Sam Altman’s OpenAI released GPT-4, a new AI-powered chatbot, while another venture co-founded by Altman, Worldcoin, launched a project aimed at providing developers with tools to prove that there is a real person behind a digital action.
On Tuesday, Worldcoin launched World ID, a protocol that aims to build digital identity via biometrics stored on-chain. Running on Ethereum, World ID can provide developers working in crypto a new way to establish whether there is a real person behind a transaction. The protocol can be bridged to networks beyond Ethereum like Optimism, Arbitrum, and Polygon.
The absence of established identity has been a significant challenge in various aspects of crypto like voting, establishing credit scores, and preventing gaming of reward schemes like airdrops. World ID’s launch can address these issues by providing a unique and verifiable human identity.
Worldcoin’s project can be divided into three parts, the World ID protocol, an unreleased Worldcoin token, rumored to be part of a basic income program, and an app used to buy, sell and send crypto, Worldcoin token, and conventional dollars.
Misinformation and identity theft are issues that have been a major concern, and the development of AI is likely to exacerbate this problem. The launch of World ID, which utilizes biometrics, can counteract some of the issues that may soon arise from AI-created content and social media accounts.
Worldcoin is producing a Software Development Kit (SDK), which will allow developers working in and outside of crypto to build applications using the protocol. The SDK enables developers to integrate the protocol and establish unique human identities for their applications.
While the need to establish identity on a digital and global scale is becoming more and more evident with the rise of AI, Worldcoin’s use of biometrics remains controversial. Tiago Sada, head of product, engineering, and design at Tools For Humanity, a company building products for the Worldcoin ecosystem, believes that biometrics are the best approach to establish personhood. He added that the need for a global proof-of-personhood system is becoming more evident, and it’s exciting to see people start to understand why it is necessary.
It remains to be seen whether Worldcoin’s approach is the right one. Other projects like Polygon blockchain’s identity service, Unstoppable Domains, Disco, and Ethereum Name Service (ENS) are also working on digital identity solutions.
