What Is Worldcoin?

Imagine trying to vote in an online poll that distributes real money to participants. But here’s the catch: AI bots are flooding the system, pretending to be real users. This is actually happening today in decentralized apps and blockchain games. Traditional digital ID systems like Decentralized Identifiers (DIDs) let users control their credentials, but they don’t always prove you’re a real, unique human. 

That’s the gap Worldcoin wants to fill.

Founded by Sam Altman (CEO of OpenAI), Worldcoin has a somewhat unique solution: scanning your iris using a device called the Orb to generate a World ID. This ID is essentially a cryptographic identity meant to verify your humanness while preserving privacy on the internet.

However, there is more than meets the ‘eye’ behind Worldcoin’s ideal vision, beneath its ambitions, there lie several unresolved challenges and valid concerns about its implementation.

Let’s break down what Worldcoin is, how it works, and why it’s one of the most controversial projects in Web3 today.

What is Worldcoin?

Worldcoin, launched in 2023, uses a biometric system called World ID that verifies users through iris scans using a device called an Orb. Once verified, users receive a small amount of Worldcoin (WLD) [around $42 on average], allowing global participation in crypto without prior investment.

Worldcoin aims to solve two major problems: digital identity verification and global economic inclusion. Worldcoin tackles the problem of online identity by offering a proof-of-humanity solution, allowing users to participate in the digital economy with a verified identity. 

What Problem Does Worldcoin Aim To Solve?

Worldcoin aims to solve a digital identity crisis set in an (almost) inevitable future where a human verification layer is added to the internet. At the rate that AI is taking over the internet today, with deepfakes, lifelike videos presented on various social media in almost any style and aesthetic, it is important to understand what’s real and what isn’t. This is what Sam Altman and Alex Blania, along with its parent company Tools for Humanity aims to do with the Worldcoin Project. 

On the other hand, Worldcoin is also aiming to create a new global economic network. The project combines a digital currency called Worldcoin (WLD) with a unique digital identity system, allowing users to prove they are real, unique humans. 

Over time though, some serious concerns have come up that challenge its big promises. To prove you’re human, you have to scan your eye using the Orb, but that’s raised privacy worries. 

People are unsure how safely that eye data is stored or if it could be misused or hacked.

Even though Worldcoin says it’s all about being decentralized, Tools for Humanity is a centralized, private entity, and this has raised concerns regarding the nature of its operations. 

While Worldcoin wants to build a fair, human-first digital world, these questions about privacy, control, and access will play a big role in whether people trust it or not.

Who Founded Worldcoin?

Worldcoin was co-founded by Sam Altman, Alex Blania, and Max Novendstern in 2019. Sam Altman is also the CEO of OpenAI and the former president of Y Combinator, a leading startup accelerator. 

He, along with Alex Blania (CEO of Worldcoin’s parent company, Tools for Humanity) and Max Novendstern, founded Worldcoin to create a universal identity system that could be used by anyone worldwide.

Their project’s vision is simple: help people differentiate AI from humans. 

Worldcoin offers a solution to this issue by providing users with a digital identity (World ID) that ensures they are verified as humans, not bots, while also enabling them to access cryptocurrency without needing to invest.

How Does Worldcoin Work?

Worldcoin works by using a biometric system to verify human identity. 

Users first visit a Worldcoin Orb, a spherical device about the size of a bowling ball with a small camera that scans their iris. The scan captures the unique patterns in the eye of the person and creates a unique identifier known as an IrisCode. 

As per Worldcoin, this unique identifier is stored as a cryptographic hash, a type of scrambled data, that can’t be traced back to the actual iris image. Worldcoin uses a privacy-preserving technique called secure multi-party computation, which breaks your encrypted iris data into fragments stored across separate servers. This allows the system to check for duplicates without ever revealing or reconstructing your original biometric information.

Once the scan is complete, the system assigns the user a World ID, it can be used for a variety of online applications, such as logging into websites or participating in secure voting systems.

Worldcoin also rewards users with Worldcoin tokens (WLD) as incentives for verifying their identity. These tokens can be used within the Worldcoin ecosystem, traded, or stored. WLD is a cryptocurrency that lives on the Ethereum blockchain, making it compatible with existing Ethereum wallets and decentralized applications (dApps).

To ensure privacy, Worldcoin employs a technique called zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs). This cryptographic method allows users to prove they are unique without revealing their identity or any other personal data. 

