SUMMARY: — Ethereum is the most popular blockchain in the world, used by many developers who want to make their blockchain-based applications available all over the world.

— However, in order to connect their dApps to the Ethereum blockchain, developers need to run a node, which is both difficult and expensive.

— Infura is a node provider, allowing developers to connect directly to the Ethereum blockchain via Infura-managed nodes, saving time, money and reducing workload.

— This led to the development of the system, but had serious implications for the nature of the system as a whole. Here we will answer the question “What is Infura” and examine its effects on Web 3.0.

Have you ever asked what is behind Web 3.0? You should ask, because the answer to this question is important! Here, we'll answer the question "What is Infura" and provide some key insights into the current state and future of Web 3.0.

The main feature of Web 3.0 is decentralization. In a system where no central institution has the power to influence the system, users like you and us are back in the driver's seat with greater control, access and freedom of expression over data.

To achieve this, Web 3.0 builds its ecosystem on the blockchain, a network where control is completely decentralized. It is impossible to shut down, manipulate, or censor a blockchain network, and this durability provides a foundation for the thousands of decentralized applications you may already be using: DeFi, NFT markets, and browser plug-ins are great examples.

With all of this built on the blockchain, Web 3.0 should be a perfectly functioning ecosystem of “always working” dApps, right?

Decentralized Applications, Centralized System As a matter of fact, this is not the case. Even in our decentralized Web 3.0 utopia, we need more than just blockchain to bring dApps to life. Of course we are talking about Infura.

In this article, we'll take a closer look at Web 3.0's Pole Star. What is Infura, why is it so important to the Ethereum ecosystem, and how does it affect the core mission and future of Web 3.0?

Here we go!

First of all, what is Infura? Blockchain is a system that allows value to be transported in its purest form, which provides almost endless uses. But for the kind of transactions most of us do, we needed something more advanced than just sending and receiving; We needed to be able to add conditions to these transactions. In 2015, Ethereum responded to this call by introducing smart contracts to the world, which are self-executing agreements that can be used in blockchain transactions, making Ethereum a programmable blockchain for any value-added use case.

Thanks to the Ethereum blockchain's ability to transfer residual value and support complex interactions through its smart contracts, this network has become the foundation of the burgeoning Web 3.0 world. Blockchain was available to developers who wanted to develop their applications on ledger infrastructure, and the entire DeFi ecosystem, useful platforms and NFT investment platforms quickly appeared in Ethereum's orbit.

However, despite its usefulness, creating applications on the Ethereum blockchain can be complex for developers. Interacting with their smart contracts requires running a dedicated node (a kind of software), which is costly, time consuming and difficult to maintain.

Infura Nodes as a Service So what could be the solution? Why don't we handle this part by outsourcing? Let's pay someone else to take care of the node so developers can focus on their projects. Infura does exactly that.

Infura is designed to make developers' lives easier. Developers can now leverage Infura's "nodes as a service" to do this separately instead of building and running their own nodes to make their apps available on Ethereum. This had some important advantages for the evolving Web 3.0 universe.

Enabled Web 3.0 Developers to Innovate With the complex node issue taken care of, Infura has allowed developers to innovate now by enabling them to easily leverage Ethereum to launch their own projects in the Web 3.0 market.

Enabled Diversity for Users This benefits not only developers but also Web 3.0 users. With the modernization of the rollout process, a wide variety of decentralized applications can be brought into this world, giving users a wide range of options to choose from.

Strengthens the Ethereum Ecosystem Finally, Infura contributed to the system in addition to the benefits it provided to people in Web 3.0. By making projects scalable, it enabled the entire system to grow and develop at a rate never seen in any other field. The mere pace of this development is one of the things that makes Web 3.0 so great, and Infura has played a key role in making it all happen.

Problems Caused by Infura: A Return to Centralization? All this sounds good, right? But it also has a price. Now let's go back to what we said at the beginning.

Decentralization is a key feature of Web 3.0: All platforms and systems based on a single central institution create a great power imbalance where that institution can act as a "off switch" for the entire system. With many dApps using Infura as their node provider, the problems caused by Infura affect the entire system.

The Future of Web 3.0 Infrastructure In order for Web 3.0 to be fully decentralized in the future, serious consideration should be given to how to make the system more robust, autonomous, and safe from single point failures as the next step.

For example, it might be an option for each project to run its own Ethereum node. For this to happen, future infrastructure must make the node setup process faster, easier, and cheaper for developers to do without resorting to a centralized service provider.

Knowledge is power Whatever the future brings, Infura is extremely important to the blockchain world and an important springboard for the next generation of the internet. As the system continues to evolve and evolve, the best possible move for users like us is to learn thoroughly how the system works. This means looking beyond platforms and services to the fundamentals of the system as a whole, where the gist is often not very clear.

So be confident and use this time to keep learning: Web 3.0 is taking shape fast and Ledger Academy is here to help you stay informed!

Knowledge is power