If you think the Internet is useful, just wait till you can use the Datanet
- Jul 13, 2021
- 1 min read
If you think the Internet is useful, just wait till you can use the Datanet
What would happen if we could identify and find and grant access to individual bits of data on the Internet as easily as we can reach people and companies through their internet addresses? What would happen if machine learning algorithms could be trained on data sets wherever they were? And what if we could do both these things without breaching privacy or confidentiality? We would have the power to create digital marketplaces in virtually anything, enable governments, companies and people to work off the same set of data with sharing the raw data, speed up and cut the cost of production processes and supply chains, empower everyone to control and get paid for their personal data without having to share it with anyone, and not only accelerate the adoption of data standards but make it much easier to translate between them. In short, we would have a new application of the Internet: the Datanet. Dominic Hobson asked Philip Treleaven, Professor and Director of the UK Financial Computing Centre at University College, London, how close we are to the Datanet.
Questions that are being asked
1. What is a DataNet? 2. What is new about a DataNet (concept, e.g. universalizability and technology, e.g. standard protocols)? 3. How does a DataNet work (e.g. federated learning, NFC tags)? 4. Why do we need it? 5. What are some applications/use-cases (e.g. digital IDs, health, travel, track and trace, retailing)? 6. What are the benefits (e.g. privacy)? 7. Where has the idea got to and who is working on it (i.e. AIR platform)?
