Will this cryptocurrency be a blessing or is it just another disaster waiting to happen?
A Brief History
Worldcoin was founded in 2019 by Sam Altman. Founder and CEO of Open AI. It was intended to provide a solution to avoid a massive concentration of wealth due to the rise of AI. As of May this year, it received $115 million dollars in funding in order to expand the projects application. It was launched last July 2023 and is reported to have at least have onboarded 2 million users. The projects goal is to be the largest identity and financial network in the world. And aims to give access to the global economy regardless of race, country and background. It
How it Works
As AI continues to grow, it is expected to take over many jobs. This could lead to a disruption in the current economy. And in order to avoid massive concentration of wealth there needs to be a universal basic income. And in order to have this UBI there needs to be a global identification system. A system which could differentiate between bots and humans. This is where worldcoin and their WorldID comes in.
Worldcoin is a biometric crypto coin that is built on the second layer of the Ethereum network. This enables the use of ethereums solid security while allowing it to still have an economy of it's own.
This project uses proof of Identity. And it starts with the use of a device aptly named orb to scan the eyes of an individual. The Iris to be specific. Similar to our fingerprints our Irises are unique to every individual.
What's the catch?
As promising as worldcoin seems to be in this AI generation. There are critical risks that we should be aware of. This risks are mentioned on their own website which some countries may not be able to view. The biggest one for me is the issue of decentralization. While the project aims to be decentralized in the future, the website provides a disclaimer that it is not guaranteed. For me this is a big red flag, sure when this project is handed to the community, the community itself might dig its own burial if the community mismanages. However, I am a big believer in decentralization and is one of the main reasons why I am engaged in blockchain to begin with.
Together with strict regulations and concerns on identity theft. Another reason for this project to fail is because it relies heavily on the hardware device itself. Having dependencies on a physical device is in itself already very limiting. This hinders growth of user base as the orb is only available in select countries for now. The rollout to the rest of the world will take time not to mention the amount of time it would take to explain and convince people to have their eyes scanned and their identity stored in a place they are unfamiliar with.
If it succeeds
The rise of AI is inevitable. It will only be a matter of time before AI could take over many of the online activities and tasks that we do on a day to day. However, we should still be able live in a world where we could interact online knowing we are speaking and communicating with a true human. the internet as of now has more bots. And to be the first to take advantage of the world token in its early release could also bring in some good fortune if this project gains mass adaption. success and high valuation.
There is no shortage of concerns when it comes to worldcoin. Only time will tell if the people of the world would want to support it or not. Will it pass regulation? Will our identities be safe? Will it be decentralized in the future? Will it help humans now as well future generations, or will it bring us misfortune.
As for me, after doing my research I'd like to give it a shot as soon as it becomes available. All of us have already given our personal information to the likes of apple, google and facebook. What's not out there yet? lol So in an effort of creating a decentralized yet connected world, I am willing to give worldcoin my trust. For now I am downloading their app.
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The following links and videos were used as reference:
