The initiative offers a privacy-preserving digital identity system, compensating users in its Worldcoin token for iris scans.
The Worldcoin (WLD) token, a cryptocurrency initiative OpenAI CEO Sam Altman co-founded, has increased in value by over 140% in the past week, with daily users surpassing one million.
Worldcoin announced in a post to X on February 18 that its cryptocurrency wallet application, termed “World App,” had surpassed one million users, representing a substantial increase from November last year, when it had only 100,000 daily active users.
Worldcoin, which Alex Blania and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman launched in July 2023, is a self-described “privacy-preserving” digital identity verification initiative that compensates users in its native cryptocurrency for iris scans.
Worldcoin aims to implement a universal basic income by distributing a small quantity of its native WLD token to each individual in exchange for identity verification.
Nevertheless, the objective of WLD to implement Universal Basic Income (UBI) in conjunction with its biometric identity system has generated considerable discord, predominantly due to apprehensions regarding privacy regarding its metallic eye-scanning devices known as “Orbs.”
The Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data (PCPD) of Hong Kong initiated an inquiry into the local operations of Worldcoin on January 31, citing “significant dangers to the privacy of personal data.”
As part of its investigation, the PCPD stated it had executed warrants and entered six Worldcoin-controlled locations in Hong Kong.
Regulatory Concerns Surrounding Worldcoin
Beyond the borders of Hong Kong, privacy concerns have prompted numerous jurisdictional regulators to take notice of the project, resulting in the complete suspension of its services in Kenya and the halting of retinal scans in India.
Despite these regulatory concerns, the native Worldcoin token has increased by over 141% over the past week, bolstered by a broader cryptocurrency sector upswing.
In the interim, WLD’s weekly gains have coincided with several significant updates from OpenAI.
Sora, a novel text-to-video generator introduced by OpenAI on February 16, enables users to produce video clips and sequences in response to textual cues.
One week prior, on February 9, Altman declared his intention to procure an extraordinary $7 trillion in funding to assist the company in expanding and financing its semiconductor processor development.
Although the enormous dollar amount caused a stir in the technology industry, Altman appeared unfazed.