A cryptocurrency project that has been dubbed "dystopian" has been introduced by AI entrepreneur Sam Altman.
Worldcoin rewards users with virtual currency in exchange for an eyeball scan.
On the first day of the project's full debut, hundreds of people lined up at locations all around the world to look through silver orbs.
The BBC went to a scanning location in London where participants were given free cryptocurrency tokens after completing the process.
The endeavour, according to Mr Altman, the CEO of Open AI, which created the chatbot ChatGPT, aims to identify if a person is human or a robot.
In a launch letter posted on the business website, Mr. Altman asserted that "Worldcoin could significantly increase economic opportunity, scale a reliable solution for differentiating humans from AI online while preserving privacy."
Additionally, Worldcoin asserts that their approach may pave the way for a universal basic income that is "AI-funded". However, it's unclear how.
According to the idea of a universal basic income, every citizen would receive a predetermined salary regardless of wealth.
However, the first step in this crypto-utopia as envisioned by Worldcoin depends on persuading millions or possibly billions of individuals to scan the whites of their eyes to verify that they are human.
More than two million new users from 33 different nations have been added to the cryptocurrency database since the scanner testing started two years ago, according to Worldcoin.
The company claims that Europe, India, and southern Africa have seen the most sign-ups.
The crypto currencies are not being distributed to US people despite the company's American basis because to regulatory worries.
It is anticipated that the project will gain even more traction now that it is completely launched and the crypto tokens are accessible for trading.
Worldcoin announced intentions to distribute 1,500 Orbs in sites throughout the world in a post on its website that showed people lining up at a facility in Japan.
When the BBC went to test it out in a pop-up location in east London, they were met with a steady stream of visitors.Your face and iris are first scanned to establish your identity. Staring into the Orb's camera and waiting for a beep to indicate success takes roughly 10 seconds. Interestingly, the Orb operator claims that the silver ball once spoke to customers, but they deleted the voice after receiving complaints from users that it was "creepy".
The next stage is to assign a unique number to your iris scan, which is then used to check its validity against the vast database. If so, the ball beeps once more, signalling that you have joined the database's other 2.06 million people as of this writing.
Upon completion, you will receive 25 free Worldcoin tokens, each of which is presently worth about $2 (£1.56). After receiving the coins, the BBC will sell them and donate the proceeds to Children in Need.
Thirteen people had been scanned by the time the BBC exited the pop-up website. They were all middle-aged or older guys.
Moses Serumaga, 37, said: "I came after seeing Sam Altman tweeting about the launch."I saw that you could sell it for some money, so why not? It might fail, much like other cryptocurrency ideas, or it might gain popularity and value. I didn't want to miss out on anything," he remarked.
The CEO of ChatGPT calls on Congress to regulate AI
Does the US want to end cryptocurrency?
Tom, age 23, also had his eyeball scanned, but he claimed he wasn't doing it for the money since he didn't believe the tokens' worth would increase.
"I don't think that amount of money is enough of an incentive, unless you live in less developed nations, and I don't think there's much possibility of it going up further really," he said.
The scanning procedure has drawn criticism for some of the commission-based orb operators' strategies, with a focus on those who recruit users in underdeveloped countries.
Even while Worldcoin assures that no data is saved, privacy experts are concerned that crucial information obtained by scanning a person's iris may fall into the wrong hands.In response to the Worldcoin debut, Vitalik Buterin, a co-founder of the cryptocurrency network Ethereum, expressed enthusiasm for the initiative while simultaneously delivering a cautionary note about its possible drawbacks.
On the whole, he said, "it does appear like specialised hardware systems can do quite a good job of safeguarding privacy, despite the "dystopian vibez" of peering into an Orb and having it scan deeply into your eyeballs.
But he also warns against giving Worldcoin too much authority by relying solely on the specialist orbs to conduct the scans, which would make it challenging to get everyone on board.
Jack Dorsey, the creator of Twitter and an avid supporter of cryptocurrencies, tweeted an apparent criticism of the project, calling its goal "cute," and with the dystopian warning, "Visit the Orb or the Orb will visit you."
Mr. Altman said online that his team needs the enthusiasm that "haters" provide. He acknowledged the project's ambition, nevertheless.
He wrote, "Trying stuff like this is how advancement happens. Maybe it works out, maybe it doesn't.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Sam Altman's introduction of the eyeball-scanning cryptocurrency presents a groundbreaking leap in security and convenience for digital transactions. This innovative technology holds the potential to reshape the future of cryptocurrencies, providing enhanced protection and user experience in the evolving digital economy.
As the world watches with anticipation, the success of this groundbreaking cryptocurrency will depend on its ability to strike the right balance between innovation, security, and user-friendliness. With careful consideration and responsible implementation, eyeball-scanning cryptocurrency could reshape the future of digital finance, offering a new era of seamless and secure transactions for users worldwide.
