Web4 is not designed as a completely new, isolated technology. Instead, it builds on and combines several existing, recognized technical standards, adding a layer of ownership and control on top of them.
Among the standards Web4 draws on are Decentralized Identifiers (DIDs), a World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) standard for creating identifiers that a person controls directly rather than one issued by a company; Verifiable Credentials, another W3C standard that allows information to be proven true without oversharing personal details; and emerging protocols that govern how AI agents interact with software tools and with one another.
By building on these established, community-reviewed standards rather than proprietary alternatives, Web4 aims to remain interoperable with the wider technology ecosystem, while adding its own contribution: ensuring that ownership and control are consistently carried through every layer, from identity all the way to hardware.