What Happened to the Semantic Web?

🌈 Abstract

The article examines the history and current status of the Semantic Web (SW), a concept proposed by Tim Berners-Lee in the late 1990s to create a more intelligent and interconnected web. It discusses how the SW initially lost momentum but is now finding new relevance in the era of Generative AI.

🙋 Q&A

[01] The Semantic Web

1. What was the original vision of the Semantic Web proposed by Tim Berners-Lee?

• The idea was to create a web of data that machines could process, allowing them to understand the meaning of information and make connections between different data.
• The focus would shift from linking documents to connecting data, creating a more intelligent and interconnected web.
• The vision was to enable machines to understand the meaning of information on the Web and use that understanding to provide more intelligent and personalized services to users.

2. Why did the Semantic Web initially lose momentum?

• The Semantic Web had the assumption that machine-readable formats were needed to get a grasp on the meaning of information stored on the Web, but this was not the case for a long time.
• It wasn't until the impressive conversational capabilities of ChatGPT and other chatbots were demonstrated that it became clear machines could "understand" the information stored on the Web and answer questions.
• The focus shifted from creating a structured Semantic Web to harnessing the power of AI to generate content, overshadowing the Semantic Web.

3. How could the Semantic Web technologies be relevant again in the era of Generative AI?

• Specific Semantic Web technologies like RDF, SPARQL, and Semantic Web Services will remain part of the existing infrastructure, such as being offered by Amazon Web Services.
• Knowledge Graphs, like the one used by Google, can complement Generative AI solutions by providing reliable information to enrich the AI's responses.
• AI could be used to annotate regular web pages and make them self-descriptive using Semantic Web standards, addressing the previous hurdle of the high cost of adopting Semantic Web for individual websites.

[02] The Future of the Semantic Web

1. What is the new vision for the Semantic Web in the era of Generative AI?

• The original Tim Berners-Lee vision of a complete overhaul of the web is unlikely to become a reality.
• Instead, the Semantic Web will play a supporting role, complementing and cooperating with Generative AI systems, such as in the new web search applications that combine Generative AI and Knowledge Graphs.
• The Semantic Web technologies will remain useful, but in a more modest and less glamorous way, rather than as a standalone revolution.

2. How could the Semantic Web and Generative AI coexist and benefit each other?

• Generative AI could help address the previous obstacle of the high cost of adopting Semantic Web standards for individual websites by using AI to annotate and transform regular web pages into self-descriptive, Semantic Web-compliant pages.
• The information from Knowledge Graphs can complement and enrich the responses generated by Generative AI models, providing more reliable and accurate information.
• The Semantic Web technologies and Knowledge Graphs can support Generative AI applications, such as in the new web search experiences that combine the two.