• Web3 is often described as a series of open-source and interconnected decentralized applications powered by blockchain computing architecture.
• There is a perception that Web3 is biased toward the gaming and cryptocurrency industry.
• However, a 2021 report by the U.S.- India Strategic Partnership Forum states that the third-gen web will be crucial for India to realise its $1.1 trillion digital asset opportunity by 2032.

Web 3.0

• It is the upcoming third generation of the internet where websites and apps will be able to process information in a smart human-like way through technologies.
• Aim- to create more intelligent, connected and open websites.
• It has potential to transform internet experience by directly engaging with users, devices, and systems in smart homes, smart vehicles and workplaces.
• It was originally called the Semantic Web by World Wide Web inventor Tim Berners-Lee.
• The three crucial foundations of Web 3.0 are Artificial intelligence (AI), IoT (Internet of things), and blockchain technology.
• It is an upgrade to its precursors: web 1.0 and 2.0.

Advantages:

• It will make the web more intelligent, secure and transparent, resulting in more efficient browsing and effective machine-human interaction.
• The users will gain complete ownership and privacy of their information.
• The possibility of account suspension and denial of distributed services will be reduced.
• It will help eliminate the dependency of users on the organization that develops the platform.  
• The data will be accessible from anywhere and from any device.
• Users can create their own addresses or interact with the network and they do not need to create individual personal profiles for different platforms.
• It is beneficial for problem-solving and intensive knowledge creation tasks.
• It utilizes artificial intelligence to filter out valuable information from a huge quantity of data.

1. Data Storage System:

• Web3 advocates decentralized data storage systems to unshackle the oligopolistic grip of technology behemoths over data.
• It has file-sharing systems such as the Inter-Planetary File System which are cryptographically protected, more secure, and capable of functioning off the Internet and blockchains.
• It seeks to overcome the data storage barriers of blockchains

2. Crypto Economies:

• Web3’s boldest element is the strategic role it assigns to non-custodial wallets that function as digital passports for users to access blockchain-enabled transaction platforms.
• These wallets aid the creation of an ‘ownership economy,’ whereby creators themselves control their content.

3. Decentralised autonomous organisations (DAOs):

• Web3 will replace micro-economic organisations with decentralised autonomous organisations (DAOs).
• It seeks to create a distributed economic system, where native digital tokens and cryptocurrencies would form the media of monetary circulation.
• Web3 platforms would serve to raise the efficiency of peer-to-peer transactions.
• Web3 systems also seek to generate fungible digital assets to reward local providers of data storage capacity for their services.
• Asset tokens that are native to the new-gen web have the potential to function as capital mobilization tools for Web3 projects.
• Stakeholders of DAOs can utilize tokens to exercise their voting rights.
• The NFTs of Web3 are more dynamic as they seek to incorporate improvements brought in by incremental innovations.

Disadvantages

• Personal data management and reputation management issues will become more critical than ever.
• The devices’ features and characteristics will need to be extended to make the technology reachable to more people globally.
• Due to this only a limited number of people will be able to access web 3.0.
• The old technology is incapable of updating its features to match the new ones.
• Much work is needed on technology advancement, privacy laws, and data use to satisfy the user’s needs so it is not ready for widespread adoption. 
• It’s difficult for newbies to grasp.
• It is necessary to have privacy policies.
• Access to one’s personal and political data is made easier and this hampers the privacy.

How India can benefit from Web3?

1. Handcraft industry:

• It is renowned for design-related innovations, many of which are not protected by Intellectual Property rights.
• Digital tokens minted by Web 3 platforms would enable our handcraft enterprises to secure their innovations.
• Web 3-based instruction tools enable the rapid dissemination of grassroots innovations from master artisans to fellow members.
• It would improve the economic fortunes of craftsmen and artisan communities in north-east, western and peninsular India.

2. Rural Development:

• India’s large-scale deployment of the Internet of Things (IoT) in rural development projects offers major possibilities for deploying Web 3 in rural areas.
• The Atal Bhujal Yojana is an important source of data on groundwater utilisation practices and aquifer contamination, although this resource remains largely untapped for want of data analytics capabilities at the community level.
• This limitation can be overcome by Web3’s (decentralised) analytics systems.
• Web 3.0 can also yield insights from large volumes of community data such as the Jal Jeevan Mission.
• Web 3.0’s advantage of facilitating ‘analytics at the edge’ provides scope for mapping the water use habits of communities.
• Early Warning System for floods will improve with Web 3.0 due to data analytics facilities being obtained at the sub-basin level.
• Constrain: the inability of data analytics capabilities to catch up with the pace of data generation in rural areas.
• Solution: By providing incentives for decentralised analytics and tokenizing analytics and web design talent, it is possible to draw upon the talent pool for the benefit of rural communities.

India’s National Blockchain Strategy 2021 proposes to explore tokenisation and apply blockchains solutions for development programmes. It will be a natural progression for India to craft a third-gen web strategy that optimises public interest. Such a strategy should seek to combine the features of Web3 and Web 3.0.