors:

Governance and Democracy: Web4 can facilitate transparent and decentralized governance models, enabling citizen participation, voting systems, and smart contracts that automate governance processes. This can lead to more accountable and inclusive decision-making at local, national, and global levels.

Supply Chain and Logistics: Web4 can revolutionize supply chain management by providing real-time tracking, transparency, and traceability. By leveraging blockchain and IoT technologies, Web4 enables secure and efficient supply chain operations, reducing fraud, improving product authenticity, and optimizing logistics processes.

Healthcare and Telemedicine: Web4 can transform healthcare by enabling secure and interoperable health records, personalized medicine, and telemedicine services. AI-powered diagnostics, remote monitoring, and decentralized data sharing can improve patient outcomes, facilitate research, and enhance collaboration among healthcare providers.

Smart Cities and Sustainability: Web4 can contribute to the development of smart cities that optimize resource usage, enhance energy efficiency, and improve urban planning. Through intelligent sensor networks and data analytics, Web4 can enable real-time monitoring, predictive maintenance, and sustainable infrastructure management.

 

Conclusion:

Web4 represents a bold vision for the future of the internet, one that embraces decentralization, artificial intelligence, and user empowerment. By combining these elements, Web4 has the potential to revolutionize various industries, enhance privacy and security, and democratize access to innovation. However, realizing the full potential of Web4 requires collaboration, standardization, and ethical considerations to ensure that the benefits are accessible to all while safeguarding user rights and societal values. As we embark on this new era of the web, let us envision and build a future that empowers individuals, fosters innovation, and creates a more inclusive and intelligent digital world.

 

Anndy Lian is an early blockchain adopter and experienced serial entrepreneur who is known for his work in the government sector. He is a best selling book author- “NFT: From Zero to Hero” and “Blockchain Revolution 2030”.

Currently, he is appointed as the Chief Digital Advisor at Mongolia Productivity Organization, championing national digitization. Prior to his current appointments, he was the Chairman of BigONE Exchange, a global top 30 ranked crypto spot exchange and was also the Advisory Board Member for Hyundai DAC, the blockchain arm of South Korea’s largest car manufacturer Hyundai Motor Group. Lian played a pivotal role as the Blockchain Advisor for Asian Productivity Organisation (APO), an intergovernmental organization committed to improving productivity in the Asia-Pacific region.

An avid supporter of incubating start-ups, Anndy has also been a private investor for the past eight years. With a growth investment mindset, Anndy strategically demonstrates this in the companies he chooses to be involved with. He believes that what he is doing through blockchain technology currently will revolutionise and redefine traditional businesses. He also believes that the blockchain industry has to be “redecentralised”.

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What Is Web4? Is It Centralized or Decentralized?

What Is Web4? Is It Centralized or Decentralized?

Web4 is a term that is used to refer to the next generation of the internet. It is also known as the “more” decentralized web. Web4 aims to create a more decentralized and distributed internet that is controlled by its users rather than centralized organizations or corporations.

Web4 is characterized by its decentralized nature, which aims to distribute power and control among users, rather than concentrating it in a small group of companies or organizations. This is achieved through the use of technologies such as blockchain and peer-to-peer networks.

Web4 aims to provide increased security and privacy for users, censorship resistance, interoperability, new business models and economic opportunities, increased scalability, and improved accessibility.

Web4 is also associated with the growing field of AI, which has the potential to complement the decentralized nature of Web4 in various ways such as decentralized AI, Federated Learning, Privacy-Preserving AI, Blockchain-based AI, and AI-driven scalability.

 

Why Is Web3 Less Decentralized?

It is worth noting that Web3 is still in its early stages of development, and it is not yet fully decentralized. There are still challenges and limitations that need to be overcome before Web3 can truly be considered a decentralized version of the internet.

Some of the reasons why Web3 is not fully decentralized include:

  1. Centralized infrastructure: While blockchain networks are decentralized, the infrastructure that supports them, such as servers, data centers, and internet service providers, are still centralized.

  2. Limited scalability: Blockchain networks currently face scalability issues, which limits the number of transactions that can be processed on the network.

