Web 5.0 is coming – what can we expect?

Web 5.0 is on the horizon, and experts say it could change the game. But how did we get to this point, and what does this latest development bring to the table?

The original Web 1.0 dates back to the age of dial-up connection and refers to an internet in which users could only search for and read information. These static online brochures of course offered very little interactivity.

Then in 1999 came Web 2.0, allowing members of the public to upload content, publish their own articles, and comment on other people’s pages. This was an era dominated by the likes of Amazon, Google, and Microsoft.

Web 3.0 offered a more decentralised environment than its predecessor, which has been pushed by companies dealing in cryptocurrency and the metaverse. User experience was further enhanced with the introduction of Web 4.0.

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And now comes Web 5.0, the next step currently in development which promises to further decentralise things and bring about greater connectivity, automation, and intelligence.

It is set to support Industry 5.0, often referred to as the ‘fifth industrial revolution’. The new Web has the potential to revolutionise industry through a combination of artificial intelligence and automation, boosting efficiency and therefore profits for those who can successfully capitalise on the transition.

Meanwhile, 5G networks will provide the necessary infrastructure for the emerging technologies which define Industry 5.0, namely autonomous vehicles and drones. High-speed data transfer is crucial to ensure that these can be made both safer and more efficient.

To give an example of its capabilities, Web 5.0 allows websites to map the emotions of (consenting) users using facial recognition. The page could then dynamically adapt according to what they want or need, or what they might be most likely to buy at the time.

But this latest iteration of the web also puts power in the hands of users, offering greater control over their own identity and personal data.

The promise of Web 5.0 has already given rise to particularly optimistic visions of harmonious human–machine collaboration, in which companies, employees, customers, and society all come out on top.

Regardless of whether or not it brings about the technological utopia anticipated by some, Web 5.0 is sure to have huge implications for the way the world lives, works, and communicates.

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