The father of the World Wide Web wants a do-over.
Tim Berners-Lee, the British technologist credited with inventing the early forerunner to the modern Internet, just announced that his new start-up, Inrupt, has ambitious plans. In an exclusive reveal to Fast Company, Berners-Lee said he aims to invent a more decentralized web that will minimize the massive online footprint of tech behemoths such as Google and Facebook.
“We have to do it now,” Berners-Lee told the magazine. “It’s a historical moment.” He said he has grown increasingly alarmed by the amount of private information being gobbled up by companies like Facebook, as well as the outside manipulation of all this data. His company’s new web platform, Solid, aims to give this power back to users, letting them move effortlessly between all their apps and programs, all while maintaining control of all their personal data.
“We are not talking to Facebook and Google about whether or not to introduce a complete change where all their business models are completely upended overnight,” Berners-Leet told Fast Company in what amounts to a clear shot across their corporate bows. “We are not asking their permission.”
Thanks for reading InsideHook. Sign up for our daily newsletter and be in the know.
