Exploring the role of open data on the web3

While there is still no absolute consensus on the definition of Web3, the applications and concepts associated with the term have been increasingly widely explored in recent years and some of its propositions such as cryptocurrencies have already reached the general public. The term Web3 usually refers to the third generation of the World Wide Web, sometimes called the "decentralised web", which relies on the use of cryptography and decentralised technologies such as blockchain to create a more secure and transparent internet.

Although still in its infancy, we are already seeing the emergence of new concepts such as non-fungible tokens (NFTS), which are nothing more than encrypted digital assets, cryptocurrencies such as the well-known bitcoin, and decentralised applications (DApps), which are beginning to appear mainly in the financial world in the form of decentralised finance (DeFi).

However, the greatest promise of Web3 lies in the possibility of empowering users in a new form of decentralised internet that gives them back ownership and control of their data and identities, which are now held by large technology platforms. In fact, Web3 is true to the original concept of the internet and the World Wide Web, where no one's permission would be needed to publish data and information and where there was no provision for central control of interactions.

In the same way that Web 2.0 drove the explosion of content and data creation by all kinds of people, and a culture of participation through multiple forms of social networking that is influencing the way we live today, Web3 also has the potential to change our near future.

Open data on Web3

And among the major changes that will ideally unfold with the adoption of Web3 technologies and paradigms by an increasing number of users and organisations is a new revolution in open data.

On the one hand, one of the main advantages of open data in the Web3 environment is that it can contribute to creating a more transparent and trustworthy internet. With traditional centralised systems, it is very difficult to verify the accuracy and authenticity of data, and there needs to be trust in the organisation that collects and publishes it. In the case of data managed and opened by public administrations this is not a major problem because of the presumption of trust that public administrations enjoy. But it is very limiting when it comes to opening data with user-generated information or even to generating datasets with potentially sensitive information.

However, through a decentralised application, open data could ideally be stored on a blockchain, allowing for a transparent and immutable record of the data. This can help to increase trust in the data being used and help new open data sets to emerge that are not managed by public authorities, companies or other data management organisations.

Clearly, to realise the full potential of open data in the web3 environment, it is important that data is available in a machine-readable format and that there are clear guidelines on how it can be used and shared. This will help to ensure that the data is being used in a way that is ethical and respectful of the people or organisations that originally collected it. In this context the Semantic Web, as the "web of data" is expected to play an important role in the Web3 ecosystem, as decentralisation and transparency are key aspects of both. In Web3, ontologies and tags used in the Semantic Web have the potential to make data stored in the blockchain more easily accessible and understandable for machines.

In addition, the Semantic Web can also contribute to creating more intelligent and personalised applications on the Web3. For example, ontologies can be used to improve the accuracy of recommender systems and make chatbots and other virtual assistance systems more efficient and "smarter".

And in a context with a greater amount of open data that can also be enriched thanks to the semantic web, the application of artificial intelligence or automated learning will be able to generate more useful applications for users. It will probably even be possible to authorise artificial intelligence applications that are currently not allowed due to the limited capacity we have to control the use of data with security guarantees.

On the other hand, Web3 proposes greater transparency and security on the internet, but above all that users will once again be the owners of their own data, that they will have control over what others can and cannot do with this data and that they can be adequately compensated for these uses of data. In this way, a new explosion of open data is expected to be generated by the users themselves, who if they feel safe, secure and comfortable to share data, and even compensated for the use of their data, will be able to participate in the generation of many useful open data sets to enrich applications or create predictive models of all kinds.

While all this disruption sounds very promising, the transition from a data oligopoly to democratic and open data management will take time. The first steps towards decentralisation of internet applications are still being taken and the whole concept of Web3 is still a work in progress. Overall, Web3 is a desirable concept in terms of improved data security and privacy, and thus possibilities for opening up more data, but it still requires an advanced digital infrastructure and regulation that is not yet available for it to be fully deployed.

Content prepared by Jose Luis Marín, Senior Consultant in Data, Strategy, Innovation & Digitalization.

The contents and views reflected in this publication are the sole responsibility of the author.