Worldcoin, the cryptocurrency/human identity network/UBI project co-founded by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, is now called World. Along with the name change, World introduced an updated version of its eyeball-scanning device, Orb, that aims to solve a problem that doesn't currently exist: authenticating that someone is human “in the age of AI.”
People registered in the system receive a World ID, which they can use to “securely and anonymously” prove their humanity online, as well as a share of the associated WLD cryptocurrency token.
The new Orb is made from 30 percent fewer parts than its predecessor, which should make it easier and cheaper to build, and for some reason features Nvidia's Jetson robotics and AI platform. Rich Heley, chief device officer of Tools for Humanity – the foundation behind the World project – said during an event on Thursday that the simplified design should help achieve the goal of making the Orb widely available.
“To give everyone access, we need more orbs. A lot more bullets. Probably on the order of a thousand times more orbs than we have today,” Heley said. “Not just more orbs, but more orbs in more places.” In addition to increasing the production of the orb, World will even allow people to purchase it or renting their very own eyeball scanning orb so they can “start verifying unique people” in their communities.
It's also launching a new service called Orb on Demand (yes, that's its real name) that will allow people to order Orbs, “much like a pizza you would have delivered to your apartment,” said Heley. The Orb is also coming to other countries including Costa Rica, Brazil, Indonesia, Australia, the United Arab Emirates, Morocco and others.
World says it has verified nearly 7 million “unique people” so far, despite privacy concerns about building a privately operated global database based on biometric data.