The web democratized how we connect with each other and how we exchange information. However, it was never built with an identity layer. Because of this, we struggle to secure personal data with hundreds of log-ins and passwords that we can’t remember. We also cede our personal data to third parties and trust them as custodians. What if we could own and control access to our data? Our identity, our content, our preferences - all within our own personal data stores. In this talk, Angie Jones discusses Web5, an open source decentralized web platform that returns ownership and control over data to individuals where it belongs. It does this by providing a new layer for the web that enables developers to build decentralized apps and protocols. And because the platform abstracts away the complexity of decentralization, developers are free to focus on building great things that push the web forward.