Digital identity project Worldcoin, co-founded by OpenAI founder Sam Altman, announced on Thursday a rebranding as World Network, or World for short. It also announced the launch of its Ethereum layer 2 network, World Chain, on the mainnet. Blockchain projects such as Optimism, Alchemy, Uniswap, Safe, Dune, and Etherscan will support the launch of this blockchain.
Worldcoin, launched in July 2023, offers a digital identity solution called World ID, which helps verify users’ human identities both online and on-chain. By providing their biometric data, such as iris recognition through their Orb device, individuals can obtain an online passport and the cryptocurrency Worldcoin (WLD).
World Chain is built using OP Stack and achieves scalability in conjunction with the “Superchain” ecosystem. As of October 17th, all 15 million World ID holders and World App users have migrated or are in the process of migrating to World Chain. The World team stated that its user transactions account for approximately 44% of the activity on Optimism’s OP Mainnet, making it the largest application on the network.
During the New World event held in San Francisco on Thursday, the World team also announced several important updates, including a new generation of Orb devices, World ID 3.0 with new features such as World ID Credentials and Deep Face, and World App 3.0 introducing Mini Apps.
The World team emphasized that World App 3.0 is a new platform that allows third-party applications to run directly within World App and integrate deeply with users’ World ID, Wallet, and contacts while maintaining anonymity.
According to CoinMarketCap data at the time of writing, the market capitalization of WLD is $1.19 billion, with a price of approximately $2.2. It has experienced a 2.76% decrease in the past 24 hours and a 28% increase in the past week.
