In all probability, the transfer by the Sei Basis – the group behind layer1 blockchain Sei – to purchase bankrupt genetic information firm 23andMe is a long-shot at greatest, and doubtlessly only a publicity stunt. However, it stays an extremely thrilling concept that has bought lots of people pondering.
Had been such a deal to undergo, we’d see a Web3 firm rescue a Web2 firm, which might have monumental ramifications in and of itself. Web2 tech giants are already being challenged within the space of AI by a lot smaller, nimble, and extra versatile firms. Nonetheless, the acquisition of what was as soon as one in all Silicon Valley’s shiniest stars by a blockchain upstart can be a complete paradigm shift.
Past that, a deal can be a win for public understanding for information safety and privateness. Whereas we’ve got all been vaguely conscious of how Meta, Google, Apple, and many others., take and use our information, we’ve got chosen to disregard that for the comfort it affords us.
Then there has maybe by no means been such a case as 23andMe, which holds DNA and different information for 15 million folks. It reveals the general public how weak their most private and intimate information is within the arms of centralized firms and organizations.
It’s one factor when Fb and Instagram are monitoring our buying and client habits and making our delicate messages and emails weak to leaks. With 23andMe, we’re speaking DNA information; the very cloth of our human our bodies has simply been green-flagged on the market to the very best bidder.
If Sei shouldn’t be profitable, which is most certainly, this information can and could be offered to well being or life insurance coverage firms. They might then be capable of use this information to doubtlessly exclude folks from very important healthcare or insurance coverage insurance policies, because of the questionable method during which the U.S. healthcare system is run and its discrimination insurance policies enforced.
Maybe, lastly, this can be a turning level at which the general public could significantly come to know the significance of proudly owning their very own information. Possibly extra folks will notice that to maintain their information really secure, they’ve full management of it themselves by way of the usage of decentralized blockchain know-how.
In fact, not each blockchain is created equal. Nonetheless, Sei actually claims to be extremely safe, and initiatives like Arweave – which is a everlasting storage chain constructed on a “pay one retailer endlessly” mannequin – have purposes that may mean you can add and retailer your information privately, securely and completely.
These are two amongst a rising record of choices in our trade, however the level is that this: there’s merely no centralized answer past a chunk of paper saved in a Swiss safety deposit field with keys buried deep within the floor that may evaluate. And even then, somebody can dig these keys up.
This can be a watershed second for folks to know the significance of knowledge self-sovereignty. And it comes at a time when belief in centralized organizations, firms, and even governments is breaking down. As such, the 23andMe sale might mark a real turning level in historical past, and one that would reshape how Web3 is seen, understood and utilized.