For example, as per the Worldcoin team, when using World ID to log into a service, the service only knows that the user is a verified human and not a bot, but it does not learn the user’s actual identity or any other information about the person.

What is the Purpose of Worldcoin?

Worldcoin’s main goal is to create a universal identity system that can be used by anyone on Earth. In today’s digital world, identity verification is often tied to centralized systems like government IDs or social media accounts. 

Worldcoin decentralizes this process, giving individuals full control over their identity without relying on any government or corporation.

The project’s creators imagine a world where everyone has access to the global economy through crypto. By offering free tokens to new users who verify their identity, Worldcoin states that it wants to provide a way for individuals in economically disadvantaged regions to gain access to digital currencies without needing to buy them. 

Worldcoin’s founders also see it as a way to combat AI-driven impersonation and fraud. With AI technologies becoming more sophisticated, distinguishing between real humans and AI bots is increasingly difficult. Worldcoin’s proof-of-personhood system ensures that only verified humans can engage in certain online activities, making it harder for bots to manipulate online services.

What is Worldcoin Used For?

Worldcoin has two primary uses: identity verification and transactions.

1. Digital Identity Verification: Worldcoin’s World ID can be used as a digital identity across multiple platforms. For example, online services can use World ID to verify that a user is human, without requiring the user to create a new account or share personal details. This can help reduce bots, fraud, and fake accounts in online communities. Over time, Worldcoin plans to expand the use of World ID for applications like voting systems, where it can ensure that only real, unique people are allowed to participate.
   
2. Cryptocurrency Transactions: Worldcoin’s WLD token functions like other cryptocurrencies. It can be traded on exchanges, stored in wallets, and used for transactions. In the future, WLD could become a mainstream digital currency for everyday payments. For now, it’s primarily used within the Worldcoin ecosystem, where users can spend or transfer it to others.

Worldcoin is already being integrated into a variety of applications, such as bot-resistant online communities, secure voting platforms, and fintech apps. Developers can use Worldcoin’s identity system to create more secure and trusted online environments. In the future, Worldcoin could also play a role in universal basic income (UBI) experiments, where WLD tokens are distributed to users as a form of economic aid.

What is the Problem with Worldcoin?

While all the ideas around Worldcoin may seem like a great idea, there are lots of concerns regarding the project. From regular people to government bodies, almost everyone who has cared to take a deeper look at the project has raised certain flags about its practicality and applications to real life. 

Here are some the problems listed:

Privacy & Regulatory Concerns

The main problem with Worldcoin lies in the tension between its bold ambitions and the privacy concerns it raises. 

• Lack of Data Deletion: While the project claims to offer a secure and privacy-preserving system by hashing and fragmenting biometric data, critics point out that the underlying data is never truly deleted. Moreover, its significance as a data protection platform led by Sam Altman gives it an image that is on par with web2 giants like Meta or Google.
• Data Law Compliance: European Union regulators have expressed significant concerns about Worldcoin’s privacy and data practices due to the company’s handling of biometric data and its compliance with stringent data protection laws like the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Worldcoin says it protects privacy by turning iris scans into coded fragments, but regulators say those codes can still identify people—even if the original data is deleted. This goes against the company’s claim, since under GDPR, any code that can link back to a person still counts as personal data.
• Ethical Paradoxes: Enticing users to exchange highly sensitive biometric data for crypto and promises of digital inclusion raises ethical red flags. This model erodes user trust, as people may not fully grasp the long-term implications of surrendering such permanent identifiers, leaving them vulnerable to potential misuse or insufficient transparency about how their data is managed. 

User Adoption Rate

Another concern is Worldcoin’s slow user adoption and limited current utility. Despite the hype and high-profile backers, only around 12 million people have been verified since 2023, well below its target of 50 million by the end of 2025. 

Many online platforms still do not support World ID, leaving users with little reason to participate beyond the lure of free tokens. Critics also warn of the risk that the Orb system, if widely adopted, could consolidate immense control over digital identity in the hands of a single for-profit entity—especially if it becomes a gateway to accessing core internet services. While the infrastructure is positioned as decentralized, some remain skeptical given the project’s deep ties to influential investors and founders who would stand to benefit if Worldcoin becomes essential online infrastructure.

AI Agent Paradox

The visions of OpenAI and Worldcoin also diverge in a key area: the role of AI agents. 

Worldcoin was born out of a desire to protect humanity’s digital presence from being drowned out by a flood of AI-generated content. However, OpenAI, under Sam Altman’s leadership, is accelerating the deployment of those very AI agents—tools that will increasingly act on users’ behalf across the internet. 

