In The Web3 Era: NFTs, the Metaverse, Blockchain and the Future of the Decentralized Internet, renowned finance and technology expert David Shin connects pivotal moments from the history of human progress and global trade with current events that are shaping the world of tomorrow through a fascinating and insightful exploration of the long-term, next-level use cases of non-fungible tokens and digital assets, and their implications for industries that leverage these advancements. In the book, you’ll find discussions of the challenges and opportunities for institutions awaiting the arrival of the Web3 space; how old Western central powers are struggling to keep up with the digital currencies of the East; and why our voices will matter as consensus-driven tribes converge to form DAOs. You’ll also discover the potential of blockchain as a pivotal engine for driving the metaverse economy and transforming contemporary web infrastructure into a decentralized network of free trade and social interaction governed by users themselves.
The author covers topics that include: - The potential institution of a smart treasury in a digital economy - The convergence of metaverse infrastructure with decentralized finance, creating a virtual world of open finance - Use cases for government-backed digital tokens in a variety of industries, including education, healthcare, and banking - Social interactions and commerce tied to Soulbound-identity, A.I. technology, archeological revelations, de-dollarization, and the rising Global South
An essential and one-of-a-kind resource for business leaders, executives, entrepreneurs, investors, and finance professionals, The Web3 Era: NFTs, the Metaverse, Blockchain and the Future of the Decentralized Internet will also benefit technology enthusiasts, digital marketers, and digital transformation specialists who seek to gain invaluable insights into the future of technology and finance, as well as anyone who believes that we are in need of a new system of governance for a better tomorrow.
Table of Contents
Introduction ix
1 Rise of the DAOs 1
King for a Day 5
Does Your Vote Really Count? 8
What a Wonderful, Trustless World 10
Why the First DAO Had to Fall 13
New-Age Tribes 15
2 When the World Becomes Your Village. . . 19
When We Left Gold Behind. . . 27
The Corruption of Trade 30
Decentralized Trading, Reputation Tokens, and the Death of the Irresponsible
Influencer-Marketer 32
Can’t Buy Me Love. . . 35
3 The New Centralization 39
Who Owns the Fed? 42
To Teach the World to Sing in Perfect Harmony 46
Central Bank Digital Currencies and Data Collection 49
Is Anything Real Anymore? 51
You Can’t Always Get What You Want. . . 55
4 Tower of Babel 2.0 61
Lost in Translation 66
The Language of Progress 68
The Byzantine Generals Problem 72
Creating Consensus and Spreading It 75
The Antichrist is Coming 77
5 Soul Beyond Face Value 81
Digital Gangsters’ Paradise 86
The Angry Face Algorithm 91
It’s a Long Road From Rakhine 95
If You Tolerate This Then Your Children Will Be Next 98
Your Soul Defines You 100
6 Back to Africa 105
We are Family? We are Françafrique 113
The Last Colonial Currency 117
The African Union? 120
The Last Digital Frontier 122
7 The American Way 129
The United States of Isolation 137
The Fall of the Petrodollar 140
Defeating the Dollar 148
The New Bretton Woods 154
8 When We Meet in the Metaverse. . . 159
Beyond the Planet of the Bored Apes 163
When Worlds Collide. . . 170
A Meaningful Place 177
9 Of Builders and Villains. . . 185
Walking on the Moon: The Rise and Fall of Terra LUNA 190
Sex, Drugs, and Balance Sheets: How a Bunch of Kids Created and Destroyed FTX 201
Speculation, the Language of Fools 211
10 The Nature of a Nurturer: Reflecting on the Klaytn Journey 215
A Blockchain to Connect All Blockchains 220
TPS is King 225
Building on Top of The World’s Blockchain 227
Shared Governance of a Shared Ecosystem 229
11 A Brave New World 235
I’m Still Walking, So I’m Sure I Can Dance 240
The First Days are the Hardest Days 243
You Speak My Language 247
Index 253
