This is the first cogent criticism of web3 that I've read so far. I really enjoyed it.
One of the reasons I got involved in learning about web development, tech and web3 was because I saw the potential it in for wealth creation. I'll admit I FOMO'd in hoping to make some money.
However after a month of research, reading articles, Twitter threads and listening to spaces I encountered ridiculous gas fees, a wall of nearly indecipherable crypto jargon, and opportunities for only those privy insiders who tend to be the most vocal about the promise of web3 and the decentralized web.
In short, I ran into exactly what the author described. A wild west full of (mostly) already wealthy and educated participants who speak of the promises of web3 from the sanctity of their YouTube channels or venture capitalist firms, while the uninitiated are left wondering just what the hell they are even excited about.
After I ran into that wall, my purpose was no longer to get crypto rich, it was now to learn this technology, in order to 1) bring in more non-tech native people and increase overall general awareness of the tech and 2) be able to shape the networks that are currently under construction by only the tech savvy few. These networks, like the internet of today will eventually find it's way to the common person, most of whom do not have the time, patience, or bandwidth to understand how the whole thing works.
I like the comparison to sort of a religious rapture that is occurring around web3. I've been on Twitter alot over the past 3 months and I've witnessed it first hand. Those who have baptized in the web3 waters are firm believers and just like any zealot are quick to proselytize to those who have not converted yet.
There is a pernicious anti-corporate sentiment among the hardcore believers that often extends to anti-government and anti-societal leanings. In other words straight up anarchy.
And while I'll admit there is a lot of potential reform that could and should happen with the US government, I doubt web3 alone has all of the answers. An unregulated web3 with headless protocols without human oversight is definitely not the answer to a better US or global society.
Just like with many recent tech innovations like machine learning and artificial intelligence we need more intelligent and experienced people like the author to scrutinize the promise of web3 and guide it to it's most promising places in our society. This is difficult with how fast the tech evolves these days, but it must be done.
Otherwise, in the not too distant future, we may find ourselves interacting with and relying upon tech that a very small percentage truly understand and can manipulate. Centralized again, yet this time under a mostly anonymous network of tech investors, insiders, and geniuses who control us from everywhere and nowhere.
