We are seeing a number of disruptions happening simultaneously. This has to potential to radically alter society in the next 10-20 years.
So far, we focused on a few of these pieces in isolation. Today, we will look at pulling some of it together.
One of the main tenets of this thesis is we are dealing with an ever increasing networked world. Many believe that we are going to see interoperability, with the focus, within Web 3.0, on cross chain integration. That might be the case for the time being. However, this is not the overall direction.
The Network-State gets a great deal of discussion.
If we consider the network as digital real estate, the idea of it as a nation is a fair analogy. The success of that network is based upon what is built on tOP.
In other words, we are looking at a full blown economy forming. This means that networks are going to meet a vast amount of the needs people have.
We are already seeing some of this in play in the early stages. Elon Musk and X are the most vocal of this intention with the idea of the "everything application". In truth, he is looking to be the everything network. There is no way to separate X the front end from the server configuration.
Other entities are starting to follow suit albeit in more isolated cases.
Here is where Web 3.0 needs to focus. The entire premise of the future is based upon the economy that is generated. This is not going to be geographic based since our physical world is rapidly becoming digitized. This means that where things are resident, i.e. the network, is crucial.
The challenge for Web 2.0 comes in the post-labor model.
Post labor economics sees a breakdown in the time for money concept. People will no longer being exchanging their labor for wages. This means the driver of the economy shifts away from labor, something that was central to its advancement.
Instead, capital becomes the driver of goods and services. We can see how this ties in with artificial intelligence and robotics. Capital formation is what offers the chance to grow. Those without it are going to die off.
Web 3.0 actually has some advantages here. Web 2.0 is stuck operating from either the profits generated by the network or having funding. With cryptocurrency, there is the ability to enhance this through tokenization. Since Web 3.0 can capture, in a monetary form, all value created on digital platforms, it can then be utilized to enhance the entire network even further.
As we can guess, there is a problem with the concept of post-labor economics. How are people going to sustain themselves?
Here is where ideas such as universal basic income get discussed. The idea of taxing the robots or other entities is constantly espoused. Most often, it includes having governments in the middle of the process, redistributing wealth. This is something that, historically, is inefficient. In fact, research shows that the money multiplier for government is negative. That means for each dollar (or whatever unit of currency) that goes in, less than $1 in productivity comes out.
The idea is to make the future more efficient, not less.
My view is a private ownership mechanism is required. We need to have a way of getting people own the modes of production that come from the different technologies.
How would this work? It goes back to the network.
Tokenization is the model for a post-labor world.
Through this process, individuals are able to have stake in the means of production. The value generated on the network, to start, is captured. Here is where this differs from the nation-state. When the economy goes up 5%, there is nothing to capture that value. We could look at individual components such as stock, the value of real estate, or wages to see how people are benefitting. However, there is nothing that will move in alignment (somewhat) with the new value generated.
With networks, we see how this is solved. Anyone who has stake in the network would see the value of their holdings increase. This, naturally, is different than price since markets tend to respond in their own way.
It is also a concept that can filter through to all platforms. The tokenization of everything means we can have local markets forming through exchanges. This is in addition to the larger platforms that develop.
For example, one could have a stake in a global network, the application he or she mainly utilizes, and the local plumbing company. Or one could own stake in 1,000 robotic networks working in factories all over the world.
The next decade will see many races taking place.
One of the keys that I see as vital is what networks evolve and build out. The model is economic transition. Right now, economies are defined by their geographic areas. Within that are industries (sectors) and businesses. Amazon is looked at as a company, earning revenues and profits based upon operations.
Few look at Amazon as having an economy. It is a digital platform, experts at the flywheel effect. Their revenues rival the GDP of some countries. Over the next 10 years, we are going to see entities entering the trillion dollar realm. It seems outlandish now but that is the potential of robotics and AI.
The successful networks are going to be those that meet the most needs of the stakeholders. This means building out the services people require. As people turn to their network, the impact keeps growing. With each new service provided, the value is spread throughout the individual platform. Collectively, this benefits the network itself.
We will likely see this concept utilized by the Web 2.0 companies. Apple, Amazon, and Google are going to keep spreading their tentacles. healthcare, entertainment, social media, finance, robotics, and autonomy are areas they are going to enter.
Here is where the race is on. Notice how much bigger this is as compared to just finance or money. It encompasses all areas of our lives.
This is the challenge before Web 3.0. The networks have to be built out.
We are going to find the post-labor world arising relatively quickly. This is how I think many can prepare for it.
