Worldcoin: The Eyeball Crypto that wants its users to “verify their humanness” online

By Victor MUJIDU

The cryptocurrency startup dubbed Worldcoin (WLD) has now gained incredible popularity across the globe after OpenAI CEO Sam Altman launched it on July 24 after three years in development.

The digital ID platform aims to provide its users with a verified digital identity, plus a cryptocurrency token—helpfully named Worldcoin (WLD)—and a crypto wallet app.

According to Sam Altman, this is a step to redefine the digital identification process by offering users a World ID, distinguishing humans from AI online, enabling global democratic processes, and drastically increasing economic opportunities.

“If successful, we believe Worldcoin could drastically increase economic opportunity, scale a reliable solution for distinguishing humans from AI online while preserving privacy, enable global democratic processes, and eventually show a potential path to AI-funded UBI,” the letter explained.

Sources reveal that Worldcoin has been on a mission of signing up individuals in many countries, including Kenya, giving those onboarding 25 Worldcoin tokens.

Worldcoin’s platform verifies a user’s identity by scanning their iris to create personal, secure identification codes. The codes are saved on a decentralized blockchain, and the company claims they cannot be duplicated or spoofed to create false identities or engage in fraud.

Worldcoin has built its digital passport system using the cryptographic and blockchain tools that support the wider world of cryptocurrency. It also supports the WLD crypto token, plus a payments platform.

Once users create a World ID and download the World App, they get access to the WLD cryptocurrency token.

The company says that it signed up more than 2 million users in the beta testing stage. It now plans to roll out scanning operations in dozens of cities in 20 countries worldwide.

Despite receiving a positive profile in the world, Worldcoin has been receiving criticism for exploitative practices in poor countries with TechCrunch noting that the startup founded by Altman and Alex Blania could be “audacious efforts to bribe the world to embrace their currency”.

To show the growth of the cryptocurrency project, Worldcoin registered more than 2 million consumers between May 2021 and July 2023 across more than 30 countries in the world.

Meanwhile, the startup has so far raised about $250 million altogether and counts Andreessen Horowitz, Khosla Ventures, and Reid Hoffman among its backers, said it’s rolling out its identity technology as well as the token internationally.

WLD is however seeking to put a crypto wallet (and some of their currency) onto every human’s smartphone, but in order to do so, the founders have to build a way to determine whether someone is a unique human.

The crypto project will run onto every human smartphone by downloading World App, follow the startup’s protocol-compatible wallet software, and visiting an Orb, the startup’s helmet-shaped eyeball-scanning verification device to receive their World ID. Later, the consumers will receive the WLD token after identifying they are human beings.

The World ID works like a digital passport, verifying that the person using it is a real human while keeping their real-world identity anonymous. This would maintain privacy and protect users from malicious cyber-attacks on their identity.

The crypto project is focused on reinventing digital identity without compromising a person’s real-world identity.

WLD trading took off with the news of the official launch of the crypto project, soaring as high as $3.58 from $1.70.

Currently, WLD is holding about 20% of all its tokens, which are not launching in the U.S. for now. For the first 15 years, the startup is capping the total supply to 10 billion “WLD” tokens as Worldcoin writes in a whitepaper.

Worldcoin in Kenya

One of the key features of Worldcoin’s entry into Kenya is the launch of a peer-to-peer (P2P) exchange that allows individuals quickly and easily access digital currencies and US dollars directly with one another without the need for a centralized third party to facilitate the transaction.

Data reveals that since its pilot phase, Worldcoin has registered over 360,000 sign-ups and the World App has been downloaded 1,200 times per day.

WLD has created an opportunity for Kenyans to access the USD and cryptocurrencies which were previously limited and too expensive to obtain.