The future of the internet

Learn about Web3 and how it differs from past versions of the internet

Web3 is the idea of a new, decentralized internet built on blockchain technology. It aims to shift control from centralized entities like big tech companies to users through distributed ledgers and smart contracts. Key components include cryptocurrencies, NFTs, and decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) that operate without a central authority. Web3 promises more user privacy, ownership, and control over data and digital assets.

Distinguishing between Web 1.0, 2.0, and 3, all made possible by the internet

The World Wide Web began as read-only, static webpages on Web 1.0, where data could not be entered. With Web 2.0, the online interface became a read-write space for data entry, post creation, and forum participation, among other activities. Web3 is intended to be decentralized, user-owned, and built on blockchain technology.

Using cryptocurrency to turn traditional financial arrangements on their head

Cryptocurrency is poised to drastically change everything in the financial world, including financial arrangements. Decentralized finance makes it easier for virtually anyone to take advantage of financial markets without the need for a bank. However, there are new risks involved as well. Professor of Legal Studies and Business Ethics Kevin Werbach, an expert on Bitcoin and blockchains discusses it all in detail in The Conversation.

The benefits of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology

At the root of cryptocurrencies' allure is blockchain technology, an innovation bringing profound transformations to industries, especially the financial industry. This simple article breaks down the difference between cryptocurrencies and blockchain as well as the benefits of each.

Blockchain, explained in five layers of difficulty

Blockchain, the key technology behind bitcoin, is a new network that helps decentralize trade and allows for more peer-to-peer transactions. Wired challenged political scientist and blockchain researcher Bettina Warburg to explain blockchain technology to five different people: a child, a teen, a college student, a grad student, and an expert.

The blockchain offers tantalizing possibilities for future use

Think of blockchains as a running list of information, where new details are added to the running chain as discrete "blocks." With crypto, the information contained within each block could be virtually anything, providing flexibility for uses in commerce, legal filings, healthcare records, and more.

The Chain Reaction podcast: The latest in bitcoin and blockchain developments

There are constantly new tokens, DeFi projects, NFT collections, and DAOs being launched, but how can you make sense of everything going on in the crypto space? TechCrunch senior crypto reporter Jacquelyn Melinek explores the impact of crypto on finance, art, web3, and society as a whole. One the best resources to keep up with actual—meaning, beyond the hype—developments in the world of bitcoin and blockchain.

Bitcoin explained and made simple

Bitcoin, the most popular and well-known example of a cryptocurrency, came on the scene around 2010, with its evangelists proclaiming it would eventually displace government-backed traditional cash. While the concept of a digital currency may seem straightforward, the details can be deceptively simple. This quick video overview provides the foundation for a deeper dive into the world of decentralized currency.

Why blockchain applications are worth investing and building

Chris Dixon is a general partner at Andreessen Horowitz. In this hourlong podcast episode, Dixon shares his overall thesis for investing in the cryptocurrency space, the opportunities and limitations of blockchain applications, and why this is the most interesting area for investing and building over the next 10 years.

As of 2025, the internet is entering its fourth phase, with three more to go

Since the inception of the internet as a tool for connecting teams of researchers, technological and infrastructure advancements have progressively increased connectivity. Connections between computers, mobile devices, all devices, and now AI agents will be succeeded by an internet that integrates perception and the senses toward an eventual quantum internet.

A framework for understanding the metaverse

An article answering some of the metaverse's most foundational questions: How much of the metaverse is already here? When will the rest arrive? And how will it grow?

The stock market, explained in 3 minutes

Curious about the inner workings of the stock market? 1440's got your breakdown of how it works.

Breaking down how and why 5G will change the world

The jump from 3G to 4G networks was pretty huge, and 4G to 5G is many times greater and is almost difficult to comprehend. This nine-minute video dives into how 5G will transform our world.

Cofounder Gavin Wood said Ethereum is going nowhere

Ethereum’s other cofounder, and the person known for coining the term “Web3,” Gavin Wood, ended his direct involvement with Ethereum in 2016. After that, he founded Polkadot with the aim of resolving the issues he saw with Ethereum. In this podcast, Wood says he thinks Ethereum is a financial success but that its progress has stalled. He also talks about hopes he had for the platform that have yet to be realized.

NFTs can be minted using an online marketplace or directly on the blockchain

Minting, or creating, an NFT is how NFTs are added to the blockchain. The process can be simplified by using a popular marketplace.

The origin of the World Wide Web, plus a look at its first website and web browser

Invented by Tim Berners-Lee in 1989 while working at CERN—home of the world's largest particle physics laboratory—the Web was developed to facilitate the sharing of information among scientists at institutions worldwide. By the end of 1990, the first Web server was operational as a proof-of-concept on a NeXT workstation.

The dot-com boom sent tech stocks soaring before a historic collapse

A look at the dot-com bubble, when investors poured money into unproven internet startups, driving the Nasdaq to dizzying heights before it crashed by more than 80% after 2000, showing how new technologies can detach markets from reality.