  3. Limited user adoption: The majority of internet users are still not using decentralized applications, which means that the network is not yet fully decentralized.

  4. Limited Interoperability: Current Web3 platforms and applications are not yet fully interoperable, which limits their ability to communicate with each other and with the existing web.

  5. Limited privacy and security: Some of the current Web3 applications and platforms do not yet provide the same level of security and privacy as centralized platforms.

 

Why Is Web4 More Decentralized?

Web4 is more decentralized because it aims to distribute power and control among users, rather than concentrating it on a small group of companies or organizations. This is achieved through the use of technologies such as blockchain and peer-to-peer networks.

Blockchain technology, which is a decentralized and distributed digital ledger, can be used to create decentralized platforms and applications that are controlled by their users rather than centralized organizations.

This allows for more transparency and security in the handling of data, and can also enable new business models such as decentralized marketplaces.

Peer-to-peer networks, which allow for direct connections between users rather than relying on centralized servers, can also contribute to the decentralization of the internet.

This can enable new forms of content sharing, collaboration, and communication that are not controlled by a centralized organization.

Additionally, Web4 aims to provide increased security and privacy for users, censorship resistance, interoperability, new business models and economic opportunities, increased scalability, and improved accessibility, which all contribute to a more decentralized web.

 

Web4 Is More Decentralized Than WEB3 in Several Ways:

  1. Decentralized infrastructure: Web4 aims to use decentralized technologies such as blockchain, peer-to-peer networks, and other decentralized infrastructures to create a more distributed and resilient internet. This allows for more control and ownership of data by the users and less dependence on centralized servers and organizations.

  2. Decentralized applications: Web4 also aims to create decentralized applications (dApps) that run on decentralized infrastructure, which eliminates the need for intermediaries and centralized organizations to control and manage the applications.

  3. Decentralized governance: Web4 is more focused on decentralized governance models where the users have more control over the decision-making process of the network, rather than relying on centralized organizations to govern the network.

  4. Decentralized economy: Web4 aims to create a decentralized economy where the users can own and control their data, and participate in decentralized marketplaces and other economic activities.

  5. Interoperability: Web4 aims to create a more interoperable internet, where different systems and applications can easily communicate with each other without the need for centralized intermediaries.

Web3 refers to the development of decentralized applications (dApps) that run on blockchain networks, which allows for more control and ownership of data by the users.

However, Web4 builds upon the foundation of Web3 and aims to create a more decentralized and distributed internet that is controlled by its users, and not just limited to decentralized applications.

 

Source: https://hackernoon.com/what-is-web4-is-it-centralized-or-decentralized

Anndy Lian is an early blockchain adopter and experienced serial entrepreneur who is known for his work in the government sector. He is a best selling book author- “NFT: From Zero to Hero” and “Blockchain Revolution 2030”.

Currently, he is appointed as the Chief Digital Advisor at Mongolia Productivity Organization, championing national digitization. Prior to his current appointments, he was the Chairman of BigONE Exchange, a global top 30 ranked crypto spot exchange and was also the Advisory Board Member for Hyundai DAC, the blockchain arm of South Korea’s largest car manufacturer Hyundai Motor Group. Lian played a pivotal role as the Blockchain Advisor for Asian Productivity Organisation (APO), an intergovernmental organization committed to improving productivity in the Asia-Pacific region.

An avid supporter of incubating start-ups, Anndy has also been a private investor for the past eight years. With a growth investment mindset, Anndy strategically demonstrates this in the companies he chooses to be involved with. He believes that what he is doing through blockchain technology currently will revolutionise and redefine traditional businesses. He also believes that the blockchain industry has to be “redecentralised”.

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How Can Decentralized Finance Survive the Current Crisis?

How Can Decentralized Finance Survive the Current Crisis?

