We need a new definition of hype cycle
or are we just losing our mind?
While we are still struggling with the “end” of the pandemic, long lines at the airport, mass shootings in the U.S, war in Ukraine, conflicts, more conflicts, other conflicts, and climate and biodiversity crisis, it seems part of humanity is just on another plane.
A recap of a few S.A.D (software, algorithm, and data) happenings in the past few days.
If you are trying to figure out what the heck is web3, well too late, we have already moved onto web6 (along with Snoop Dogg):
This comes from Jack Dorsey’s announcement that he is doing “web5” — focusing on decentralised identity.
If you are confused about all these -- you are not the only one. Here’s a tweet that provides some archaeological evidence on these terms.
And this latest blog post (“Is "acceptably non-dystopian" self-sovereign identity even possible?”) from Molly White is well written with plenty of background and context. She points out some fundamental issues with self sovereignty and decentralisation in general (which is a big thing in the crypto and web3 world):
It’s bad enough when a person bungles their crypto wallet security practices and oops, all their apes gone. I am not optimistic about a world where someone bungles their security practices and oops, now an attacker has access to every piece of information about them, from the address of the property they’re currently living in, to their social security number, to their medical history, to their criminal record. I’m also not optimistic about a world where average people are expected to self-custody this kind of data, acting as the source of truth rather than their doctor or the town hall. I’m a software engineer and computer nerd, and I don’t trust myself to self-custody this data.
If all the jokes and memes around web5 were not enough, then you can go along with a sentient google bot - sounds like a Asimov, Bradbury type science fiction. Yes. But the hype cycle begs to differ.
Are these hypes around AI and crypto, going to go away soon? I doubt. We are here for some bumpy rides.
Or are we just losing our mind?
Enough info here to make me worried, but also feel kind of helpless, as if so much of what’s happening in this space is out of my control. No pun intended here, but I am sad.