In all likelihood, the Movement of the SEI Foundation, the organization behind Layer1 Blockchain Sei, to buy in bankruptcy, the 23Andme genetic data company is a long shot in the best case and potentially only one advertising trick. But, it is still an incredibly exciting idea that has made many people think.
If it were a treatment to pass, we would see a web3 rescue a web2 company, which would have huge ramifications in itself. Web2 technological giants are already being challenged in the area of AI by much smaller, agile and more flexible companies. However, the purchase of what was once one of Silicon Valley’s brightest stars for a blockchain above would be a total paradigm shift.
Beyond that, an agreement would be a victory for public understanding for data and privacy security. While we have all been vaguely aware of how goal, Google, Apple, etc., we take and use our data, we have chosen to ignore that for the comfort it gives us.
So maybe there has never been a case like 23 Andme, which has DNA and other data for 15 million people. It shows the public how vulnerable their most personal and intimate data is in the hands of centralized companies and organizations.
One thing is when Facebook and Instagram are tracking our purchasing and consumers habits and making our messages and confidential emails vulnerable to leaks. With 23 Andme, we are talking about DNA data; The very fabric of our human bodies has just been with green flag for sale to the highest bidder.
If SEI is not successful, which is very likely, these data can and may well be sold to health or life insurance companies. They may use this data to potentially exclude people from vital health or insurance policies, thanks to the questionable way in which the United States health system and their discrimination policies are applied.
Perhaps, finally, this is a turning point in which the public can seriously understand the importance of possessing their own data. Perhaps more people realize that to keep their data really safe, they have total control of themselves through the use of decentralized blockchain technology.
Of course, not all block chains are the same. However, Sei certainly states that it is very safe, and projects such as Arweave, which is a permanent storage chain based on a model of “paying a store forever”, have applications that can allow you to load and store your data privately, safely and permanently.
These are two between a growing list of options in our industry, but the point is this: there is simply not a centralized solution beyond a sheet of paper stored in a Swiss security deposit box with keys buried in the ground that can be compared. And even then, someone can dig up those keys.
This is a decisive moment for people to understand the importance of the self-obese of the data. And it comes at a time when confidence in centralized organizations, companies and even governments is breaking. As such, the sale 23Andme could mark a true turning point in history, and one that could remodel how we see and use web3.
