What do you do next after you invent the World Wide Web? You create the future of the web — one that is in line with your original aims. 

Sir Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the World Wide Web, envisioned a world where individuals control their data, not vast corporate databases. However the reality is very different. 

According to Berners-Lee

“The web was always meant to be a platform for creativity, collaboration, and free invention – but that’s not what we are seeing today. 

Today, business transformation is hampered by different parts of one’s life being managed by different silos, each of which looks after one vertical slice of life, but where the users and teams can’t get the insight from connecting that data. 

Meanwhile, that data is exploited by the silo in question, leading to increasing, very reasonable, public scepticism about how personal data is being misused.”

In response, he joined forces with tech entrepreneur John Bruce in 2017 and founded Inrupt, a US-UK-based company championing a new web standard around personal data ownership and the open web. 

The two met through an investor after Bruce’s previous company Resilient Systems was acquired by IBM.  

Bruce and a group of open-source developers at MIT had developed the Solid protocol, and the two decided to take it to the next level. 

Inrupt today launched its Data Wallet, a digital tool that allows users to store, manage, and control their personal data.  

I spoke to John Bruce, CEO of Inrupt, to learn more about the company’s mission, active project, and hopes for the Data Wallet. 

Putting users in control of their data with Solid Protocol

Inrupt’s Data Wallet solution is built on the company’s Enterprise Solid Server (ESS), which is powering deployments of the open web standard Solid protocol globally. 

The Solid protocol is focused on data decentralisation and aims to give users complete control over their data, including access control and storage location, moving away from centralised data silos controlled by large corporations.

Solid extends the web to include identity management, access control, and universal data standards. These capabilities decouple data from applications so that it is organised around individuals.

In other words,  Solid gives users a choice of where their personal data is stored, which parts they share and which people, organisations and applications can access or use it. 

Why wallets?

Over 60 per cent of the world’s population is expected to use digital wallets regularly by 2026. However, the current market is largely focused on financial transactions and dominated by a handful of Big Tech vendors. 

Until now, digital wallets have been siloed “point solutions,” requiring different wallets for different purposes. But global initiatives like the EU’s Digital Identity Wallet are already showing organisations the benefits of standardisation and interoperability.

Inrupt’s Data Wallet technology creates interoperable wallets that accept a wide variety of data and makes it easy for individuals to consent to access to their data. This shifts the web toward a user-centric approach to how personal data is managed, shared, and used.

According to Inrupt, over half (51 per cent) of consumers have already expressed interest in using digital wallets for features beyond payments. Rather than building their data wallets from scratch, organisations can use Inrupt’s white-label solution to seamlessly build, integrate, test, and expand their wallet offerings quickly and give users control of their most important identity information and personal data.  

Digital wallets can be used when sharing identity credentials, demographic information, memberships, event tickets, professional credentials, purchase histories, buying preferences, and other personal data.

This is made possible through the Solid protocol’s open-source standards that lets users control their data in personal storage pods (“Pods”). With pods data is stored in standardised interoperable formats. Any application that can make an API call can potentially integrate with Solid pods, allowing for a wide range of use cases.

Successful Pod pilots pave the way for Data Wallet launch

Inrupt’s technology is gaining traction globally with deployments across diverse sectors, including media ( BBC), finance (NatWest) Bank, healthcare services in the UK and Australia, and the Flanders Government in Belgium. Additionally, Inrupt has signed contracts with governments in Sweden, Argentina, and Basque Country (Spain) and is running pilot programs in Singapore, Japan, and Helsinki.

The Solid protocol has previously been deployed by Inrupt in pilots in various sectors. For example, in Belgium, citizens can use pods to store and share educational diplomas for job applications with employment agencies. 

Inrupt piloted with the NHS in Greater Manchester to create a more patient-centric approach to health data management,  creating a central health and care record for local people, addressing the challenge of interoperability between different computer systems across the health service.

VITO, a Belgium research instute, also developed a platform called “We Are” that creates a Solid Pod for each user and provides a user-friendly interface to manage it. This approach gives patients control over their health data. They can see what data is collected, who has access to it, and choose to share it for research. The anonymized data helps researchers improve healthcare quality across Belgium.

Bruce shared that when it comes to the project with Vito, 

“I was shocked with how well it performed for the initial use case. When the team requested to adapt it for a new scenario, we initially assumed a complete redesign.

After all, a new use case often means new data. But to our surprise, the lead architect pointed out that much of the existing framework could be repurposed. 

We just needed to adjust the questions we asked the patients to extract the most relevant data. This saved significant time and resources.”

Non-linear innovation is still innovation

Even inventing the world wide web doesn’t guarantee the commercial success of future projects. Going from pilot to commercialisation is no easy task for any startup, especially when you’re proposing an entirely new foundation for the Web. It doesn’t happen overnight. 

But according to Bruce, the original web wasn’t about “doing something twice as fast for half the price or half the size.”

“It was a long non-linear construct that just became one of the world’s greatest-ever inventions. Similarly, we represent non-linear progress and innovation.” 

He detailed:

“Tim calls this Web 3.0. He says this is the web as he originally imagined it.”

Indeed achieving widespread adoption of the Solid protocol may prove difficult in terms of a sustainable business model.

However, Solid ecosystem is designed to be evolvable, allowing for continuous improvements and the addition of new features without disrupting existing services.Indeed the Data Wallet extends the utility enjoyed by more service-based customers like Governments and health services, to corporations and commercial enterprises. 

For example with a multi-purpose Data Wallet, organisations can access and verify government-issued credentials like passports, educational certificates and entitlement benefits, even across state and national borders.

“Digital wallets are fast becoming the most compelling way to serve your customers and citizens. Organisations need to assess their wallet strategy,” said Bruce.

“We built our Data Wallet to be easy to use — both for organisations and their users. It’s a direct channel of communication for valuable, relevant data.” 

Because of this foundation, the personal data stored in the Data Wallet can easily be reused (with consent) in other apps, services, and AI systems. 

Consent for access is always coupled with each piece of data, so users can trust that their data is used the way they want it, and organisations can be confident that they’re in compliance with any relevant data regulations.

Inrupt’s Data Wallet represents a significant step towards a web that fulfils Berners-Lee’s original vision: a collaborative, creative space that empowers users. While challenges like widespread adoption exist, Inrupt’s technology is gaining traction across various sectors, and its focus on user privacy and data ownership offers hope for the future of the web.

Lead image: Freepix.