Sam Altman’s vision for the future of currency is here — and it involves scanning your eyeballs through an ‘orb’

• OpenAI boss Sam Altman has a new toy for the world: an eyeball-scanning “orb.”
• On Monday, Altman launched his new project, Worldcoin, to counter the challenges posed by AI.
• Worldcoin requires users to verify themselves through an orb that distinguishes them from AI.

ChatGPT creator Sam Altman is ready to bring his new creation to the world: a future version of currency that involves scanning your eyeballs through an “orb.”

The OpenAI boss announced the global rollout on Monday of Worldcoin – a cryptocurrency project founded in 2019. Its aim is to create “a new identity and financial network owned by everyone.” 

In a blogpost announcing the launch, Altman and fellow cofounder Alex Blania said that if their project was successful, it could “drastically increase economic opportunity,” while offering a means of “distinguishing humans from AI online while preserving privacy.” 

They aim to achieve this by giving users a digital identity known as a World ID, as well as digital currency that is given “simply for being human.” 

To do this, prospective users are asked to download the World App, described as a “wallet. They are then instructed to visit an “orb,” which scans a person’s eyes to biometrically verify them and share a World ID. 

“This lets you prove you are a real and unique person online while remaining completely private,” according to the Worldcoin blogpost. To begin, 1,500 orbs will be installed throughout the summer and fall across more than 35 cities, Worldcoin said.

For Altman, the project offers a vital means of allowing users to offer a “proof of personhood” online at a time when the rise of AI, driven by his creation ChatGPT, has made it difficult to distinguish between human and machine-generated content.

However, the project faces roadblocks in the US amid concerns from lawmakers about the use of cryptocurrency in fraud. This has prevented Worldcoin from launching its digital tokens in the US. 

In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Altman said that “like any really ambitious project,” there was a chance that Worldcoin may or may not work out. “In either case, we especially love our haters, it gives us energy, please keep it coming!” he said.

The Worldcoin orb has been a particular point of focus online. On X, Jack Dorsey, chair of rival firm Block, described the project as “cute” and drew attention to the eeriness of the orb. “Visit the Orb or the Orb will visit you…” he posted.

Additional ambitions for the project include ushering in a universal basic income.