The ChatGPT founder has revealed a proposal to scan the iris of every individual on the planet to distinguish real people from smart robots. On Monday, Sam Altman, the creator of OpenAI, the startup behind ChatGPT, announced his project Worldcoin in the United Kingdom and 34 other nations.
The project’s goal is to scan billions of eyeballs with a football-sized sphere that weighs around six pounds. The orbs scan people’s eyes to create a unique digital record known as a World ID – or “proof of personhood” – for Worldcoin. Altman claims it will allow users to show they are not robots or fraudsters online.
“Such verification is required to combat the growing threat posed by AI”
According to the entrepreneur, such verification is required to combat the growing threat posed by AI, a technology that he is working on the front line of advancing. Announcing the launch of Worldcoin in the UK, the company said: “Increasingly powerful AI models will further amplify the difficulty of distinguishing humans from bots.”
The company has over 150 operational orbs and has deployed them all over the world, including two in London. It has signed up only 2 million people so far, a minuscule fraction of the roughly eight billion people it intends to touch. Privacy groups have expressed concerns about the risks of a start-up collecting large volumes of sensitive biometric data.
Worldcoin’s system is “privacy-preserving,” according to the company. It claims that by default, its spheres destroy the biometric data they collect. In an interview with the Financial Times, Mr. Altman conceded the orbs had “a clear ick factor.”
On Monday, he appeared to downplay the chances of the odd undertaking. “Maybe it works out, maybe it doesn’t, but trying stuff like this is how progress happens,” he remarked.
“I’m hopeful Worldcoin can contribute to conversations about how we share access, benefits, and governance of future AI systems.”
Those that submit their IDs for scanning will also receive 25 free Worldcoin tokens
Altman officially inaugurated the enterprise on Monday, even though it has been in operation since 2019. The startup has also been chastised for focusing its initial sign-ups on low-income countries such as Sudan and Malaysia. According to the MIT Technology Review, some people who joined up thought the project was managed by the government or had official backing. These instances have been labeled “isolated” by Worldcoin.
The venture is funded by the same-named cryptocurrency. Local contractors operate the face-scanning orbs and are compensated in Worldcoin for signing up new users. Those that submit their IDs for scanning will also receive 25 free Worldcoin tokens. On Monday, the tokens began trading at $1.70 and reached a high of $3.53.
The initiative has received roughly $250 million in funding from cryptocurrency investors, including US venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz and Sam Bankman-Fried, the disgraced founder of digital currency exchange FTX. However, the company is facing regulatory challenges in the United States, and its digital coins will not be available in the country when they launch, owing to heightened scrutiny of cryptocurrencies.
OpenAI CEO Altman pioneers ChatGPT; AI raises hopes and fears
Altman, 38, is also the CEO of OpenAI, the artificial intelligence company that launched ChatGPT, causing a stir in Silicon Valley. This chatbot responds to text prompts and has gained popularity as individuals use it to create emails, essays, and code. Google and others have rushed to build competitive offerings, while Microsoft has invested billions of dollars in OpenAI.
The introduction of ChatGPT and other sophisticated AI tools has also raised concerns that the technology could become uncontrollable. Mr. Altman has previously stated that his “worst fear” is that AI will inflict “significant harm to the world” one day. As AI eliminates hundreds of millions of jobs, Worldcoin has argued that its digital coin could one day provide a type of worldwide universal basic income (UBI).
