As artificial intelligence blurs the line between man and machine, Sam Altman is betting on a radical new biometric project to verify humanity itself. His latest venture, ‘World’, aims to build a global identity system, one eye-scan at a time.
A New Age of Identity: Altman’s Orb and the Quest for Digital Humanity
In an era where artificial intelligence is generating realistic faces, voices, and entire personalities, the very notion of identity is under siege. From deepfakes to AI-generated scams, our digital selves are becoming harder to trust. In response to this existential challenge, Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, has partnered with Adrian Ludwig, Chief Architect of Tools for Humanity, to launch a bold new venture called ‘World’.
At its core is a spherical eye-scanning device known as the Orb, a sci-fi-like biometric scanner that verifies an individual’s “proof of personhood” by creating a unique iris code. The project, officially launching this week in London, will soon expand to other major UK cities including Manchester, Birmingham, Cardiff, Belfast, and Glasgow.
The goal: establish a tamper-proof digital identity that distinguishes humans from AI, a task Altman deems increasingly urgent.
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Inside the Orb: How the World System Works
When a person approaches the Orb, it scans both the face and iris, creating a unique encrypted identifier that confirms the user is a real human, not an AI bot. This code, stored securely and privately, becomes their World ID, a new form of digital identity. Once verified, users receive a portion of WLD cryptocurrency, which can currently be used on platforms like Minecraft, Reddit, and Discord.
Privacy concerns have loomed over the project since its pilot under the name Worldcoin in 2021. Altman and Ludwig claim that the system is designed to delete original biometric data after encryption and relies on local storage on users’ smartphones instead of centralized cloud servers, a step meant to assuage fears of surveillance and misuse.
The project represents a blend of biometrics, blockchain, and AI governance, and could become a global standard for identity in the digital world, its founders claim.
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Digital Identity: A Global Struggle for Authenticity
As AI capabilities evolve, traditional authentication tools like passwords, facial recognition, and CAPTCHAs are becoming increasingly inadequate. Governments are turning to digital ID schemes to address these shortcomings, but progress has been slow and inconsistent.
One high-profile example is India’s Aadhaar system, which, despite its vast scale, has faced criticism over privacy risks, data breaches, and exacerbation of social inequality. Altman and Ludwig view ‘World’ as a neutral, opt-in identity solution, offering governments and institutions a new mechanism to enhance their digital infrastructure, without compromising individual autonomy.
However, skeptics question whether biometric verification can truly solve the broader trust crisis in digital spaces or if it simply adds another layer of complexity and potential exploitation. As governments and corporations begin exploring integration, the World’s future may shape how societies define humanity in the AI age.
About the author – Prakriti Jha is a student at National Forensic Sciences University, Gandhinagar, currently pursuing B.Sc. LL.B (Hons.) with a keen interest in the intersection of law and data science. She is passionate about exploring how legal frameworks adapt to the evolving challenges of technology and justice.