Worldcoin (WLD 0.13%) is an emerging cryptocurrency that is betting that the internet will need to start charging admission and checking IDs as AI agents and other bots become ever more ubiquitous and difficult to identify as non-human. The coin's developers propose a mechanism that will allow users to prove that they are specific humans rather than bots.
No matter how you slice it, this is a speculative investment. With that being said, there are three things in particular that investors need to know before determining whether it's a good purchase for them.
Image source: Getty Images.
1. This coin's developers want its credential layer to become the new global login surface
Proof-of-personhood tools aim to determine each given user's status as a real human without intentionally revealing who any specific person is. To accomplish that goal, Worldcoin's World ID system, the core of the entire project, uses zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs), a cryptographic method for proving identity claims without exposing the underlying data. Thus, the platform can technically preserve someone's privacy while proving to a specific other party that they really are a human.
The bull thesis for Worldcoin is based on the indisputable truths that AI-driven fraud is growing and bot farms keep getting cheaper and cheaper to operate, forcing platforms all over the internet to either pay for stronger verification or risk being branded by real users as conduits for AI-produced slop.
CRYPTO: WLD
Key Data Points
But don't just assume that a new influx of demand for verification implies that Worldcoin is going to the moon. There are already a slew of competitors trying to serve the same purpose, including government digital IDs and passports, hardware-based identity attestation, and biometrics. If those options are ultimately good enough and made easy enough for websites and businesses to use, World ID will probably wind up a niche product.
2. Orbs drive user growth, in theory
The Orb is Worldcoin's most visible element. It's a purpose-built device that captures a detailed image of a person's iris to create their unique World ID. If you're like most people and you've never encountered one of these devices, that's a tell that getting users onboarded to this cryptocurrency is actually quite difficult in practice.
Worldcoin has in the past tried to reduce people's skepticism about getting their eyeballs scanned by a weird device. But, in my view, it's still a tough sell, because getting onboarded undeniably requires would-be users to hand over an intimate form of personal data to a relatively unknown entity, and via a somewhat creepy sci-fi process to boot.
3. Holders may not be rewarded much
Even if World ID becomes widely used, Worldcoin's holders will only benefit if the system sends recurring demand toward the asset.
On that front, Worldcoin aims to charge fees for World ID credential usage, payable in the coin. But that doesn't whatsoever guarantee that it will be in high enough demand that anyone would need to buy and hold a lot of it. And even if it does, the fact that its price -- like that of any crypto -- can fluctuate would then be an annoyance that could impede adoption. Imagine if a website had to pay $0.01 per user verification attempt on one day, and then $0.10 the next day.
So, be aware that Worldcoin's tokenomics and supply model may not necessarily be favorable over the long term.
