Worldcoin Launches World Chain Blockchain Amid Privacy Concerns

Worldcoin, the biometric crypto startup known for its eyeball-scanning technology, has rolled out its own blockchain network called World Chain amidst regulatory challenges from officials in multiple countries. The move comes as the project aims to solidify its position as a digital identity and financial platform for 1 billion users.

The World Chain, built on Optimism’s Superchain technology system, is designed to support Worldcoin’s 10 million users, half of whom have already verified their identities on the World App. The blockchain network aims to make financial transactions cheaper for verified human users in a world where bots account for a significant portion of user activity on major DeFi blockchains.

The project, co-founded by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, requires users to scan their eyeballs to prove their personhood and receive digital passports in return. So far, Worldcoin has scanned 5 million users and provided them with WLD tokens. With World Chain, the project plans to prioritize and subsidize transactions from human users to combat network congestion and high transaction fees caused by bots.

While Worldcoin Foundation says it will initially bear the burden of subsidizing gas fees for verified human users, it aims to eventually shift to a system where revenue from fees collected from bots and power users will cover transaction costs for casual users. The native currency of World Chain will be Ether, with casual users having the opportunity to earn Worldcoin token grants.

Despite facing privacy concerns from regulators, Worldcoin remains committed to its vision of becoming the world’s digital identity and financial playground. The project’s ambitious plans for World Chain signal its determination to navigate the challenges and carve out a space in the evolving crypto landscape.