Read → Write → Own: The Ongoing Internet Evolution

The internet has always been evolving. First, we could read. Then, we could write. Now, we can own.

But most people still don’t get what that actually means.

The concept of true digital ownership is foreign to almost everyone who grew up in the Web2 era. We’ve spent decades renting—our identities, our data, our content, our digital assets—often times without even realizing it.

• You don’t own your Instagram account. Meta does.

• You don’t own your Fortnite skins. Epic Games does.

• You don’t own your YouTube followers or even Gmail messages. Google does.

At any moment, these platforms can demonetize, deplatform, or delete everything you’ve built. And they have, countless times.

But that model is breaking.

Blockchain networks have introduced a fundamental shift in digital property rights—allowing people to truly own their data, identity, assets, and creations. And while we’re still early (with only ~50M 'real' monthly transacting Web3 users according to a16z), the tipping point is coming.

When ownership becomes the default online, we will witness a Cambrian explosion of new markets, business models, and financial opportunities.

Here’s what’s coming next.

The Digital Property Revolution

Chris Dixon’s book Read Write Own lays out a simple but profound idea: digital ownership changes everything.

We’re not just talking about NFTs and JPEGs. We’re talking about owning your identity, financial infrastructure, social media, creative work, and even your online reputation.

🔹 Read (Web1) → Static content (early internet, no interaction).

🔹 Write (Web2) → User-generated content (social media, platforms own everything).

🔹 Own (Web3) → Digital property rights (you own assets, accounts, and identity).

This shift is happening across three massive fronts:

1. Bitcoin as the Reserve Asset of the Internet 🏦

As governments and corporations start holding Bitcoin, it becomes more than a speculative asset—it becomes a foundational part of the internet economy.

• The U.S. government alone holds over $5B in Bitcoin from seizures. And from the latest Executive Order, they will no longer sell these assets, or other leading crypto's upon seizure. Plus potentially looking at ways to purchase more.

• Companies like Tesla, MicroStrategy, and Square have it on their balance sheets for years now. With more lobbying from these leaders for other companies to look at 1-3%+ to be on their balance sheets.

• Spot Bitcoin ETFs are bringing institutional money in at scale since early last year. Once Blackrock leads, others follow.

Bitcoin isn’t just a store of value—it’s a neutral, permissionless financial system that corporations, DAOs, and even AI agents can plug into.

Prediction: By the end of this decade, Bitcoin will be held by most major sovereign nations, reshaping global commerce and reserves.

2. Decentralized Networks Are Eating Web2 🌐

For decades, Web2 giants monetized user-generated content while keeping 100% control. But users are waking up.

The rise of decentralized social platforms and finance is breaking this model:

• Warpcast (Farcaster) – Own your social graph, which is portable across apps.

• Lens – Monetize directly, no middlemen.

• Friend.tech – Social meets financial speculation.

• DeFi (Ethereum, Solana, etc.) – Self-custody your wealth, no banks.

Platforms that let users own their accounts, followers, and financial tools will replace the ones that don’t.

Prediction: The first decentralized socialFi network to hit 100M users will emerge within five years.

3. The Ownership Economy Will Unlock Entirely New Markets 🚀

When ideas, art, software, and even AI models can be owned, monetized, and traded, the entire structure of intellectual property shifts.

• Digital Art & Media – Forget Spotify’s cut. Artists will earn royalties forever via on-chain ownership.

• AI Models & Compute – AI researchers will tokenize their models (PACA Network, IMO funding).

• Knowledge DAOs – Decentralized science (DeSci) will fund breakthroughs outside of universities.

• Gaming Economies – Players will truly own and trade in-game assets (not just pretend to).

Prediction: In 5-10 years, Web3-native intellectual property-owned projects will be grossing $1b+ annually for their community members.

The End of the Internet’s Rent-Seeking Era

For the last twenty years, the Internet has been built on rented digital real estate—platforms that allow us to exist but never own.

Just as physical property rights changed the evolution of global commerce and individual rights, the next twenty years will be the opposite.

In a world where users own everything, commerce, finance, and content creation will operate in ways we have yet to imagine.

In a volatile market, it can seem like we’re not early to this shift. But we are still in the early innings of this shift, with trillions of dollars and billions of people ready to enter the market.

And those who understand digital property rights today will own the biggest opportunities of tomorrow, many of whom we are helping via Renno Global to structure how they will capitalize on this growth across natural assets, AI, their art and open-source software.

🚀 The future isn’t just decentralized—it’s owned. Get yours now.

— DOK