A breakdown of net neutrality, including its benefits and disadvantages

The principle dictates that all internet traffic should be treated equally by internet service providers and that they cannot block, slow, or charge more fees for access to specific webpages. This would help ensure equal access to the internet and prevent larger companies from paying to prioritize access to their content, but it would require greater government intervention.

Decoding the hype around AI

2022 was the year AI broke onto the scene, with applications like ChatGPT amazing users with its ability to generate realistic-sounding answers. Technologist Arvind Narayanan presents a clear-eyed view of what the technologies can (and can't) do.

The creator economy, explained

Many brands pay influencers to advertise their products or services on social media. Platforms such as YouTube, Substack, and Twitch also provide revenue-sharing opportunities for their top creators. Known as the creator economy, it's a system driven by individuals who produce online content for audiences that can be monetized.

How companies track you around the internet, explained

Being able to track how users behave on websites is a massive opportunity for companies to hone their products, target their ads, and more. Dozens of trackers are on the average website you visit, depending on how you deal with that site's cookie policy, and Google is the chief tracker of them all. Learn about these companies and what they are tracking with this informative blog visualization.

Writer William Gibson invented the term 'cyberspace'

The science-fiction writer coined the term in his 1982 short story "Burning Chrome" to describe "a consensual hallucination experienced daily by billions of legitimate operators, in every nation, by children being taught mathematical concepts...A graphic representation of data abstracted from the banks of every computer in the human system. Unthinkable complexity. Lines of light ranged in the nonspace of the mind, clusters and constellations of data. Like city lights, receding."

Watch an ethical hacker provide a tour of the dark web

Cybersecurity researcher John Hammond explores the effectiveness of a dark web search engine, leaks from ransomware group data breaches, and a categorized index of dark web links, including some that are alleged to host malware. Many dark web sites are no longer active or host scams to fool unsuspecting visitors.

The future of higher education in the US

In this episode of Wired’s Have a Nice Future podcast, education journalist Paul Tough joins hosts Gideon Lichfield and Lauren Goode to tackle a big question: Is attending college in the United States still worth it? As tuition climbs and the payoff feels murkier, they dig into what’s broken in higher education, and whether it can be fixed.

Explore an interactive timeline of the most important moments in the WEF’s history

This interactive traces the World Economic Forum’s evolution from a small European meeting in the 1970s into a global power hub, highlighting pivotal moments in Davos, landmark speeches, and turning points that have shaped its outsized influence on world affairs.

Memecoins are a type of cryptocurrency—a form of digital currency with a wide variety of uses—created around popular 'memes,' or viral internet jokes.

How Amazon operates a 'flywheel' business model, a self-reinforcing cycle that drives continuous growth

Watch this video that uses Lego bricks to explain how venture capital works.

This site reaches millions of visitors who are tired of AI chatbots and seeking human connection. Pretend to be an AI chatbot and ask questions, provide answers, and draw for people in real time.

Learn how to read a prospectus, the juicy document that any company must file with the SEC before going public.

The US dollar is the most widely circulated currency in the world, and is involved in nearly 90% of global transactions

Discover the catastrophic consequences of a failure of the US electrical grid—something that is more likely than many Americans think.

As of 2025, the most cited papers in science include a review of graphene, methods to improve image recognition, streamlining electron density calculations, and optimizing protein studies.

Netflix profits when you're not watching, and its movies are designed that way—read a detail-rich critical essay exposing lesser-known Netflix takes

The name 'Silicon Valley' arose from the founding of Shockley Semiconductor Laboratory in Fairchild Semiconductor in 1956-57, founded near Stanford University in Palo Alto

Read a deep dive on the 'all-purpose healing' peptide BPC-157.

Explore our favorite visualization of the immense scale of space, from an astronaut to the size of the observable universe

Visualize how CRISPR-Cas9—a type of immune system used by single-celled organisms to attack invasive viruses—targets and makes precise changes to a gene's DNA.

A century of Billboard issues documenting the evolution of popular music.

Stanford built a Google Maps for the Roman Empire, revealing how much it cost to travel in the ancient world

See how fireworks are made and learn how metals like magnesium and copper are responsible for different colors.

Calculate how much of your tax dollars go to each federal program based on your income, filing status, and number of children

The Mona Lisa's celebrity status and repeated restorations have obscured what made the painting so revolutionary for its time

Explore a list of the 100 best novels of all time, compiled by some of the world's best living writers, including Salman Rushdie, Stephen King, and Jennifer Egan.

Play the role of a student in a game where you try to navigate college and remain debt-free, selecting different income levels, high school experience, race, ethnicity, and more.

The animatronic shark from Steven Spielberg's 'Jaws,' the first modern blockbuster, was a complex underwater apparatus called 'Bruce.'

SpongeBob exemplifies Aristotle's philosophy for living well because he understands that happiness doesn't come from external factors like money, recognition, or power.

In recent years a child anxiety expert has created and tested a novel phobia and anxiety treatment approach for children, focused on changing how parents respond to the fears.

The rivalry between Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson centered on federalism—the question of how much power the federal government should hold relative to the states.

Ebola is a filovirus, meaning it resembles a thread under a microscope, though it sometimes twists and can resemble a bowl of spaghetti.