Since the inception of digital currencies, decentralized technology has continued to evolve in the direction of web 3.0 (i.e., a new version of the internet with advanced capabilities of decentralization and more real connection). This evolution can be said to be occurring in a layered manner as several web 3 innovations appear to expand the technology as they are introduced.

For example, the creation of digital currencies can be considered as the early step in decentralized technology, then the introduction of Bitcoin expanded digital currencies through integration with the blockchain, then cross chain technology was introduced which grew the blockchain into a network, then Dapps evolved the blockchain network into a decentralized finance system, and more recently, this system grew into a metaverse with the introduction of decentralized metaverses.

Using this layered growth of web 3 technology, a new level of expansion seems to be in development with the introduction of Teritori; a recently publicized blockchain, which is developed to basically function as an all-in-one web 3 hub. That is, the software system being developed introduces the idea of a web 3 ecosystem/cyberspace which integrates all the necessary technologies to enable different kinds of users on the web 3 internet connect, transact and create. It provides an all-in-one Web 3 experience.

This kind of ecosystem seems to be a web 3 technology with a similar or higher level of complexity than a metaverse and this article explores the significance of these cyberspaces in the evolution of a new decentralized internet.

Understanding Web 3.0

Web 3 or Web 3.0 can be defined as an envisioned new international network of devices (internet) which does not have the centralized control that the current internet has, uses artificial intelligence and integrates virtual reality technology to make people feel more connected.

The internet has been evolving since its inception. From the introduction of a read only, text-based World Wide Web known as Web 1.0, it developed into the modern-day interactive network which also supports images and videos alongside text. This is known as Web 2.0. One major problem with Web 2.0 however, is that it is built on infrastructure like servers, masts, satellites etc. that are owned and controlled by individual organizations with centralized management. Hence, Web 2.0 has centralized control.

This is a problem because there is little or no democracy in the running of the web as these few centralized institutions get to decide for billions of internet users, how they will use the internet. These institutions can and have carried out some questionable acts on the internet (e.g., selling user information), and they get away with it due to little or no oversight. Also, this centralized operation is not very secure as a problem with any of the central infrastructure can compromise the internet.

Due to these problems and more, concerned people began to advocate for decentralization on the web and over time, interested people with tech skills began developing the technology for a decentralized network which in recent times has culminated into decentralized apps (dApps) and decentralized metaverse.

This decentralized network that is currently being developed is what is known as Web 3.0 and ideally, it should involve an interconnection of all the individual decentralized technologies and should be freely available for anyone to join, use and contribute to. It is also envisioned to be intelligent and have extensive graphical user interface.

Development of Web 3.0

Web 3.0 is built on blockchain technology and artificial intelligence. In 1999, the idea of Web 3.0 was presented by Tim Benners Lee who invented the World Wide Web as follows;

“I have a dream for the Web [in which computers] become capable of analyzing all the data on the Web – the content, links, and transactions between people and computers. A "Semantic Web," which makes this possible, has yet to emerge, but when it does, the day-to-day mechanisms of trade, bureaucracy, and our daily lives will be handled by machines talking to machines.”

This describes an intelligent web capable of analyzing information on it as exemplified by virtual assistants like Google AI, Apple Siri and Amazon Alexa. The other important aspect of Web 3 (decentralization) is exemplified by decentralized applications (dApps). Web 3 can be said to be fully developed when these two aspects are joined together, alongside a rich graphical interface.

As has already been stated, the development of Web 3 is still ongoing but it has crossed many stages some of which are;

• Stuart Haber and W. Scott Stornetta came up with the blockchain idea in 1991
• Development of Bitcoin blockchain in 2008 by Satoshi Nakamoto
• Development of blockchain decentralized applications (Dapps) through Ethereum blockchain
• Development of Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs)
• Development of the decentralized metaverse

The inception of decentralized metaverses ushered in the era of advanced web 3 ecosystems which are developed, owned and managed by an open community of users.

Decentralized Metaverse

Decentralized metaverses are advanced web 3 ecosystems which allow an open community of users to socialize, play, create, trade and own property in a digital world/cyberspace which is collectively managed. Basically they are metaverses built with blockchain technology. Metaverses generally use advanced graphics and avatars but unlike a centralized metaverse like Horizon worlds (owned by Meta/Facebook), decentralized metaverses are run by the community of users and not a centralized body.

Two popular decentralized meteverses are The Sandbox and Decentraland.

• Sandbox is a decentralized gaming metaverse which allows users to create, own and trade digital properties like NFTs, games and Land (digital real estate) for an enhanced Web 3 experience. It has three major components which are VoxEdit for creating NFTs, Market Place for trading and Game Maker for creating games that run on the platform using the natives NFTs.

• Decentraland is another decentralized metaverse which is focused on allowing users socialize in a virtual space using avatars. In this virtual world, users can connect, explore, trade and play.

This brings us to the concept of an all-in-one web 3 ecosystem which seems to be the next step in this evolution. Asides the sandbox and decentraland, other decentralized metaverses also exist but the main difference between these virtual worlds and an all-in-one web 3 tech hub is the stated degree of extensiveness.

The all-in-one web 3 hub project

The concept of a web 3 hub has recently been explored by groups of developers and a couple of projects have been launched including Sonica, Astar and Teritori. We will explore Teritori due to it’s more extensive all-in-one ideology.

Teritori is a blockchain software system that is currently being developed to facilitate an enhanced web 3 experience for individuals, communities, and creators by functioning as an all-in-one hub of decentralized applications (dApps) and functionality. It uses a native token called Tori for transactions and governance. Such a system was inspired by the need for a decentralized and democratized network.

According to the creators on teritori.com , the web 3 hub consists of two main parts which are;

• Teritori Network, which is the main blockchain created with Cosmos SDK, and serves as a platform for open testing, usage and improvement of decentralization in blockchain technology.
• Teritori dApp, which is a decentralized application that is built to integrate a comprehensive collection of Web 3 tools in a future minded way, to facilitate community ownership of the transmission and coordination network known as Teritori.

Naijapoint.com explains that Teritori is a hub launcher which enables communities to establish their own virtual territories, universes, and ecosystems i.e., communities will be able to construct and modify their own marketplace, launch pad, and launch their tokens, DAOs, or other services. A testnet is currently available for public evaluation.

Conclusion

Having explored the web 3 ideology and web 3 technologies like blockchains, decentralized applications, decentralized metaverses, and the most recent all-in-one web 3 hub, we conclude by comparing the significance of these cyberspaces in the evolution of Web 3.0.

Broadly speaking, a web 3 hub can be placed on the same level as a decentralized metaverse (e.g., the sandbox). This is because they are both decentralized cyberspaces with public ownership and management. In such a case, the web 3 hub can be viewed as a complete decentralized metaverse. However, this classification will have a little problem because metaverses typically have avatar based, advanced graphical user interfaces and this is yet to be explored with early stage web 3 hub. Such possibility cannot be ruled out though as web 3 hub technology continues to advance. So it remains a kind of metaverse.

Alternatively, following the identified steps of web 3 growth from individual blockchains, to cross chain networks, to decentralized applications, then decentralized metaverses, it makes logical sense to place an all-in-one web 3 hub as the next layer of the web 3 evolution. This is because the idea of a web 3 hub is to provide access to more web 3 functionality than decentralized metaverses which currently have the most extensive web 3 functionality. In such case, decentralized metaverses may also expand eventually to adopt the all-in-one ideology.

Summarily, the concept of an all-in-one web 3 hub is a new era in the evolution of web 3.0, with great potential to radically transform the decentralized world.