A new report examining personal data value reveals that technology and artificial intelligence companies earn up to $160,000 from each internet user globally over their lifetime.
The Web3 Foundation published the study, titled “The Hidden Price of Free: What Your Data Is Really Worth”, on May 25, 2026. Consequently, this lifetime value translates to approximately $745 trillion across the estimated 6 billion global internet users.
Analyzing Personal Data Value
The study analyzed 129 major companies to determine how businesses monetize human information in the digital economy. Specifically, the researchers evaluated advertising, artificial intelligence subscriptions, enterprise licensing, API access, data brokerage, and algorithmic recommendations. As a result, they found that Amazon, Alphabet, Microsoft, Meta, and Anthropic are among the most significant beneficiaries of this data collection.
Notably, the report introduces a new metric to measure this economic activity. The researchers defined this metric as the personal data value generated through active user participation and behavioral signals. Furthermore, the study notes that these figures represent a benchmark for understanding the scale of corporate data capture rather than direct cash entitlements owed to individuals.
Regional Differences in Revenue Generation
The financial returns vary significantly by geographic region. For instance, technology firms earn up to $8,500 annually from a single user in the United States. Meanwhile, the annual figure stands at $2,206 per user in the United Kingdom and Europe, compared to $407 in the rest of the world.
Over a 61-year digital lifetime, the inflation-linked personal data value reaches $1.08 million in the United States. In comparison, the lifetime figure is $260,542 in the United Kingdom and Europe, and $72,821 in other regions. Globally, the average inflation-linked lifetime value per person is $162,492.
How Artificial Intelligence Changes the Economy
The rise of artificial intelligence has accelerated the collection and monetization of user information. Previously, companies used personal data primarily to target advertisements. However, modern AI firms now use this data to train models, improve recommendations, and build predictive products in apps.
“The modern digital economy is powered by human data, yet the people generating that value have little visibility, control or participation in the upside.”
Gavin Wood, Founder of Web3 Foundation
Decentralized Alternatives for the Future
To address this imbalance, the report suggests that decentralized technologies could offer a different model for the internet to improve cybersecurity. By using decentralized infrastructure, individuals could control their digital identity and assets. Consequently, users would decide what information they share and under what terms.
The Web3 Foundation continues to fund research teams building decentralized software protocols. In addition, the organization will host the Web3 Summit in Berlin on June 18 and 19, 2026, to discuss these digital models.
