A biometric identity verification project co-founded by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is set to launch in the United Kingdom this week.

Starting June 12, 2025, the service will be available in London, with plans for expansion to Manchester, Birmingham, Cardiff, Belfast, and Glasgow in the coming months.

The initiative uses a spherical eye-scanning device called the Orb to verify identities.

By scanning a person’s iris and face, the device generates a unique code to differentiate humans from AI.

Users who register their iris code through the project will receive the platform’s cryptocurrency, WLD, and obtain an anonymous identifier known as World ID.

🔗 Source: CNBC

🧠 Food for thought

1️⃣ Biometric identity systems face familiar historical challenges despite technological advances

World’s eye-scanning technology represents the latest chapter in a biometric verification history spanning thousands of years, from ancient handprints in caves (31,000 years ago) to fingerprints in Babylonian transactions (500 B.C.)1.

India’s Aadhaar system provides a crucial benchmark for World’s ambitions. Despite successfully providing digital identities to over 1.2 billion people, it has faced significant legal challenges regarding privacy, data security, and potential surveillance concerns2.

These historical patterns show that even technically sophisticated biometric systems consistently struggle with the same fundamental tensions between security, convenience, and privacy protection.

Modern digital identity schemes like Estonia’s eID (supporting 600+ services) demonstrate that successful implementations require not just technical excellence but also robust legal frameworks and public trust3.

The challenge for World will be overcoming the skepticism that has followed virtually every large-scale biometric implementation, from fingerprinting’s early adoption by police departments in the early 1900s to contemporary iris scanning systems1.

2️⃣ The privatization of digital identity verification shifts traditional government responsibilities

World’s approach represents a significant shift from traditional government-led identity systems (like passports or national IDs) to private enterprise-led verification, raising fundamental questions about accountability and governance.

Historically, identity verification has been a government function. The UN Sustainable Development Goals explicitly target “legal identity for all” by 2030, positioning identity as a public good4.

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