Instead of relinquishing our data ownership to tech giants like Google, Meta, Amazon, Apple, and Microsoft, we will instead be able to own our data through what Lee calls a “data store or capsule”.
Lee explains: “You will think of your data room as your digital space, and you will think of it as something personal to you that you feel comfortable with.”
Lee works with his startup company Inrupt on the Solid protocol, which “aims to fundamentally change the way web applications work today, resulting in true data ownership as well as improved privacy.”
The company raised $30 million in 2022 from venture capital firms including Forte Ventures, Akamai, and Glasswing Ventures.
In Lee’s vision for the future web, you will be able to use your digital room to access all your core applications, such as email via your phone, but also on your laptop, desktop, and larger screens like TVs.
Lee adds that his idea is to have a set of “trusted apps” that we can allow to communicate with each other to share information and perform important tasks much more efficiently.
Shintan Patel, Chief Technology Officer at software company Cisco in the UK, believes that the web is ultimately moving to an open place where information can be shared more easily.
Patel says, “While we’ve increasingly seen the internet become a little fragmented with more isolated platforms, more data is being gathered, sold, and even misused in many cases.”
He adds, “Despite all its flaws, the internet has brought more benefits to society and made many things possible.”
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