Enter the World of Digital IDs and Crypto with Worldcoin’s Groundbreaking Concept

In an age when the presence of artificial intelligence (AI) in our lives is rapidly increasing and promises to become a revolutionary force that will shape our future in yet unknown ways, leveraging its capabilities while also mitigating the challenges it poses has emerged as a crucial concern. How can businesses, organizations, and average users take advantage of this innovative technology and reduce associated risks at the same time? 

This complicated conundrum is what inspired the development of Worldcoin, one of the most interesting and promising blockchain-based projects to come forward in recent years, with strong growth potential judging by the latest Worldcoin prediction data.

The combination of blockchain, crypto, and AI is quite representative of the times we live in, and the futuristic endeavors that are set to transform our society, so exploring the issues that Worldcoin aims to address and the methods it employs to achieve its objectives can give us a glimpse into the world of tomorrow. 

What is Worldcoin?

Launched in July 2023, Worldcoin is a decentralized cryptocurrency network developed by Sam Altman, the CEO and co-founder of the renowned AI research and deployment company OpenAI, alongside fellows Alex Blania and Max Novendstern. 

With thousands of crypto projects available nowadays, only the initiatives that bring something of value and boast useful features manage to draw attention from the two dominant coins Bitcoin and Ethereum, so one naturally wonders what could possibly make Worldcoin more special than the rest, when the vast majority of digital assets simply rehash what was done before them. 

Worldcoin is Unique

Worldcoin stands out from other crypto projects through its unique use cases and the new concepts it introduces. Unlike other blockchain-powered platforms, whose purpose is usually limited to enabling financial transactions or supporting the development of decentralized applications (dApps) through smart contracts, Worldcoin aims to provide an innovative identity-proofing solution while also facilitating access to the global economy for all users. 

The platform leverages biometric data to create unique digital identifiers called World IDs that can provide proof of personhood (PoP) for every user, thus enhancing privacy and data protection, reducing the risk of fraud, and helping differentiate real people from AI entities. In other words, Worldcoin’s capabilities allow users to prove they are real people. A few years back, this wouldn’t have been an issue, but in today’s world, where generative AI is frequently used to create deepfakes and voiceovers to impersonate people online, run illicit activities, and spread misinformation, there’s a growing need for digital solutions that can verify individuals’ humanness and content authenticity. 

AI Integration

Like many other inventions before it, AI technology is not the problem, but the way people use it. In the wrong hands, AI can turn into a dangerous tool that can cause a lot of harm, so projects like Worldcoin are created to keep things under control.  

Despite the complex technology involved in the development of the startup and the many years of work behind it, the concept it proposes is simple: a scan of the iris provides users with their own digital ID and a certain amount of the platform’s native crypto token called WLD, depending on their location. Everyone can gain access to these resources, as long as they’re human and not bots, so there’s no need to make an investment, as is the case with conventional cryptos like Bitcoin and most altcoins. 

In addition to providing an advanced solution for identity verification and giving users the possibility to prove their humanness while maintaining their privacy, Worldcoin also seeks to address financial inequalities and create a more unified economy where WLD tokens will one day be used to collect universal basic income. 

In October 2024, the venture rebranded to World Network to better reflect its broad objectives that go well beyond adding another crypto to the already extensive list of digital assets. 

Toward an Orb-verified future

To reach its ambitious goal of revolutionizing digital ID verification and address concerns related to the dissemination of deceitful AI content, Worldcoin needs to create a global database of biometric data. Enter the Orb, a hardware device developed by Tools for Humanity that can scan people’s irises and generate the so-called World IDs, which basically serve as a digital passport that can be stored on a digital wallet. 

Those who want to join the initiative can book an appointment at the nearest Orb center and have their unique biometric features scanned by these round-shaped gadgets. Irises, just like fingerprints, are different for each person, so recording their unique structures is a foolproof way of determining people’s identity. After scanning the iris, the Orb generates a code that represents the World ID and stores it on the Worldcoin blockchain, ensuring no one can track or tamper with it. The Orb itself doesn’t hold any biometric data, only an IrisHash in the form of a string of numbers that connects each person to their iris scan. 

So far, biometric-scanning Orbs can be found in 35 countries, mostly in major cities like Tokyo, Berlin, Seoul, London, and New York City, and over two million people have visited centers in these locations and had their eyes scanned. 

Outlook for the future

As with all new projects, people are curious not only about Worldcoin’s features and capabilities but also about its prospects for the future. With AI technology gaining more ground by the day and blockchain solutions becoming ubiquitous, there are good reasons to believe that Worldcoin is positioned for significant growth in the future. The bullish trend taking shape in the crypto market also supports this theory. 

However, it has to be noted that the venture has also sparked quite a lot of controversy due to the large amount of biometric data it collects and the measures it employs to protect it, which at the moment remain unclear. Whatever the future might bring for Worldcoin and WLD, the project is definitely worth keeping an eye on – pun intended.