Sam Altman's company offered free crypto in exchange for scanning your eyeballs with a metal orb. They targeted developing countries where people would trade their iris data for a few dollars in tokens. Kenya banned them. Spain ordered data deleted. Seven countries investigated. Biometric colonialism with a cryptocurrency wrapper. Worldcoin set up scanning stations in Kenyan slums. People who had never used a smartphone were asked to stare into a metal orb in exchange for tokens worth a few dollars. Kenya's government raided the operations and seized equipment. "Informed consent" from people who don't know what a blockchain is. The orb came to the poorest places on Earth and asked for the one thing that cannot be returned — your biometric identity.
What they claim: Worldcoin promotes "World ID" as a privacy-preserving proof-of-personhood for the AI age
What we found: Worldcoin's iris-scanning Orb has been banned or investigated in Kenya, Spain, Portugal, France, Germany, Brazil, and India. Kenya suspended operations after finding Worldcoin collected biometric data without adequate consent. Spain's data protection authority ordered deletion of all data collected from Spanish citizens. The project, co-founded by Sam Altman, offered free crypto tokens in exchange for iris scans — targeting developing countries where people were most likely to trade biometric data for small payments.
What they claim: Worldcoin claims iris data is processed locally and biometric templates are deleted from the Orb after scanning
What we found: Kenyan authorities found Worldcoin collected biometric data without adequate informed consent, particularly from vulnerable populations who did not understand what they were consenting to. The Kenyan government suspended operations and seized equipment. Worldcoin had been operating in informal settlements and rural areas where digital literacy was lowest, offering crypto tokens worth a few dollars in exchange for permanent biometric data.
What they claim: Worldcoin describes its mission as building a global identity and financial network for the age of AI
What we found: Worldcoin is co-founded by Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI — the company building the AI that Worldcoin claims humans need proof-of-personhood to survive. Altman is simultaneously creating the problem (AI that could impersonate humans) and selling the solution (iris scans to prove you are human). The conflict of interest is the business model.
What they claim: Worldcoin claims compliance with data protection laws in all operating markets
What we found: Spain ordered Worldcoin to stop collecting data and delete all Spanish citizens' iris scans. Portugal, France, and Germany opened investigations. Argentina investigated. India investigated. Hong Kong's privacy commissioner found Worldcoin violated the Personal Data Privacy Ordinance. Seven countries across four continents concluded the same thing independently: this should not be happening.