Credit Reuters / CNBC

  • Tim Berners-Lee said Silicon Valley technology giants such as Facebook and Google have grown so dominant they may need to be broken up.
  • The London-born computer scientist who invented the Web in 1989 said he was disappointed with the current state of the internet, following scandals over the abuse of personal data and the use of social media to spread hate.
  • He also said the speed of innovation in both technology and tastes could ultimately cut some of the biggest technology companies down to size.

Silicon Valley technology giants such as Facebook and Google have grown so dominant they may need to be broken up, unless challengers or changes in taste reduce their clout, the inventor of the World Wide Web told Reuters.

The digital revolution has spawned a handful of U.S.-based technology companies since the 1990s that now have a combined financial and cultural power greater than most sovereign states.

Tim Berners-Lee, a London-born computer scientist who invented the Web in 1989, said he was disappointed with the current state of the internet, following scandals over the abuse of personal data and the use of social media to spread hate.