SAN FRANCISCO: OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman on Monday launched the Worldcoin crypto project that relies on an eye scan to verify a user’s identity.
Worldcoin comes as the cryptocurrency industry is suffering hard times after the spectacular collapse of FTX and various legal cases against the sector’s biggest players. “The Worldcoin Foundation today announced that Worldcoin, a project co-founded by Sam Altman, Alex Blania and Max Novendstern, is now live,” read a statement on Worldcoin’s website. Worldcoin will provide users with a private digital identity — a “World ID” — after they register in person using an “Orb” imaging device that scans their eye’s unique iris pattern.
This was to help solve one of the main challenges facing the crypto industry that largely relies on pseudonyms to operate, leaving it vulnerable to spam bots and scams.
The company also launched its Worldcoin token, a cryptocurrency now tradable in certain locations and platforms, to millions of users who participated in early tests, the statement said.