Open Source Will Save the World, and We Need Blockchains to Do It
In Brief
The internet evolved from an open network to a centralized Web 2 controlled by corporations, but blockchain-powered Web3 platforms like Pocket Network are now driving a shift back to decentralization and openness.
The World Wide Web started as an open communication network for research and statecraft, quickly interconnecting early adopters around the globe.
It wasn’t long before “Web 2” firms – especially internet service providers – saw the potential to make hefty profits by creating walled gardens for proprietary services, even lobbying heavily to this end. The web soon looked like a map of centralized web companies and telecoms, each with their own rules for speech, privacy, and usage fees.
Today, the rise of blockchain-powered platforms is starting us off on the next paradigmatic shift in internet usage as web3 companies repopularize open-source, private, decentralized technology. In particular, protocols like Pocket Network are leveraging blockchain tech to create an open, fair, and affordable internet for everyone.
Building An Open-Source World
For web2 companies, data has been the new oil. Besides collecting data without fair compensation, web2 companies exert centralized control over data transfer, storage, and management. Such a closed-source approach towards data handling creates challenges for netizens and companies alike.
Blockchain-based protocols are trying to solve these problems by building a fair data management ecosystem for an open-source world.
Eliminating Single Point Of Failure
Centralized companies consolidate data in one place, increasing the risk of security breaches and cyber-attacks. The lack of data security compromises the trust and functionality of web3 apps and AI agents, especially those handling sensitive user data.
Recently, X (formerly Twitter) was down because of a DDoS attack. This affected AI agents like AIXBT, which tracks data from top financial leaders on X to deliver real-time market intelligence insights.
In the age of round-the-clock global financial markets, an outage in centralized RPC providers can leave AI agents blind to crucial updates. Even a small downtime and brief gaps in data access can lead to inaccurate decision-making, missed transactions, failed trades, and losses worth millions of dollars. For example, the f(x) Protocol suffered an RPC failure and faced massive liquidations.
AI agents and web3 financial applications should use decentralized self-healing networks like Pocket Network to avoid such situations. Pocket is at the forefront of a critical transformation in how data is accessed and transferred.
With more than 12,500 independent node operators spread across +20 countries, Pocket’s architecture ensures network resilience by distributing data queries across the network. Pocket has eliminated single points of failure and successfully served nearly one trillion data requests.
Pocket Network’s decentralized architecture provides a critical infrastructure solution for AI agents that require uninterrupted, real-time data accessibility. Even if several nodes go offline, Pocket remains unaffected. This ensures high uptime and outage resistance, making it ideal for AI agents managing transactions for DeFi protocols.
Removing Censorship Restrictions
Closed-source companies have total control over data sharing and enforce strict policies to implement them. This leads to censorship issues where the companies block free data transfers, restricting innovation and research.
High throughput platforms rely on Content Delivery Networks (CDNs) to serve their user requests, but those CDNs may decide to arbitrarily shut off access without any recourse due to market or political pressure. As long as a board of directors controls what you’re able to see through opaque internal decision making, you have no ability to guarantee that your data reaches its destination.
As an alternative to that, blockchain-powered open source protocols remove the need for concentrated decision making power. For example, Pocket Network’s decentralized node architecture allows applications to directly access open data sources without a middle man.
Pocket aggregates open-source data and service providers and connects them to users and applications through a permissionless protocol. Applications and gateways stake on the protocol for throughput, removing the need for human interaction, and the point of failure that comes with human oversight. And with its innovative relay mining model, data providers are incentivized to share their content globally.
This decentralized model enables Pocket to handle billions of daily relay requests, distributing them across thousands of nodes. While the network was originally built to service RPC requests from blockchains, the upcoming Shannon Upgrade (currently in Beta Testnet) expands the network’s capability to service all forms of open data in an unstoppable and censorship-resistant fashion.
Simultaneously, open-source protocols like InterPlanetary File System (IPFS) and Filecoin offer a censorship-resistant and tamper-proof platform for distributed data storage. Web3 apps using IPFS or Filecoin don’t need a centralized cloud provider like AWS, Google Cloud, or Azure.
Reducing Cost-intensive Usage
Data accessibility from centralized companies is expensive. Most companies use a pay-per-query model, which becomes prohibitively costly during surges in network activity. Startups and independent developers find it difficult to afford such price hikes.
Decentralized infrastructure providers like Pocket Network use a predictable token economy where developers and applications have to stake POKT tokens for network usage. Pocket doesn’t charge extra during workload surges. Simultaneously, Pocket’s independent node operators are incentivized to process data relay requests, creating an affordable and sustainable economic model for data accessibility.
As an example, Akash, a decentralized marketplace for GPU computational power, costs 85% less than its centralized counterparts. It removes vendor lock-in and enables developers to dynamically bid on compute power, making it more economical than centralized cloud platforms.
The AI industry also provides a comparative perspective of closed-source companies’ costs. For example, OpenAI spends $1 million daily for AI training and inference, while the open-source DeepSeek costs about $5.5 million.
Towards An Open-Source World
Blockchain-powered protocols transform how web3 applications and AI agents function through decentralized and trustless inference routing, censorship-resistant relay mining and storage, and affordable data accessibility and computing solutions.
Protocols like Pocket Network are not just laying the foundational infrastructure layer for the future of an open-source world. Instead, they’re actively building a permissionless and accessible internet that isn’t controlled by monopolistic corporate powers. Pocket is finally returning the internet to its original promise of being a global, open network.
Disclaimer
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About The Author
Gregory, a digital nomad hailing from Poland, is not only a financial analyst but also a valuable contributor to various online magazines. With a wealth of experience in the financial industry, his insights and expertise have earned him recognition in numerous publications. Utilising his spare time effectively, Gregory is currently dedicated to writing a book about cryptocurrency and blockchain.
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Gregory, a digital nomad hailing from Poland, is not only a financial analyst but also a valuable contributor to various online magazines. With a wealth of experience in the financial industry, his insights and expertise have earned him recognition in numerous publications. Utilising his spare time effectively, Gregory is currently dedicated to writing a book about cryptocurrency and blockchain.
