Web 3.0 is the third iteration of the world wide web, which relies on decentralized applications and blockchain-based technologies. According to a typology of the history of the internet, Web 1.0 was the static, first version of the internet, where people mainly read websites without interacting with them. This static web transitioned to web 2.0, the internet of the present, which is defined through interactive and social websites and applications. Data and content in Web 2.0 are highly centralized and concentrated on a few companies (big tech). In contrast to this, Web 3.0 relies on decentralized databases, applications, and services, where authority over a platform is not centralized but operates through self-governance. There is not one unified vision of what a web 3.0 will likely look like but they include concepts such as decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs), Decentralized Finance (Defi) as well as Self-sovereign identity.

DAO stands for “decentralized autonomous organization”, which is an emerging form of legal structure for organizations. DAOs are entities without central authority but where members own governance tokens of the DAO and can vote on the organization’s initiatives. This represents a blockchain-based, bottom-up management approach. Decisions are executed through smart-contracts and the code governing the organization is publicly disclosed.

L2 voting allows DAOs to engage with outside stakeholders through  dedicated topic governance tokens.  This mechanism is as secure and decentralized as voting based on governance tokens.