World raised US$52.5 million by selling WLD tokens to investors including Pantera Capital, Eightco Holdings, Bain Capital Crypto, Susquehanna Crypto, and Selini Capital.

The tokens have a 12-month lockup.

Co-founded by Sam Altman, the project is operated by San Francisco-based Tools for Humanity, while the World Foundation, based in the Cayman Islands, oversees the network’s expansion.

World uses Orb iris scans to issue digital IDs designed to verify that an account is controlled by a human rather than a bot.

The company said that, as of April 28, 2025, more than 12 million people had obtained an Orb-verified World ID.

World App had more than 26 million accounts, while more than 1,500 Orbs had been deployed across 23 countries.

WLD is the governance and utility token for World Chain. According to the company, the token has a total supply of 10 billion, with about 1.3 billion in circulation as of April 28, 2025.

The deal follows more than US$250 million in prior funding for World and Tools for Humanity. The project was previously called Worldcoin.

World has faced scrutiny over its handling of biometric data. Since launching in 2023, authorities in countries including Kenya, Spain, and Portugal have temporarily suspended, restricted, or investigated parts of the project’s operations.

Tools for Humanity cut staff in June.

🔗 Source: TechCrunch