From Web1 to Web3: The Fundamental Differences of the Third Generation Internet
The development of the internet has gone through three distinct stages. The first stage (1989-2004) was the Web 1.0 era, where users could only passively browse static web content, similar to reading a newspaper—the information flow was one-way. The second stage began in 2004 with Web 2.0, where the emergence of social media changed everything. Users were no longer passive consumers but content creators who could generate, share, and interact.
However, the prosperity of Web 2.0 came with a hidden risk: a few tech giants controlled the entire ecosystem. Platforms like Facebook, Google, and Amazon monopolized user data, profiting from targeted advertising through algorithms, severely eroding users' privacy and data sovereignty.
Web 3.0 emerged as a response to the centralized power of Web 2.0. Co-founded by Ethereum,