Decentralized Finance (DeFi) has been in the spotlight lately, primarily because of the shocking collapse of the Terra ecosystem.  Its debacle cost tens of billions of dollars in a matter of days, creating violent shocks across the crypto market, and resulting in a loss of credibility among retail investors.  In 2021 DeFi provided investors with high rates of return, a too-good-to-miss opportunity. Now as Terra’s shock waves continue to bring down DeFi liquidity, investors are also considering their trust in crypto. One of the worst domino effects triggered by Terra came in the shape of Celsius, offering high-yielding interest accounts to 1.7 million users with $12 billion held. Now this crypto lending platform is currently rumored to be facing bankruptcy and has suspended user withdrawal requests to stabilize its operations.  To cap it all, the notable crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital is also facing an insolvency crisis. Clearly DeFi appears to be in trouble. But what has caused this current crisis, and why?

DeFi is an umbrella term for a set of financial activities that eliminate the need for intermediaries in traditional financial services. Loans, savings, remittances, insurance, and cryptocurrency transactions are all included. For example, some people will use DeFi to lend a friend $100 in Bitcoin, and as the lender they will earn interest on the loan without traditional intermediaries. As the FT explained DeFi is, “an umbrella term for a collection of crypto asset projects that aim to do away with a centralized intermediary — like a bank or an exchange — to provide financial services. They use DApps to execute common services like lending, savings accounts, and trading coins”. Before its collapse, Terra was considered a star product of DeFi, a payment network based on its TerraUSD stablecoin.

 

https://tva1.sinaimg.cn/large/e6c9d24ely1h3ic7wx6u2j20j40bvgmd.jpg

A skeptical view of the DeFi. Source: @ChainLinkGod.eth

Terra’s high interest bearing Anchor protocol was also supposed to resist the market downturn and be a tool for high profits whether in the bull or bear market.  But as Terra collapsed and tens of billions of dollars evaporated, those hopes were dashed. As Elizabeth Lopatto, deputy editor with The Verge explained, “Kwon’s rise and fall was fairly rapid, even by cryptocurrency standards. Luna emerged as a bright spot in the markets in December and reached its peak valuation, a touch over $116, in April; Luna was worth more than $40 billion, all told. During that time, a lot of crypto, including Bitcoin and Ethereum, was sliding. Luna’s popularity was due to a lending program, Anchor, that promised annual percentage yields (APY) of almost 20 percent — obscenely high.”

Over the past ten days, Celsius has prevented all of its estimated 500,000 users from withdrawing their money because of “extreme market conditions”. with no word on when it will be available again. As much as $8 billion in deposits is frozen. If that wasn’t enough it was reported that a week after the withdrawal freeze Celsius warned its community of a rise in fake social media accounts claiming to be from Celsius. At the same time, it paused its Twitter Spaces and AMA’s to focus on its liquidity crisis. “As has been a priority since our company’s inception, we maintain an open dialogue with regulators and officials. We plan to continue working with regulators and officials regarding this pause and our company’s determination to find a resolution,” a June 20th Celsius blog post confirmed. However, the comments to the blog post further underline how this has severely dented user trust. “I wonder how this is in the interest of the community when you didn’t ask them if they’d like to pause all chain activities. Everything you’ve said so far is lies and you will know that when the functions resume, I’d rather be in meme coin hype with 50/50 chances than this,” being typical of the overwhelmingly critical set of responses.

Hong Kong-based crypto lender Babel Finance paused withdrawals and redemptions, citing “unusual liquidity pressures”, while Singapore-based crypto hedge fund Three Arrows failed to meet margin calls from lenders. On Monday, another Hong Kong-based crypto exchange Hoo announced a halt on transactions after customer withdrawals became so great that they risked exhausting the company’s available funds, reported the FT.

In our view, problems with protocols like Terra don’t lie in the details of any one platform.  Because the current crisis was the result of a faulty model, Terra’s debacle was also fed by the belief that nothing like what has happened in the traditional finance world would ever happen in the blockchain market.  But the fact is that when you purposely remove the intermediaries which come with the traditional financial model, you also remove the safeguards that traditional finance has worked so hard to build over the past few decades, and especially after the 2007-08 credit crunch.

