Decentralization crusades are the internet's "Groundhog Day"

Every decade or two, a new wave of innovators tells us they've found the technological key to eliminating society's gatekeepers and empowering individuals — but every time the music stops, big companies remain in charge. These recurring waves of decentralizing energy have repeatedly failed to empower individuals and build small-is-beautiful paradises. But they've been highly effective at unseating incumbents in the industries they target for disruption. Now Web3's leaders are taking aim at today's finance giants — banks, brokerages, Wall Street. Web3 could certainly win its fight with Wall Street over time, just as Google and Facebook wrested control of global advertising from its former leaders. But if history is any guide, the digital world's new bosses will look very much like its old ones.