Web4: The symbiotic relationship that could transform crypto | Opinion
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Early projects blending AI and blockchain, such as Fetch.ai or Ocean Protocol, helped pioneer the integration of these two emerging technologies by building systems that could automate real-world processes and allow data owners to monetize and share datasets securely. By demonstrating how blockchain and AI can complement one another, these early projects set the stage for future collaborations.
Once generative AI tools demonstrated their powerful capabilities and disruptive potential, the crypto and blockchain space began theorizing additional use cases. Web3 enthusiasts and developers quickly recognized the prospect of decentralized AI models, the possibility of automated and chatbot-powered crypto services, and numerous other innovative applications.
While many of these conversations were dismissed as crypto hijacking a conversation through its characteristic overhyping, the integration of web3 and advanced AI systems is well underway. Nothing illustrates this more than CoinMarketCap dedicating a market capitalization category for “AI and Big Data tokens.”
However, with 335 dedicated token projects focused on AI and Big Data, it’s now easier than ever to envision AI empowering crypto and decentralized finance to provide enhanced features and a better user experience, which could fuel mass adoption.
A symbiotic relationship
Web3 introduced the power of decentralization through blockchain technology, but the next internet iteration promises to take it a step further by integrating adaptive interfaces and AI-powered smart contracts. Web4, or the “symbiotic web,” smoothly blends blockchain and AI systems to create a more positive and safe user experience that could have major implications for web3 and beyond.
Imagine a future where a user’s engagement with crypto and DeFi is personalized, secure, and ultra-responsive, transforming everything from staking and trading to digital asset management.
The symbiotic web builds off of web3’s decentralized model, adding an AI layer to improve user interfaces, create smart contracts capable of adapting dynamically to user needs and changing market conditions, and provide enhanced security and privacy. This could introduce trading platforms that adjust to a user’s unique trading patterns, DeFi systems that anticipate one’s next move, and smart contracts that respond in real-time to market shifts.
Potential DeFi benefits
In the fast-paced DeFi environment, where quick and informed decisions provide a real edge, adaptive user interfaces that provide real-time data and tailored insights not only create a better user experience but could also hold the key to mainstream adoption.
Since many novel investors find crypto and DeFi’s user experience unfriendly due to a high learning curve regarding complex systems and technical know-how, creating a better and more intuitive experience will help onboard more users. A personalized trading dashboard highlighting the most relevant metrics to a given user could reduce information clutter and simplify the trading experience, empowering users to act confidently with assets known to be volatile.
Beyond real-time updates, the symbiotic web’s predictive AI could make crypto platforms even more proactive. For instance, a DeFi platform might anticipate a user’s need to make a particular transaction and present relevant insights or alerts regarding critical market movements in advance. This proactive approach could make crypto trading less reactive and more intuitive, minimizing response times and further enhancing the user experience.
Enhanced smart contracts
While smart contracts helped bring about the web3 revolution and enabled DeFi’s existence, they are occasionally vulnerable to faulty coding that has led to hackers stealing users’ funds. The symbiotic relationship between AI and blockchain could potentially see smart contracts adapt to live market data and personalized insights, creating a new type of responsive, user-centric transaction that prioritizes efficiency and security.
AI-enhanced smart contracts could create real-time adjustments on rates from a lending platform, allowing users to get notified when they reach a favorable position. This adaptability also benefits DeFi platforms by fostering an environment where transactions are optimized by both fairness and liquidity.
On a crypto exchange, these responsive, AI-powered smart contracts could automatically adjust margins if volatility spikes, reducing exposure or pausing a transaction during unusually extreme market conditions. This could boost user confidence and security while assisting traders in navigating a volatile market with a complex investing process.
Web4 privacy and security
Considering the degree of hyper-personalized data introduced by web4, there will be a need for the highest standard of privacy and security. Fortunately, AI and blockchain also have the answer to this through data privacy algorithms and decentralized storage solutions.
To secure web4, privacy protocols can constantly monitor data flows, encrypting information and leveraging decentralized storage capabilities to protect user data. Furthermore, web4 could empower users with real-time control, allowing them to easily adjust privacy settings on the go and receive alerts when their data is being accessed.
This level of transparency and control will empower users to feel secure and confident that their personal information will be protected in a future where data will be increasingly valuable and vulnerable.
While web4 is still only a concept, it has the potential to reshape the crypto landscape for the better. The symbiotic vision where blockchain and AI collaborate to put the user’s needs at the forefront will make crypto and DeFi more palatable for a broader segment of society.
With its ability to provide real-time information, adapt, and make intuitive decisions across complex DeFi platforms, web4 could be the trigger that ushers in a more intelligent, adaptable, and safe digital environment.