As it stands, DeFi is already in trouble.  According to data from DeFi Llama, the TVL of most top DeFi blockchains has dropped by 30% or more in the past month.  At the beginning of April, the total TVL (total value locked) of all blockchains was over $170 billion, and that number is now down to around $60 billion, which is a 65% decrease from before Terra crashed. “Moreover, since December 2021, the top smart contract platform tokens have lost 70% in value against the U.S. dollar as well, sliding from $823 billion to today’s $245 billion,” reported Jamie Redman in Bitcoin.com.

Some in the industry believe this change in the DeFi market capitalization is a tough but necessary step, as it will significantly reduce the emergence of risky projects and allow the industry to stabilize. However, others believe that the decline in TVL highlights deeper problems in DeFi that are not simple to solve.  And these current issues could prompt lawmakers to act sooner rather than later to create a series of more robust regulatory frameworks. An obvious example in the US is the recently tabled Responsible Financial Innovation Act which while not explicitly mentioned DeFi does seek to establish agency oversight and regulations according to which assets are securities.

As Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) and Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) continue to fall in value despite the efforts of bulls to shore up their value, making the cryptocurrency market more uncertain, there are some smart moves investors can deploy to prepare for more market volatility.  If you have funds on a DeFi platform, make sure you fully understand how the platform works and how it generates any rewards.  If you have moved all of your funds to a high-interest rate DeFi protocol, then please proceed with caution and think carefully about the consequences of a platform freeze or even crash, as this will be critical to the safety of your funds.

“While it’s far from certain the DeFi sector in its current form will fail, it’s likely to have more trouble before its problems are over.  The domino effect after the Terra crash is gradually playing itself out, and it remains difficult to predict how far it will spread.  If more major projects and institutions collapse however, it will no doubt impact on the wider crypto market. Already we’ve seen signs of this with FTX helping BlockFi with a $250 million loan, and crypto broker Voyager Digital with an even larger loan of $485 million.” Anndy Lian, Best Selling Book Author and Chief Digital Advisor to Mongolian Productivity Organization commented.

While we are all worrying that DeFi is heading downwards, we also need to remember that DeFi is created to eliminate banks and financial institutions as central intermediaries in various financial transactions. There is no stopping for DeFi. New projects are popping up during these bearish times. DeFi projects are still trying to innovate and do more.

Pollen for example, has started their second token sale and hopes to have its first index product launched by the end of the year. Pollen Virtual, a trading simulator that lets you create and manage virtual portfolios, is now on mainnet to give every trader — DeFi degen or crypto newcomer alike — a level playing field to test and showcase their trading capabilities, building reputation and earning PLN token rewards. Pollen COO William Vandyk explains:‘’The signals generated from Pollen Virtual are being used to build an Index Factory, constructing indices that anyone can buy which will hold real assets, their composition determined by collective intelligence and free from any fund management or performance fees”

Ledger is one of the most popular hardware wallets on the market are partnering with Alkemi Earn. They are integrated into Ledger Live’s Discover section. This is the first time a DeFi lending and borrowing app is available to Ledger users.

“DeFi continues to grow as we speak. Nothing is going to stop us.”

 

 

Original Source: https://www.benzinga.com/22/07/27979603/how-can-decentralized-finance-survive-the-current-crisis

Anndy Lian is an early blockchain adopter and experienced serial entrepreneur who is known for his work in the government sector. He is a best selling book author- “NFT: From Zero to Hero” and “Blockchain Revolution 2030”.

Currently, he is appointed as the Chief Digital Advisor at Mongolia Productivity Organization, championing national digitization. Prior to his current appointments, he was the Chairman of BigONE Exchange, a global top 30 ranked crypto spot exchange and was also the Advisory Board Member for Hyundai DAC, the blockchain arm of South Korea’s largest car manufacturer Hyundai Motor Group. Lian played a pivotal role as the Blockchain Advisor for Asian Productivity Organisation (APO), an intergovernmental organization committed to improving productivity in the Asia-Pacific region.

An avid supporter of incubating start-ups, Anndy has also been a private investor for the past eight years. With a growth investment mindset, Anndy strategically demonstrates this in the companies he chooses to be involved with. He believes that what he is doing through blockchain technology currently will revolutionise and redefine traditional businesses. He also believes that the blockchain industry has to be “redecentralised”.

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