No newcomer to the world of blockchain and cryptocurrencies, Alex Tapscott, has a decorated history in the blockchain world. He has co-authored an international bestseller on the subject, founded a blockchain research think tank, and, as Managing Director at Ninepoint Partners, Tapscott has brought digital assets to markets in his native Canada.
His new book, Web3: Charting the Internet’s Next Economic and Cultural Frontier—out today from HarperCollins—follows his 2016 bestseller Blockchain Revolution by providing a lucid account of the major themes in the Web3 sector today for a mass audience.
Tapscott spoke with CryptoSlate to share his vision for how blockchain and cryptocurrencies will shape businesses and society in this next era of the internet.
The Promise and Problems of the Early Internet
When Tapscott first became interested in Bitcoin (BTC) in 2013, he saw it mainly as a new kind of payment network. Like many, however, his thinking evolved as he realized the potential for blockchain technology went far beyond finance. As Tapscott says, “This is a general-purpose technology that will have a very broad impact on every industry in the world.”
In Tapscott’s view, the early promise of the internet has gone largely unfulfilled. While the web has enabled easy access to information and publishing, most value capture has accrued to a handful of large platforms such as Facebook, Google, Amazon, and Apple.
Tapscott’s book argues that new technologies like cryptocurrencies, decentralized finance (DeFi), and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) enable new models of digital ownership. These new models As Tapscott puts it, “I think we’re going to end up in a world where these arteries of commerce online and these financial intermediaries are just less powerful, handle less value, have less economic major sway in the world.”
A Pragmatic Approach to Web3
Tapscott positions himself as a pragmatist when it comes to Web3. The Blockchain Research Institution he founded helps stakeholders incorporate blockchain into their existing businesses.
As Tapscott explains, “This is a toolkit. It’s the Web3 toolkit. It’s a box of toys and tools that you can reach into, and you may find that there’s something in there that’s really useful for your business.”
He points to companies like PayPal, Visa, Nike, and LVMH that are already pulling valuable tools from the Web3 toolkit without needing to go “all-in.”
However, Tapscott does foresee a future where…
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