Jack Dorsey's "Web5" is a solution to an already solved problem

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Web3 thrives on its ability to offer both transparency and anonymity, but merging the two has been a seemingly daunting task, especially when it comes to securing personal data.

Jack Dorsey - the co-founder and former CEO of Twitter - believes he's found a solution to the problem in the form of Web5, his new decentralized data and identity platform leveraging Bitcoin. But while Dorsey unveils designs for a new decentralized web using the Bitcoin network, other blockchain technologies have moved far beyond the conceptual stage.

Deepening Web5

Although somewhat confusing, the name of Dorsey's proposal actually implies a literal combination of Web2 and Web3 functionality as in "two plus three equals five" - ​​thus "Web5" was coined. Seeking to act as the equivalent of the "extra decentralized web", Web5 proposes to put control back in the hands of users and grant them autonomy over their digital data and identity.

Essentially, the three main pillars of Web5 are Decentralized Credentials, Verifiable Credentials, and Decentralized Web Nodes, which, frankly, resembles existing modern blockchain technologies. Dorsey's rationale for Web5 is that while the current Internet has democratized the exchange of information, it still lacks one essential element: the retrieval of personal identity.

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Currently, personal data is usually secured via accounts and passwords, and it has been that way for some time. In this model, identity and personal data are essentially owned by third parties, such as large technology companies. Historically, this system has had many problems, from massive data leaks, illicit exchanges of consumer data, to a general lack of end-user control.

What Web5 is trying to bring is decentralized identity and data storage for internet applications. It promises that developers can focus on creating meaningful user experiences while returning ownership of personal information to individuals. Although sovereign identity and data ownership are essential facets of the decentralized web, it already exists.

Web3 identities are already here

The Internet Computer (ICP) blockchain launched its genesis block on May 10, 2021 and was designed to make a fully functional decentralized Internet a reality. By integrating websites, DeFi, social media, games and metaverse projects fully on-chain, running at modern web speeds, ICP strives to blur the lines between blockchain and the internet and create an interoperable future. Yet among this system is what is otherwise known as "Internet Identity