Sam Altman's new company aims to launch a device that can verify whether a user is a human or a robot.
What used to sound like the plot of a Black Mirror episode is now shaping up to be more like our future.
If Mark Zuckerberg isn't talking about his eerie plan for a dystopian future or playing with the future of his Meta coders, Sam Altman is on a different path.
The OpenAI CEO's latest venture, Tools for Humanity's World, is launching a portable iris scanner called the Orb Mini.
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How does it work, you ask?
Well, the webcam-looking device scans your iris to confirm that you’re an actual person and not an AI bot in a way that the company claims will benefit people.
Upon passing the scan, you'll receive a 'World ID,' which is a unique identity token stored on the blockchain that confirms your humanity. This will then be sent to your phone, where you can use it across various apps, games and platforms.
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Alongside it, you’ll receive a small crypto payout called Worldcoin, worth around $42, which is sort of like a reward for proving you're a human with real eyes.
Altman noticed the lack of trust that increases with AI's popularity and usage. With AI generating everything from deepfake voices and photos to eerily realistic dating profiles and romantic partners, proving you’re human might soon be as important as proving your age or identity.
It's more than confirming you're not a bot on a webpage and that's what the biometric identity startup realised. "If this really works, it’s like a fundamental piece of infrastructure for the world,” Altman told TIME in an interview.
To support the Orb Mini's launch, Tools for Humanity teamed up with some pretty big names.
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For example, Visa is developing a debit card connected to the World App while Match Group is testing the Orb Mini in Japan to verify real users on dating apps. And gaming hardware giant Razer is exploring how to use the World ID in gaming to eliminate bots from multiplayer lobbies.
The company aims to deploy 7,500 Orb Mini devices across the US as early as the end of this year.
Naturally, this kind of smart technology raises questions about privacy. In response, Tools for Humanity claims it's built safeguards into the system, such as not storing your iris image and anonymising data.
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As AI continues to flood the internet, the minds behind this unusual device are wagering that it won’t be long before everyone either wants - or is expected - to make use of the Orb Mini.