Worldcoin, which was launched last week by OpenAI founder Sam Altman, saw its price rise and offered people free shares of its WLD crypto token in exchange for their biometric data. More than 2 million people have signed up for the iris scanning eyeball, which currently operates in 35 cities in 20 countries.
The biometric data collected by Worldcoin is used to verify an individual's "unique identity" to ensure no one registers more than once. It also offers a way to distinguish humans from AI bots, which Worldcoin claims is its core technology offering.
Regulatory and legal challenges mean some people are unable to register in certain markets. However, soon after its launch, Mr. Altman claims that one person every eight seconds signs up for the crypto project.
A Worldcoin spokesperson told The Independent that 1,500 scanning eyeballs were being distributed around the world to meet demand, including in London, New York and Paris.
Crypto market commentators have said that the 50 percent price spike in the day after its launch shows the level of interest and demand for the WLD token despite concerns surrounding its launch.
âThe Worldcoin project created by OpenAI co-founder Sam Altman is probably one of the most ambitious crypto projects in recent years,â Louis Schoeman, managing director at Forex Suggest, told The Independent.
"The main purpose of this global digital identification is to connect your World ID to websites and apps rather than traditional logins, proving that you are a real person without having to share personal data such as name and email. This type of digital ID will be important in the development of AI , to differentiate between humans and AI bots online.
"Global digital identification that enables personal identity verification is revolutionary, but it is sure to stir controversy, as many are already calling the exchange of biometric data for crypto tokens a bizarre bribe."
Worldcoin crypto rose from $1.90 to $3.15 on its launch day, before dropping back below $2. However, since then, it has seen another surge and was trading above $2.35 on Tuesday.
