OpenAI boss Sam Altman has given the green light to the cryptocurrency project “Worldcoin”, which he co-founded. Worldcoin’s core offering consists of a digital identity (ID) that only humans can obtain and not chatbots generated by artificial intelligence (AI), the project announced Monday. This ID should be used, among other things, to distinguish between AI bots and real people on the internet.
In addition, customers who signed up in certain countries received Worldcoin’s WLD cryptocurrency token. In the beta phase of the project, there were two million users. With the launch, Worldcoin is expanding its operations to 35 cities in 20 countries. The Microsoft company OpenAI is the developer of the text-based chatbot ChatGPT.
Iris scan proves you are human
To get a so-called World ID, a customer must sign up for a personal iris scan with the Worldcoin “ball”, a silver ball the size of a bowling ball. Once the iris scan confirms that the person in question is a real person, a World ID is created. From the point of view of the project, such a digital identity becomes all the more important in the era of AI chatbots, which can now generate an increasingly human language.
The cryptocurrency aspect of World IDs is also important because cryptocurrency blockchains can store them in a way that preserves privacy, Worldcoin co-founder Alex Blania told Reuters. In addition, they cannot be controlled or switched off from a single point.
The call for AI regulation is getting louder
Behind the Worldcoin project is the San Francisco and Berlin-based company Tools for Humanity, founded by Blania and Altman. Many AI experts are now calling for fast and strict rules for ‘generative’ artificial intelligence because the risks, including those caused by disinformation campaigns, are incalculable. Among other things, they see a threat to democracy in the impending deluge of artificially created images, videos and texts.
OpenAI boss advocates for basic income
According to Altman, Worldcoin can play an important role in how AI can transform the economy in the future. “People will be overwhelmed by AI, which will have a huge economic impact,” he told Reuters. Altman referred to the idea of Universal Basic Income (UBI). Under such a benefit program, typically run by governments, every individual would be entitled to unconditional cash transfers. As AI will “increasingly do more of the work that humans do today,” UBI could help tackle income inequality. And the World ID can take on the task of preventing fraud since only real people have such an ID.
However, a world with a universal basic income, according to Altman, is “very far in the future”. He also has no clear idea of which authority could issue such benefits in the future, he said. However, Worldcoin is laying the groundwork for such programs to become a reality. Altman is sure: “We believe that we should start experimenting with things so that we can figure out what to do.”
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
