Web5 Decentralized Web Nodes are now available in a managed service operated by the Decentralized Identity Foundation using Google Cloud technology. If that, as an opening dinner party discussion gambit doesn’t leave most people silent, then not much will… so what does it mean and why does it matter?
Web5 started as an initiative to encourage users to take greater ownership of data. That freedom to own and manage data independently of any third-party resource or data service is created through the use of decentralized identities and web nodes. A decentralized identity system is made up of three pillars or elements: Blockchain, Verifiable Credentials (VCs) and Decentralized Identifiers (DIDs).
Web5 enables (typically) tighter identity management for decentralized applications that run on peer-to-peer networks (such as blockchain) that other developers can build further services on top of. An evolution of the Web3 movement that heralds the arrival of “semantic” web services with greater AI, we are moving rapidly through the “symbolic” (also autonomous & decentralized) web functions of Web4, onwards towards Web5.
Web3 to Web4 to Web5
In the simplest terms possible, if Web3 gave us AI and Web4 gave us decentralized connections between people and machines, then Web5 gives us all of the above with greater control of identity and data.
Because decentralized application development is well-suited to social media, some gaming apps, decentralized finance and other bleeding edge deployment use cases – and because it is a key element of Web5 – there is increased interest in technologies that facilitate it. Essentially open source, Web5 is a focal point for the Decentralized Identity Foundation (DIF), a non-profit group hosted within the Linux Foundation dedicated to developing the foundational components of an open, standards-based decentralized identity ecosystem for people, organizations, applications and devices.
Decentralized Web Nodes (DWNs) are personal data stores that eliminate the need for individuals to trust apps to responsibly use and protect their data. Instead, data is owned and controlled by the individual. With this fundamental contextualization and clarification under our belts (and our dinner party guests now keen to hear more), what’s actually happening in this space now?
Web5 DIF DWNs on Google
As we said, Web5 DWNs are now available from the DIF running on Google Cloud. This offering will allow existing and new Google Cloud customers to build test applications using Web5 DWNs. Rather than having to run their own DWN or server infrastructure to store data, developers will be able to use a DWN on Google Cloud to build test applications.
“Web5’s Decentralized Web Nodes are a paradigm shift in the way people, apps and services exchange data with each other,” said Daniel Buchner, head of decentralized identity at TBD, part of Block, which is one of the companies building the DWN specification standard within DIF. “In a Web5 world, consumers own and control their data, not centralized authorities, so they can decide how it is stored, shared and accessed – encrypted just for them, permissioned for a select group, or published to everyone. But to truly own all of your data, a personal data storage system is needed. Even if an individual chooses to host one of their DWeb Nodes with a provider, private data is encrypted, so it is only available to the individual and whoever they grant access to.”
A Realization Of True Serverless Apps
DWNs are personal data stores and peer-to-peer communication nodes that serve as the foundation for decentralized apps and protocols. They live on devices and can be replicated on hosted instances in the cloud. These data stores are said to be the “realization of true serverless” applications in which developers can store app data without using centralized servers or an account with a centralized service. This allows individuals to gain ownership and control of their data by hosting it themselves on DWNs, decoupled from apps that seek permission to read and access their data.
“DIF is thrilled to collaborate with TBD and Google Cloud to bring this initiative to life,” said Kim Hamilton Duffy, executive director of the Decentralized Identity Foundation. “The DWN community node provides a quick start for developers to build products and services that provide individuals control of their data – by design. As consumers experience the ‘a-ha’ moment of applications offering unprecedented personalization, security and trust, they will come to expect this new standard in all their digital interactions.”
To start building decentralized apps on Web5, developers can access the community node here.
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