Worldcoin, co-founded by Sam Altman, is betting the next big thing in AI is proving you are human | TechCrunch

Abstraction: Iris-scanning proof-of-personhood system as defense against AI-indistinguishable bots

Key points:

• Worldcoin uses silver "orbs" to capture iris scan in 60 seconds, generating a cryptographic hash tied to a unique individual — scan is not stored; hash enables anonymous future verification via "zero-knowledge proof"
• Three-part mission: global ID (World ID), global currency (WLD token), and a payment app; $125.5M raised from a16z, Khosla Ventures, Coinbase, and Tiger Global
• Altman's core thesis: next-generation LLMs will make it impossible to distinguish humans from AI online; only a physical-world biometric link will remain reliable
• SDK being launched so third-party developers can integrate World ID as a human-verification layer in their own apps
• 1.2M users as of early 2023; deployment through university campuses, shopping malls; incentives (coupons, loans) planned to drive adoption
• Key unresolved risks: biometric key can be sold/transferred; regulatory barriers prevent WLD token distribution in the US

Connections: Worldcoin · Sam Altman · Openai · Andreessen Horowitz · Proof Of Personhood · Digital Identity · Large Language Models

Source: https://techcrunch.com/2023/03/07/worldcoin-cofounded-by-sam-altman-is-betting-the-next-big-thing-in-ai-is-proving-you-are-human/