Web3 is a term for the technology systems surrounding blockchain and decentralized finance. Decentralized finance, or DeFi, is the system of finance that detaches itself from traditional finance, including things like bank fees and instead relying on peer-to-peer transactions. Crypto wallets, NFTs, and dapps are a few terms connected to Web3.

Around Web3 technology has centered the ever growing Web3 Community. At it’s core, Web3 Community builds itself up in a similar manner that Web3 technology works, peer-to-peer. However, in actuality and in recent trends, there are some significant contrasts and comparisons between Web3 Community and Web3 technology.

Web3 Technology

Web3 technology relies on the blockchain. The blockchain, through proof-of-work, proof-of-stake, and other similar methods, is what gives the ability to have trustless transactions. Trustless transactions mean money transfers can be verified using the blockchain to replace banking systems that previously validated existing funds.

This process, however, is not free. To pay for the validation of transactions, users must pay gas fee. Gas fees cover the cost of energy used to validate a transaction on the blockchain. Depending on what chain you use, a gas fee could be significantly more or significantly less than banking charges. The key difference, though, is that gas fees get shared to the participating validators. People that hold the coins of a certain blockchain usually have the option to stake their coins to participate in and benefit from the gas fees. These processes take the profits of banks and spread them across participants in the blockchain.

However, trustless transactions are not limited to financial transactions. While coins and tokens hold financial value, NFTs can hold hold all different types of data. This goes even further when we consider examples of how Ethereum can use smart contracts to execute trustless machine learning algorithms that are automatically validated by the blockchain. Trustless AI. Not only can this allow shared access to industry changing data but it can operate without any central authority.

Web3 Community

Web3 Community are the people and collaborations centered around not only Web3 technology but Web3 decentralized ideology. Web3 community embellishes the idea that people can create and capitalize on financial endeavors without approval or support from traditional financial institutions. A key element to Web3 is collaboration.

Web3 collaboration is generally various community members or groups coming together to pool their skills and resources to build projects from the inside out. This, in a way, decentralizes business models.

Web3 Technology Downfalls

Blockchain and Web3 are undeniably part of the future of business, commerce, and social interaction. Social media marketing is no doubt key to current marketing campaigns. To remain relevant, companies are adopting to Web3 technology. However, this does not mean the typically corporate entities will bring Web3 mentality to Web3 technology.

For example, Nike is bringing their .Swoosh campaign to Web3. Digital designers. Their site describes it as:

• .SWOOSH will allow Nike Members to learn about, collect and eventually help co-create virtual creations, which are typically interactive digital objects such as virtual shoes or jerseys.

This seems to be, and very well could be, an amazing opportunity for digital artists to collaborate with an established fashion company. But look closely. First, they are unleashing their own collectibles. Ok, revenue for them. Community building? Maybe. Eventually artists can co-create with Nike. But at what cost? We will see.

Web3 Community is built around the idea that we don’t need companies like Nike to create and monetize what we like to create. Honestly, if Nike tries to take too much of the profit from collaborative work, I hope artists and the Web3 community raise hell about it.

Web3 Community Downfalls

The Web3 community is not perfect either. More than enough people have sunk in to the Web3 community to implement the sales, development, or down right scamming techniques they used in Web2. Don’t get me wrong, sales, branding, development, and similar components are key to Web3. However, some hide their true self behind a Web3 face.

One person came into a Twitter space talking about free education. He shared a website with educational opportunities. When I went to the site it was just a collection of pay to learn course with referral codes attached to the links. I’m not here to knock that hustle but this a prime example of following the buzz words to generate income.

Many people are also inexperienced in the full spectrum of business development. This new technology brought us an easy way to turn ideas into businesses through tokens and NFTs. However, many projects launch with no plan, no real revenue, and no background in running a business. It is the very technology that made business ventures available to anyone that allowed people incapable of running a business to appear professional. These projects, deliberately or not, will uses investors moving to drive a good idea into the ground.

Web3 Community and Web3 Technology

There are plenty of projects growing communities around Web3 technology and doing it properly. And not everyone needs a full fledge business to succeed. The problem comes when projects deliver promises they cannot fulfill and when projects exaggerate their value. This is typically done to bring in the money the project needs to launch a project valued below the money they collected. This alone shows the inexperience in going from concept to actual product or service. Why do these projects, self-proclaimed Web3 experts, need so much money just to get their token or NFTs launched? Because they are not experts.

The future of Web3 is a conglomeration of professional, established entities, and various sized independent business owners. Web3 at its core will be the interaction between these business and their customers and communities. As bad as this bear market sucks, it’s important to go through so those that are still left can unify efforts moving forward. Botted Twitters have been exposed, scammers have been identified, and procedures are being put in place to avoid these things in the future. Not to mention everyone out there sharing the information like this to protect future investors.

I don’t think much will change as more big businesses enter Web3. Web3 offers decentralized finance but does not require it. Web3 community does not necessarily mean WAGMI (we’re all going to make it). To stand a chance in the next phase of Web3, the community needs to support each other. We need to share the promising and legit projects. We need to build the Web3 economy around items of need, not fabrications. If we can’t build something valuable in a bear market, then maybe we shouldn’t be around in the bull market.

Plenty of projects are doing great in Web3 regardless of market conditions. Polygon as an example is doing great bringing in large corporations. We will have to all coexist. However, the main difference I see in Web3 Technology and Web3 Community is that community supports each other because they believe in the future of each other. Instagram isn’t entering Web3 because it believes in Nike. And in the future, we’ll have the option to buy our shoes from Nike or Web3Joe’s Shoe Shop. This is where we need to stand up and share Web3Joe’s Shoe Shop. Not everyone has to be for decentralization to be in Web3, but if you are, even if you don’t buy Web3Joe’s Shoes, even if you run Web3Jane’s shoes, share Web3Joe’s shoes so people know it exists. Share it so people know there is a new option other than Nike. And share Web3Joe’s because chances are Web3Joe will then share you.

We are in this together. Web3 Technology gave us opportunities. Web3 Community will bring them to life.

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