Worldcoin’s World ID Adoption Surpasses 1% of Chilean Population: A Cause for Celebration or Concern?

A blog post shared by the WorldCoin team has confirmed that more than 200,000 people in Chile have signed up for its global identity protocol, World ID. With a total population of 19.5M residents, the figure represents over 1 percent of the population. Launched in July 2023 in the South American country, the project has received great support in the region.

As the project expands its foothold in South America, the team has announced project contributors at Tools for Humanity (TFH) have recently started operations in Vina del Mar and Concepcion. The new stations will be in addition to the already established operations in Chile’s capital Santiago.

Worldcoin project co-founder and CEO of Tools for Humanity Alex Blania recently spoke on the Ethereum Argentina Mainnet Stage, of the of the project’s scaled-up global engagement and growth in South America. The co-founder spoke of the positive response in the region and the understanding of the fundamental principles of crypto by the people. “It’s a combination of having a very technologically advanced country in general and then also a crypto-forward country specifically, which makes it an explosive building ground for the next wave of innovation in this space,” Blania added.

As CNF reported last month, Worldcoin introduced an authentication reservation feature as part of its plans to onboard more users. This new feature would enable users to reserve Worldcoin (WLD) tokens without needing verification. According to the report, users will be able to claim their tokens after the reservation remains active for a year.

Worldcoin Data Collection Raises Alarms

Even as the project celebrates adoption in some countries, in some parts of the world, Worldcoin faces criticism and legal battles. In Kenya, the project has recently been shut down pending investigations of its legality to operate in the country and biometrics and data collection privacy concerns. Similarly, the Argentina government is also looking into the project with the Argentine Agency for Access to Public Information (AAIP) calling on the team behind the project to provide detailed information on its data processing policy.

France and Germany are also looking into Worldcoin’s data collection process with an aim to ensure that collected data is safeguarded.

Despite these issues, the project that was founded in 2019 by OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman continues to build, recently undertaking an extensive update geared towards improving the performance of its blockchain. The Worldcoin core developers announced the completion of a network upgrade that helps reduce the overall load on Ethereum’s Optimism by about two-thirds.

Worldcoin Unveils Authentication Reservation Feature with Iris Scan for World ID

Worldcoin, a crypto project co-founder by Open AI’s Sam Altman, has introduced an authentication reservation feature as part of the plans to onboard more users. This new feature would enable users to reserve Worldcoin (WLD) tokens without the need for verification.

In other words, users can set aside tokens before obtaining their World ID verification. According to the report, users will be able to claim their tokens after the reservation remains active for a year. In this case, they would access the iris scanning tool called Orb to redeem the asset. Having debuted last month, the project demands that users exchange their iris scan for Digital ID and cryptos. 

According to reports, Worldcoin is built on three important components which are the WLD token, Worldcoin app, and Worldcoin ID. The objective is to build a unique human database to identify genuine users from automated bots. The team seeks to make World ID the standard identification system that enables humans to assess various online services. 

According to Worldcoin, 2.2 million users have so far signed up. This number was largely recorded during the trial period in the last two years. The campaign is fast advancing across the globe as users rush to participate. However, a huge concern has been raised concerning data privacy and the potential use of the collected biometric data. 

Data Collection Approach of Worldcoin Scrutinized

One of the countries where participants are getting involved in the program is Mexico. In an interview with Reuters, one Worldcoin user identified as Diego Romero narrated his concerns. 

In Kenya, the project was halted due to concerns regarding the data collection approach. It has also faced regulatory concerns in both Argentina and the UK. 

According to the general manager for Europe at Tools For Humanity, Ricardo Macieira, their mission is to build the biggest financial and identity community. For now, they are trying to expand operations to more countries in Europe, Latin America, Africa, and anywhere in the world that accept the project. 

According to Altman and co-founder of the project Alex Blania, they plan to go beyond the world of cryptos. On its official website, Worldcoin is said to potentially increase economic activities drastically, while enabling a global democratic process and indicating a potential path to AI-funded universal minimum income.