At Unternet, we’re big fans of the web. It is a small miracle that we have a global decentralised network of information that no single person or corporation owns. It means (among many other benefits) that the web is resistant to the enshittification cycles that typically turn platforms against the wishes of users.
As well as being proponents of a free and open web, we also believe that we’re on the verge of a platform shift away from the browser, and the way the web has traditionally been consumed. The intelligent user-agent, agentic operating system, the-thing-after-chatbots, whatever you want to call it – we’re moving towards a tool that can mediate between you and the information overload of the internet, make it easier and more efficient to use software, and in general give you a more personal, flexible, and capable computer.
That’s all great stuff. But here’s the problem: while there’s rapid progress towards this new way of interacting with computers from the tech industry, we’re not seeing due consideration being given to how this will affect the delicate open web ecosystem that we all depend on (and that makes AI possible in the first place).
Let’s take chatbots as an example. Unlike a web browser, a chatbot doesn’t direct eyeballs to websites. Instead, it extracts & summarizes the contents of those websites (and does so regularly for 800 million active users and counting). But for many people who create stuff for the web, having eyeballs on websites is their entire incentive for putting something online. Why hit publish if we’re taking away any direct relationship with the user, brand recognition, or remuneration through advertising?
Of course, if you don’t want to give away your data for free, you can strike a bespoke deal with OpenAI, Anthropic, or another provider to license your content to them. But now we’re taking a step towards a web that looks less like a commons, and more like a series of legal silos users will have to navigate through. (You know how you can’t watch that show without having a subscription to Paramount+? Imagine that but for all the information online.)
So what’s the solution? Let’s rewind the clocks to the birth of the web in 1989 and revisit what makes the web special in the first place: protocols and open standards. When we solve problems by adding new protocols to an open platform, we ensure these solutions exist outside the boundaries of one single company’s control, and that new capabilities benefit the entire ecosystem. What if we didn’t need licensing deals, because agents could pay for content directly? What if we designed new software building blocks, so creators can make apps that have the flexibility & malleability of a chat response?
Fortunately, there are some very smart people working on new protocols to address our biggest challenges. And there are many web creators & publishers that believe in the open web, and don’t want to be beholden to a single private company that has monopolized it. Protocols for Publishers is our effort to get those two groups of people together, to ensure we’re consciously building an equitable and flourishing ecosystem for the AI platform shift.
We’re holding our first event in New York City at Betaworks on August 20th, with sponsorship from Graze and Free Our Feeds, and talks on Web Applets, MCP, AT Protocol, Web Payments, and more. On the 21st, we're holding an invite-only summit with deeper discussion & workshops. For more information, and to reserve your space, check out our event page.