Pulling The Rug From Under Centralization

As we near the end of the year, it is good to take stock of where we were and in what direction we are heading.

When it comes to blockchain and cryptocurrency, a lot has changed. Then again, when it comes to these technologies, very little has changed in the world.

The truth is we still are run by centralized organizations that have a multiple decades head start with thousands of software engineers still churning out powerful applications. When looking to a shift towards decentralization, it is important to note the task ahead.

Of course, decentralized projects are not going to hire tens of thousands of computer programmers like Google, Facebook, Amazon, and Apple employ. Fortunately, that is not necessary. Linux did not have the same personnel makeup of Microsoft yet most of the cloud is run on that operating system.

Presently, we are seeing a struggle between the individual and corporation. Nowhere is this more evident than in the field of Artificial Intelligence, which epitomizes the entire conflict.

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Before going any further, we need to recognize how important AI is becoming. It is going to be a core piece to Web 3.0. The different forms of it will be flowing throughout the entire system. Thus, it is a great starting point for the move towards decentralization.

We now see a number of projects working on decentralized AI. While they are still in the very early stages, some progress is being made. Their efforts are to replace what the centralized corporations do.

There are two fields which are leading in AI usage. Unfortunately, these are run by mega-corporations with little regard to individuals.

The medical and advertising industries are leaders in AI. They are also dominated by some of the biggest companies in the world. This creates, either through tech or political maneuvering, highly centralized structures that make entry from the outside impossible. At the same time, people have few options since, ultimately, there are only a handful of companies to select from.

What makes this all so interesting is the place we are with our AI development. At present, AI progress is dependent upon data, lots of data. This is controlled by said mega-corporate entities who assemble it. However, the data is provided by individuals.

Thus we see a system where the data creators are individuals yet the ones who are profit are the mega-corporations. This is how two rather large industries operate.

Blockchain and cryptocurrency have the ability to change that. As mentioned, there are a number of projects that seek to decentralize the ownership of the data. These projects are looking to tokenomics to alter the balance.

Let us start with the data. If it is true that it is the new "oil", this is what is being exploited. So, we must ask, what is technologically possible in reversing what is taking place?

According to Ben Goertzel, founder of SingularityNET, the ability for AI systems to work together using data that has many different owners is technologically possible. Thus, we are not looking at a technical question.

A decentralized approach, in which intelligence is achieved via multiple agents with multiple owners acting on securely encrypted data, is technologically feasible now, by combining modern AI with blockchain infrastructure.

https://www.coindesk.com/ai-for-everyone-super-smart-systems-that-reward-data-creators

Here we see someone with say, diabetes, can provide medical information to AI systems that collect said data. Any other AI agent that is interested in analyzing that data can tap into it. Of course, the data contained is owned by thousands of individuals with diabetes, all who are compensated for it.

Tokenization enables this to take place by the second system paying the individuals for the use of the data. This could be in the form of the AI diabetes research token which is traded on open exchanges. Or another scenario, the collection agent offers tokens to the patients to garner the information, then is compensated by the research team.

Either way, the data generator (creator) is now part of the process and the data could still be owned by the individual. For example, the data could be available only for as long as it is "staked". The staking of the data means one is continually receiving tokens. However, the person can unstake it, i.e. remove it from the database, which ceases the payments.

Obviously, this is a system that sounds familiar to anyone who has dealt with tokens on a blockchain such as Steem where tokens are staked and unstaked.

Ultimately, a token is really data. Thus, staking medical data could be the same as financial data (tokens balances).

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Which brings us to the "pulling the rug from under centralization".

What is going to develop is the struggle for the data. Right now, the mega-corporations are the ones in control since they assemble it. There are few ways around this. No matter where we go, there is a data trail being left.

That is changing as more projects come online that enable one to opt out of the present system. At the end of 2019, it is still in the embryonic stages but we are seeing progress. In the situation just described, we could see that become a reality in the next year or two.

Therefore, people will have a choice. Again, using the medical data scenario, will one opt to provide said data to a corporation that provides nothing in return or go with a decentralized platform where payouts take place? Obviously, the later will have to make it attractive (we will presume the platform advances to be close to what the centralized ones are in terms of capability).

Data is oxygen to an AI system. If the decentralized counterparts start to take this away from the centralized ones, their systems will start to wither. Without a paradigm shift in AI research, which I do not foresee in the near future, we are basically stuck with the massive amounts of data blasted with massive amounts of computational power. Hence, data is still going to be paramount.

The infrastructure for this is being built out as I write these words.

We are all part of a major shift that is unfolding. A blockchain like Steem is heavily involved in the process because it helps to condition people to what is out there. While many will not rank blogging/social media high on the list of important challenges facing the world, as we can see, the process ties into potential that is much greater.

When one goes on Facebook or Twitter, the data provided is rewarded. It essentially is free to the platform. Ultimately, all that data ends up being a profit center since it is sold to entities seeking to target the users who provided the data. This is the same thing we are seeing in the medical industry.

One of the biggest benefits to cryptocurrency is that it makes commerce native to the Internet. Before this, a third party such as Facebook or PayPal was required to transact. This led to the Internet being "siloed" where people are locked into particular ecosystems.

The reason why we are facing the "Tokenization of Everything" is because native commerce is available to anything that is on the Internet. Any two nodes, regardless of what they are, can transact. Hence, if you want the data from the nanobot that is floating around in my bloodstream, that data can be transmitted and rewarded.

What we are involved in is a process. This is the key to remember. Technological development takes time. From a token perspective, this is what the Alt-Coins are dependent upon. Ultimately, success will be those which have the development and not just seek to utilize the financial aspect.

The number of people involved in this entire process grew in 2019. I expect we will see this trend continue. As the number of people expands, at every level, the output grows exponentially. This is what will close the gap quickly on the centralized entities.

The shift is already starting.

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Posted via Steemleo | A Decentralized Community for Investors