WebWebWeb Fund
COLLECTIVE
community
Helping build and fund the future of the Web — decentralized, open, human-centric, and probably crypto-free.
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Financial Contributions
Top financial contributors
Write.as
$1,000 USD since Jan 2022
WebWebWeb Fund is all of us
Our contributors 2
Thank you for supporting WebWebWeb Fund.
Budget
Transparent and open finances.
Credit from Write.as to WebWebWeb Fund •
+$1,000.00USD
Completed
Added funds #516720
$
Today’s balance$1,000.00 USD
Total income
$1,000.00 USD
Total disbursed
--.-- USD
Estimated annual budget
--.-- USD
About
According to some VCs on Twitter, the future of the web is here, and it will be built on top of a new speculative digital currency they stockpiled before you ever had a chance.
Good for them. What about the rest of us?
From its early days, the internet has been about, and made up of, people. We've expressed ourselves without social media, played in virtual worlds without the metaverse, and exchanged goods and services without cryptocurrency. The internet has changed over the years, but also stayed the same in this precise way.
Along the way, the internet has enabled so much. Plenty of problems have come up, but those paying attention have learned what we need to make the internet a good space for people to socialize on, exchange things, share knowledge, and augment our abilities in the physical world.
We've watched billions of people around the world join the network, only to be courted by world-eating, limited-function platforms like Facebook. Socializing became synonymous with media. Websites became synonymous with ads. Marketplaces sprung up and created new economies around ride-hailing and "creators," only to be cornered by a few shitty platforms and corporations. There must be another way!
There is. And it doesn't involve handing the entire internet to the financiers again. It starts with people.
That's why we've started the WebWebWeb Fund (Web³ for short) -- a fund and grant program to build the next human-centric stage of the Web.
We believe in a few simple things:
Good for them. What about the rest of us?
From its early days, the internet has been about, and made up of, people. We've expressed ourselves without social media, played in virtual worlds without the metaverse, and exchanged goods and services without cryptocurrency. The internet has changed over the years, but also stayed the same in this precise way.
Along the way, the internet has enabled so much. Plenty of problems have come up, but those paying attention have learned what we need to make the internet a good space for people to socialize on, exchange things, share knowledge, and augment our abilities in the physical world.
We've watched billions of people around the world join the network, only to be courted by world-eating, limited-function platforms like Facebook. Socializing became synonymous with media. Websites became synonymous with ads. Marketplaces sprung up and created new economies around ride-hailing and "creators," only to be cornered by a few shitty platforms and corporations. There must be another way!
There is. And it doesn't involve handing the entire internet to the financiers again. It starts with people.
That's why we've started the WebWebWeb Fund (Web³ for short) -- a fund and grant program to build the next human-centric stage of the Web.
We believe in a few simple things:
- The Web should be decentralized. Not only (and not always) in a technical way, but in the way that it's better overall to shop at many stores instead of only going to Wal-Mart.
- The Web should interoperate. In the same way I can email you on Gmail from my Outlook account, more of the Web should be able to communicate across useful platforms and their natural boundaries.
- The Web should be open to all. You shouldn't need to hand over money, your personal data, or behavioral patterns just to participate.
- The Web should be about the Web. The entire network is the "social network." We shouldn't limit ourselves only to the small corners, platforms, and networks within it. When those platforms become too large and start to fail, we don't just look to regulate and reform them, entrenching their power -- we start to build something better in their place.
In short, we aim to grow the Web itself -- not some limited idea of it. Our grants will provide funding for the following:
- Starting a personal website, with your own domain name and service of your choosing
- Starting an independent community, domain name and all, so you can bring friends and like-minded folks together
- Developing platforms that make building on the open Web more accessible and user-friendly
- Other projects that share our goals
Initial funding will be provided by Write.as -- a modern, minimalist blogging platform and love letter to the open Web. We'll use Open Collective to run this fund transparently.
We're looking for open / distributed Web advocates and fellow travelers to join us, collaborate, review grant submissions, and further our mission. If you're interested, please get in touch with @[email protected] or send an email to: matt [at] write.as.
Once we figure out the financial logistics and have others on board, we'll welcome other organizations and individuals that want to contribute to the fund.
We're looking for open / distributed Web advocates and fellow travelers to join us, collaborate, review grant submissions, and further our mission. If you're interested, please get in touch with @[email protected] or send an email to: matt [at] write.as.
Once we figure out the financial logistics and have others on board, we'll welcome other organizations and individuals that want to contribute to the fund.
Our team
Matt Baer
Admin