World Expands US Operations, Launches Biometric ID Verification

Cryptocurrency project World announced its expansion into the United States, launching its biometric identity verification system in the country where it originated. The announcement was made during the company’s “World At Last” event in San Francisco, where co-founder Sam Altman and CEO Alex Blania detailed the growth of what they termed “the largest human-centered identity and financial network.”

Beginning in six cities—Atlanta, Austin, Los Angeles, Miami, Nashville, and San Francisco—Americans will be able to verify their “World ID.” The company plans to deploy 7,500 of its eye-scanning “Orb” devices across the U.S. by the end of the year, significantly increasing its current global deployment. Altman emphasized the importance of innovation, stating, “America should lead innovation, not fight it off.” The company, founded near San Francisco’s South Park neighborhood, had previously operated in over 160 countries but not in the U.S.

World also unveiled a partnership with visa to introduce a payment card that will connect to users’ World App wallets. This card will enable users to spend digital assets at over 150 million merchants worldwide. The World Card will offer rewards for AI-related purchases, with rewards paid directly in WLD tokens to users’ connected wallets. The card is expected to be available to U.S. users later this year.

In a separate financial development, World revealed an integration with Circle to bring USDC stablecoin natively to the World Chain blockchain. This partnership will convert all existing bridged USDC held on World Chain to native USDC, which is backed by cash and cash-equivalent assets. The integration also introduces Circle’s Cross-Chain Transfer Protocol V2 (CCTP V2) to enable faster, more cost-effective transfers across supported chains.

Other notable announcements included partnerships with match group to pilot World ID as an age verification solution for Tinder in Japan, and with Razer to implement “proof of human” verification in gaming to combat bots. The company also unveiled a DeFi lending platform called Morpho Mini App and a prediction market platform with Kalshi.

Rich Heley, who presented the Orb hardware update, announced that World will open its own assembly line in Richardson, Texas, with a U.S. manufacturer to produce Orbs not just for the American market but to help with global scale. The company also revealed plans for a miniature version of the Orb, called “Orb Mini,” that will allow for more distributed verification.

World, previously known as Worldcoin, has faced controversy over its biometric data collection practices in some countries. The company emphasizes that its verification system is designed to be privacy-preserving, with personal data remaining exclusively on users’ devices through what it calls “Personal Custody.”

The service currently has over 26 million users worldwide, with 12 million biometrically verified through its Orb scanning technology, according to company figures shared at the event. This expansion into the U.S. marks a significant milestone for World, as it aims to further integrate its identity and financial network on a global scale.

Ask Aime: What is the impact of World's biometric identity verification system launch in the U.S. on American retail investors?