Most tech founders and VCs have decided to side with Web 2.0 or web3.
Proponents of web3 believe that it is the future of the internet and that products based on the ledger of transactions will replace Web 2.0 within the next few years.
Web 2.0 stalwarts say that the hype surrounding the technology is just a bunch of hype and that the technology is limited in scope.
I believe the most exciting opportunity lies at the intersection of these two worlds, as a founder who has been building Web 2.0 apps for over a decade, and investing in crypto for nearly as long.
The merger of Web 2.0 and web3 will open up the true mass-market potential of blockchain.
It is tempting to look at the energy, talent and resources being poured into web3 and think of the early days of the internet. The similarities are obvious for those of us who have been around for a while.
The rate of growth seems to have gone up a lot. Web3 pundits point to these facts to support their argument that web3 is the future of the internet.
There was no internet before Web 1.0, which is one of the important differences between the early days of the internet and today. We all lived in the same area. The internet was competing against a boring existence. Free porn, chat rooms, gaming, music, email, videos, the world's information at your fingertips versus a sleepy Saturday trip to the store. It was not a fair fight.
I spent $2,000 on a pair of sneakers that I will never wear because they are only for NFTs. Is it any less crazy than the money I spent on toe-crushing stilettos?
Web3 is entering a different arena. Digital products have a strong pull on people. The average consumer is not going to stop scrolling on TikTok because they want to support the creator economy or battle inflation. They don't care. They can't afford a BAYC.
The average internet user doesn't care about how they look on social media. That is the bridge. The key to this bridge will be NFTs.
5 NFT trends that will bring social media audiences into web3
NFT verification.
Skeptics point out that NFTs are dumb because you can simply right-click and save the underlying files. This is not a long term problem. In the near future, all major social platforms will allow you to connect your wallet and display your verified NFTs on your profile. In parallel, platforms will be able to take down stolen files.
The social value of purchasing and broadcasting NFTs increases greatly once TikTok users can display and use their unique, verified NFTs in their posts.
Sidechains.
NFT prices will come down as sidechains become more prevalent. Developers will be able to build more interactivity and composability into NFTs with near-zero gas fees.
Imagine a game where each Pokémon can be traded or sold. Every Pokémon you acquire has unique characteristics, and you have a unique impact on how it changes with location-based achievements. The powers of a Pokémon are updated on-chain as it levels up. You can earn value outside of the game when you progress in the game. It was fun!
Music.
The NFT mania of 2021 was mostly focused on visual art, but the next frontier is music, and I believe it will be much bigger. Whether it is collecting physical art or NFTs, the desire to express one's artistic tastes to peers, as well as the desire to express one's identity, are the same impulses driving a collector's behavior.
I think the more fundamental drivers of art collection are the impulses around self-expression and identity, which is why there has been a lot of speculative frenzy behind the initial NFT craze. Music is one of the ways in which people express their tastes.
TikTok started as a music video app, and music tracks remain a core component of videos shared on the platform today. Today's music is common. Everyone has access to the same music.
Imagine a 60-second music track with a limited number available as NFTs. You can make a TikTok out of it. It goes crazy. Millions of people want to make their own TikTok. There are 100 copies available. You can decide if you want to keep the song for yourself or flip it, because you get daily offers from people who want to buy it from you. It was fun!
Wearables.
When I was in my 20s, I spent most of my disposable monthly income on fashion. My appetite for nice things to wear was very high.
Over the past decade, the majority of my social interactions have shifted online, so my spending on clothing has dwindled. All I want these days is a few colorful tops for zooms. Buying fancy clothes has become boring.
I did something that was surprising. I spent $2,000 on a pair of sneakers that I will never wear. They are only an NFT, so I can't wear them. It is hard for me to explain to someone who has not fallen down the rabbit hole why I made this purchase. Is it any less crazy than the money I spent on toe-crushing stilettos?
Social media audiences will use Wearables to primp and preen their digital selves as the era of massive spending on digital goods begins. The killer use case that will help transition large audiences into the metaverse will be augmented reality filters.
Imagine if KimKardashian launches custom filters that are unique. If you buy one, you can only look in your TikTok videos for as long as you want, and then you can sell it when you get bored. Kim, add me to your whitelist.
The Dynamic avatars are dynamic.
I understand. You can't imagine why anyone would change their profile picture to a primate. I own a Bored Ape. I can not make it my profile pic. I chose the World of Women. Why did I swap my professional photo for a cartoon that only vaguely resembles me? It was enjoyable. I would have trouble taking a photograph of my personality because of it.
My profile pic is starting to feel a little old. I wish it was not static.
Dynamism, personalization and movement are coming to NFT avatars. Imagine you take a photo and an artificial intelligence will create a 3D version of you. Like Bitmoji, but better. You can change the character's expressions, poses, clothing and accessories, and you can make it dance, just by typing. It would be much easier to create engaging TikTok posts where you feel good about how you come across. You could spend more time on the message you are trying to convey and less time on your acting and filming skills.
Dynamic avatars will give voice to a much larger audience of creators on social media.
It was fun when Facebook first started. You would be reminded of your real friend's birthday when you log on every few days. The fun was subsumed by a kind of social slavery when the feed, mobile phones and algorithms, and perfectly-curated lives came along. We keep scrolling through posts of people we barely know that make us feel bad, and we keep posting obnoxious things. Surely this is not how it ends?
You could feel the collective eye roll when Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg unveiled his vision for Meta. You ruined our lives with social media, we wanted to scream, and now you are going to kill our last remnants of physical connection and turn us into vegetables.
We are already on an inexorable march toward the metaverse, regardless of the pros and cons. We are living in virtual worlds. A richer experience is what web3 enables. One that will feel a little more human.
I am looking forward to a future where NFTs and web3 help us create a virtual reality where human interaction is fun.
