Despite the Metaverse and the NFTs having gained a lot of space in the traditional media in recent times, the terms are still not part of most people’s daily lives. After all, it is natural that these buzzwords like Blockchain, NFTs, and AIs, lead part of the population – especially in Brazil – to think that matters involving innovation seem to be restricted to the world of startups, being something far beyond their remit. Which is definitely not true.
However, there are few Brazilian courses to training professionals to understand the new generation of technologies and the mindset of Web3. Technologies do not resolve themselves, and it is necessary to develop a culture based on identifying problems and observing which technologies – and their respective combinations – help us to solve them. Web3 itself is born from the challenges of Web2: communities, property, identity sovereignty, and decentralization, among others.
The training problem in Brazil goes through the market history, not just being a relevant issue for Web3. We are talking about the shortage of developers in the most diverse areas and also the quite quitting movement. Added to this is people’s reluctance to think about “technology” beyond certain sectors. Current courses that address the Web3 theme face the updating challenge since technologies are expanding and Web3 continues to develop.
That’s why when we talk about technological training and, in particular, innovation based on Web3 tools, the United States continues to be a good reference. This does not mean that Brazil is not one of the most advanced countries with its technological bases and guidelines on regulation and sandboxes, for example, the pioneering spirit of our Central Bank in these guidelines. Still a reference in the United States, over there, the Web3 communities are already more mature, as well as the Web3 application cases themselves by large companies in the areas of Blockchain, Artificial Intelligence, and even proposals for the regulation of digital assets by the SEC.
On the one hand, the American Congress is discussing regulatory guidelines and, on the other, the financial market with venture capitals dedicating a large part of their investments to startups that work with disruptive technologies. This marriage moves the training space, allied to American universities that are always trying to seek marketing alignment with the trends dictated by Silicon Valley.
As it is a mindset revolution that impacts the way we live and work, I believe that university courses should adapt to incorporate concepts of decentralization. After all, the Web3 theme is transversal, it is not a single specialization. Thus, as it is an environment conducive to knowledge and innovation, universities should be the place for a healthy debate on the construction of Web3.
But as Web3 is a desire born of decentralization and the sovereignty of user data, there are also independent movements of communities dedicated to expanding this knowledge. For example, Bankless, a DAO dedicated to the discussion of decentralized finance and whose objective is to empower its community through content and meetings on the subject.
In this sense, Brazil is not far behind, with several communities dedicated to empowering people, whether through Discord talks, meetings on Twitter Spaces, and events. Outside the bubble, more traditional education centers are increasingly aware of Web3 disruption. The short-term trend is for more and more universities and other teaching institutions to promote these meetings, update their students, and test the theme in their academic menus.
That’s why big companies are already pushing Web3 experiences and creating new products. Some have even created products dedicated to Web3 projects. Thus, these companies seek professionals who know Web3 fields, to generate internal training. Until now, enabling Web3 outside the bubble has been a top-down action: companies promote knowledge among their employees.
The good news is that the Web3 community is making an effort to attract more people to this universe. In my opinion, not understanding Web3 would be like arriving at any company and not knowing how to use the internet to send e-mails, for example. Therefore, I highlight the role of digital literacy as a means of survival in the labor market. To not sound so apocalyptic, I stress that Web3 is a democratic space of knowledge and is more connected to community principles and consumer desires than to a world of programming with zeros and ones.
On the other hand, the Web3 subject is still quite recent, and we need to understand that all technological revolutions have their own cycle. In addition to being aware that technologies advance faster than our ability to absorb and apply them. At this moment that, the responsibility arises to promote training and make access to the internet and information a good thing for everyone.
*The content of this article is the author’s responsibility and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of iMasters.
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