FREE ISN'T FREE: NEW REPORT BY WEB3 FOUNDATION FINDS BIG TECH AND AI EARN UP TO $831,000 IN LIFETIME VALUE FROM THE DATA OF EACH U.S. INTERNET USER
Summary
Web3 Foundation published a report estimating that Big Tech and AI firms can extract up to $831,497 in inflation-adjusted lifetime commercial value from each U.S. internet user, equivalent to about $6,565 per user per year in the central scenario. The study models revenue from advertising, AI subscriptions, enterprise licensing, API access, data brokerage and other monetisation channels across 129 qualifying 'Big Data' firms. Web3 Foundation positions the metric (PDAV) as a benchmark to show how value accrues to companies rather than users and argues decentralised Web3 approaches could give individuals more control and participation. The paper stresses the figures are not direct cash entitlements but highlight the scale of extraction and the urgency introduced by AI-driven increases in data value.