What is Web4 proposed by the European Union? What impact will it have on the encrypted world

The concept of Web3 has not yet been digested by the world, and the European policy field has launched a new narrative of Web4. Is the traditional world finally opening up the next mainstream narrative for the encryption world one step ahead, or is Europe, with a low encryption awareness rate, trying to overtake in a corner? On July 11, local time, the European Commission (European Commission, EC) adopted a new strategy on Web4 and the virtual world, with the aim of guiding the next technological transformation and ensuring an open, A safe, trustworthy, fair and inclusive digital environment.

The concept of Web3 has not yet been absorbed by the world, and the European policy field has launched a new narrative of Web4. Is the traditional world finally opening up the next mainstream narrative for the encryption world one step ahead, or is Europe, with a low encryption awareness rate, trying to overtake in a corner? In this article, veDAO Research Institute will interpret the Web4 proposed by the European Union.

Proposal and Web4

• **What is Web4? **

The proposal, released on July 11, stated that Web4 echoes and covers the term Web3 and will be part of a new Internet vision where virtual experiences, the Internet of Things and blockchain converge. The European Commission clarified what strategies and initiatives will be taken to increase the EU's participation in the world of Web4 technologies.

The definition of Web3 in the EU proposal is: "The main characteristics of the third-generation Internet Web3 are openness, decentralization and complete user sovereignty." On the basis of the EU's recognition of the current Web3 concept, digital and real objects and environments will be allowed The integration between human and machine is enhanced, which is called Web4. In short, we can understand Web4 as an evolution of the concept of Web3, where IoT, Blockchain, Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality converge.

The EU emphasizes that the Web 4.0 and Virtual Worlds initiative consists of four main pillars. The first three align with the pillars of the Digital EU 2030 project: human skills, business environment and public services. The fourth pillar includes the goals of infrastructure construction such as computing power and cloud, as well as the openness and global governance of Web 4.0 and the virtual world.

Although the European Commission also listed blockchain as one of the constituent technologies of Web4, the wording in the proposal is trusted blockchain, not the trustless zone native to and supported by the encrypted world. blockchain. At the same time, the European Commission has not yet provided any details, such as how to combine all the technologies and give birth to the new narrative of Web4.

• Web4-related plans

In the announcement of the Web4 strategy, many new initiatives were also disclosed: First, the announcement proposed a plan inherent in Horizon Europe called "Virtual World Partnership", which is expected to be launched in 2025. The goal of the initiative is to develop an "industrial and technological roadmap for virtual worlds" by helping developers, creators, and companies that make extensive use of the internet understand this new trend. There will also be a need to test new solutions with all EU member states. It also envisions a project called "CitiVerse," described as an urban virtual universe for managing and planning urban work and activities in alternative ways, without elaborating on its target audience. Finally, another idea put forward by the committee involves a "European virtual human twin" virtual replica of the human body, which could help doctors study disease outbreaks and treatments.

Regarding the introduction of the new Web4 technological frontier, Thierry Breton, European Commissioner for the Internal Market, said: "Today, Europe is officially world leader in Web 4 and the virtual world. Europe has what it takes to lead the next technological transformation." conditions needed: innovative start-ups, a wealth of creative content and industrial applications, a strong role as a global standard-setter, and a conducive and predictable legal framework for innovation.”

• Web4 problems in the EU

In the "EU Economic Outlook after 2030" released by the European Union in March, it emphasized that digitalization is one of its key drivers, and Web4 is a major technological transformation that will bring a seamlessly connected, intelligent and immersive world. After opening the door to cryptocurrencies and blockchain with MiCA (Markets in Cryptoassets) approval in April, the European Commission now wants to go a step further and try to compete with American technological innovation.

With these news, including this Web4 narrative, it is not difficult to see that Europe's regulatory framework is about to become one of the most permissive regulatory frameworks in the world in the field of cryptocurrency, and is willing to let the continent stand out in the context of new technologies. But it seems too early for the EU as a whole to talk about Web4.

A June survey by Consensys (the parent company of MetaMask) found that only 8% of people across the EU thought they were familiar with the concept of Web3. On the other hand, terms like blockchain, cryptocurrency, and DeFi are still foreign to the uninitiated and not yet understood by most. Understanding Web3 or Web4 remains a serious barrier to entry for a large number of people who are not familiar with the basics of virtual currencies. Many European centers such as Berlin, London, and Lisbon are becoming crypto and blockchain hubs, but the rest of the continent doesn’t even know what the word “Crypto” means.

**Which sectors of the crypto market are expected to benefit? **

After understanding the grand strategy of Web4 proposed by the European Union as a whole, let's focus on which links will benefit the encryption market. The European Union's announcement on Web4 mentioned that blockchain technology can be used to manage assets in the virtual world, such as virtual currency or virtual real estate, and allow safe and transparent transactions within the virtual world. There are also many pages that mention "virtual world" and "digital city", which are one of the most important future directions in the announcement. So this may be good news for the metaverse-related tracks.

In the EU proposal, "Blockchain" was mentioned 30 times, "Crypto" and related words were mentioned 7 times, and "NFT" was mentioned 40 times. In general, NFT is also a key area mentioned in this EU proposal. The article points out that NFTs are being widely used in various applications. It is recognized that "NFT promotes innovation in content creation and provides opportunities for artists (and creators). NFT platforms connect artists (and creators) directly with potential buyers and at a lower cost. "This consensus has been universalized.

In addition, the proposal also proposes a way to combine NFT and traditional business: "In fact, NFT has been introduced into new business models. NFT can also be used for sales in specific use cases such as sports, fashion, games, and music." and event ticketing.” At present, the application of NFT+ traditional business is not yet perfect, and this signal from the European Union may promote the development of this track.

Finally, the importance of blockchain to Web 4.0 in terms of security and privacy protection, cross-border payments, and international trade is also mentioned, but not discussed in detail. This may bring potential growth points to the popular zk technology in the encryption market and payment applications that are not yet popular.

Conclusion

The European Union threw out the concept of Web4 this time, and it seems that it wants to accelerate in the field of blockchain, so as to surpass Asia and America, which are constantly expanding in the field of infrastructure, so it plans to create locally and become a standard setter. However, the popularity of Web3 in Europe is still insufficient. It still takes time to observe the direction of Web4, which is only a concept first. Although Web4 and Web3 are not closely related, the encryption track involved in the EU's Web4-related construction may usher in an upsurge during the time when the EU takes the initiative.