World token jumps 27% as Sam Altman reportedly eyes a biometric social network to kill off bots

World Network (formerly Worldcoin) $WLD token surged more than 27% on Wednesday after a Forbes report linked the controversial crypto project to OpenAI’s broader effort to fight bots online.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman wants to build a “biometric social network” to help online platforms verify users and weed out AI-generated accounts, Forbes reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Sources familiar with the project's development told Forbes that the OpenAI team has considered using Apple’s Face ID or the World Orb, which scans a person's iris to provide a unique identity.

World is the crypto project co-founded by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and raised $135 million in a token sale to a16z and Bain Capital Crypto last year. The core premise of the project is World ID, a decentralised and privacy-focused identity system that uses the orb, a custom-built biometric device that scans users’ irises and generates unique identifiers in compliance with privacy standards.

$WLD token price surge (CoinDesk data)

The token spiked shortly after the report, briefly outperforming most major cryptocurrencies, even though it didn’t confirm any formal collaboration between OpenAI and World.

The World Network has drawn both curiosity and criticism since its launch. While the project claims to have verified millions of people worldwide, it has also faced regulatory pushback, including a temporary suspension in Kenya and inquiries in U.K. on how it processes personal data.

Still, the idea of tying biometric verification to online identity continues to gain traction, especially as generative AI tools flood social media with spam and misinformation.

Read more: The Untold Story of Worldcoin's Launch: Inside the Orb