This is a paradox: Tools for Humanity is building a system to verify real humans online, while OpenAI is building tools to blur the line between humans and machines. 

To reconcile this, Worldcoin is now developing ways for users to delegate their World ID to AI agents, essentially allowing bots to act with human authorization. This shift suggests Worldcoin may become less about proving humanity and more about enabling a future where human-backed AI agents become the norm, raising fresh questions about identity, accountability, and the centralization of digital power.

Extreme Surveillance Concerns

Worldcoin’s reliance on iris-scanning technology raises alarming risks of extreme surveillance, as biometric data could be repurposed to track individuals both online and offline. Unlike passwords, iris patterns are unique and unchangeable, making them a permanent identifier that could be linked to systems like CCTV, border controls, or public databases, enabling real-time monitoring with little room for anonymity. 

In authoritarian regimes or regions with weak data protections, this biometric database could be exploited for mass surveillance, targeting dissenters or enforcing social control, transforming a tool meant for inclusion into one of oppression.  

Also, the system’s design erodes online anonymity by requiring users to prove their identity for access to services, creating a chilling effect where privacy becomes a luxury. A widely adopted Worldcoin could centralize unprecedented control over digital and physical identities, especially if its data is shared with governments or corporations. 

The potential for such invasive tracking, combined with the inability to “reset” biometric data, makes Worldcoin a potential gateway to a surveillance state where individuals lose autonomy over their own identities.

How to Buy Worldcoin?

If you want to buy Worldcoin (WLD) tokens, you can do so through Ledger Live directly. If you have a Ledger device, you can start by connecting to your mobile or laptop device and ensuring you have the updated firmware for the Ledger Live app.

Here’s how you can purchase WLD on Ledger Live:

1. Navigate to the ‘Buy/Sell’ page on Ledger Live.
2. Select ‘Worldcoin (WLD)’ on the left hand side of the screen, this is where you select the crypto asset you want to purchase.
3. You can also choose the fiat currency you would like to use to purchase the asset with.
4. After this, you will get options to select from the various Buy Providers available on Ledger Live to complete the transaction.

How to Store Worldcoin?

Worldcoin (WLD) can be stored in any wallet that supports Ethereum-based tokens, since WLD is an ERC-20 token. Here are some options:

1. World App & Other Self-Custodial Wallets:: The World App is Worldcoin’s official wallet.. It’s user-friendly and supports both World ID and cryptocurrency management. You can use it to hold, send, and receive WLD. Please note that World App is a software wallet, and that means it comes with its own ups and downs. Software wallets are generally considered less secure than their hardware counterparts, so ensure you have a good understanding of how they work before you opt-in to any software wallet service. 

You can also store WLD in popular Ethereum wallets that support self-custody like MetaMask or Ledger. These wallets give you full control over your private keys and are ideal for users who want more control over their assets. To learn more about secure self-custody, click here.

2. Hardware Wallets: For maximum security, it is recommended to store WLD on a hardware wallet like a Ledger device. These devices keep your private keys offline, making them more resistant to hacking. Ledger, for example, supports WLD, and you can store it in the same way as other Ethereum-based tokens.

Make sure to back up your wallet’s recovery seed phrase and store it securely. This is the key to restoring your wallet if you lose access to your device.

Conclusion

Worldcoin is both a pioneering yet polarizing venture, blending biometric innovation with crypto to tackle the digital identity crisis and economic disparity in an AI-saturated era. 

Its iris-scanning Orbs and World ID system offer a way to verify humanity amidst rampant deepfakes and bots. 

Yet, privacy fears, slow adoption, and the paradox of enabling AI agents with human credentials cast shadows over its promise. As technology races forward, Worldcoin’s ambitious effort poses both, the potential to reshape digital trust, and the intricate challenges that must be resolved to secure its place in tomorrow’s world.

Frequently Asked Questions About Worldcoin

Why is Worldcoin not available in the USA?

Worldcoin has restricted access to its WLD tokens in the United States due to regulatory uncertainties surrounding cryptocurrencies. Although users in the U.S. can undergo the Orb verification process, they are not eligible to receive or use WLD tokens. 

What type of crypto is Worldcoin?

Worldcoin (WLD) is an ERC-20 token built on the Ethereum blockchain. It serves as both a digital identity verification tool and a cryptocurrency, aiming to provide a decentralized proof-of-personhood system.