As artificial intelligence becomes more prevalent and more advanced, it’s likely that it will become harder for us to discern between when we’re engaging with a human or engaging with a computer. This has profound moral and ethical implications. I wrote in a previous post about Decentralised Identity that it’s possible for us to have all of our identification in one place that we control and stored on a blockchain. That’s fine, but in today’s day and age, we will also need to be able to prove that that identity belongs to a real human, and not a computer. We’ll need something in our decentralised wallet that says that we are British, that we have no criminal records, that we have been driving since 2011 - AND that we are human.
In a twist that makes him both judge and jury , Sam Altman, the co founder of OpenAI and seemingly now the poster child for all things Artificial Intelligence, has launched World Coin, a project that on the face of it, is designed to offer a cure to the identity problem he’s potentially created. World Coin is an app that sits in your phone that effectively acts as a digital passport. Once obtained, like your real passport, it provides you with a number that you’re able to use on the internet to prove that you’re human.
The project is built on the concept of Proof of Personhood, which is a mechanism that is designed by World Coin to allow real humans to prove that they are such when using the internet. Schematically (and start in the middle with the User and work your way left), it looks something like this:
The evidence that we provide is - wait for it - a scan of our face and iris… I know what you’re thinking, that seems a little dystopian, sort of Brave New World kinda vibes? I agree. I went to do it, and it is a weird feeling (metaphorically not physically!) having your iris scanned… but it’s really only one more piece of information that another company holds about us… think about how much Google knows about you… they know the sound of your voice, pretty much all of your spending habits and most of the things that you like to do. I’d give my iris and take that back any day.
The Issuer (as per the diagram above) for World Coin is an Orb, which is a silver ball that looks like it’s been brought straight back in time from Ready Player One. It looks something like this (the one on the right just has a clear case):
When the Orb takes a scan of your iris, it creates an image which can then be hashed. Refresher on hashing is here. This hash can be combined with your unique QR code (which you’re given when you sign up to the app) to check if you already have what is called a World ID. If you don’t, then a World ID is issued and your iris and facial data is deleted.
You are then issued your digital passport which sits in your app on your phone. The front looks a bit like this:
And the back looks like this
Exactly how this unique ID will be used in the general form of web usage going forward is not yet clear. World Coin say that the ID will be used via a zero knowledge proof (refresher here) provided to a verifier that needs to know that you’re human. It’s likely that developers will build applications that will leverage this technology, which will be facilitated by the fact that World Coin is using the Ethereum blockchain.
In terms of use cases, World Coin have pitched this as being a secure way of distributing Universal Basic Income, which is why many of the sign ups at the moment are in emerging economies. There are many other potential applications though.
Finance
Owning & Transferring Digital Money: Sending money will be near instant and borderless, globally. Available to everyone. The world could be connected financially and everyone would be able to interact economically on the internet. The COVID relief fund for India, where over $400 million were raised in a short period of time by individuals around the world to support the country as a hint at what can be possible. Overall, this has the potential to connect people on a global scale unlike anything previously seen in human history. In short you can get money to real people that need it instantly and cheaply.
Identity
Keep the Bots Out: Bots on Twitter, spam messages, and robocalls are all symptoms of the lack of sound and frictionless digital identity. These issues are exacerbated by rapidly advancing AI models, which can solve CAPTCHAs and produce content that is convincingly "human". As services ramp up defenses against such content, it becomes essential that an inclusive and privacy-preserving solution for proof of personhood is available as public infrastructure. If every message or transaction included a "verified human" property, a lot of noise could be filtered from the digital world.
Governance: Currently, collective decision making in web3 largely relies on token-based governance (one token, one vote), which excludes some people from participating and heavily favors those with more economic power. A reliable sybil-resistant proof of personhood like World ID opens up the design space for global democratic governance mechanisms not just in web3 but for the internet. Additionally, for AI to maximally benefit all humans, rather than just a select group, it will become increasingly important to include everyone in its governance.
Intersection of Finance and Identity
Incentive Alignment: Coupons, loyalty programs, referral programs and more generally sharing value with customers is traditionally prone to fraud as the incentives for fraudulent actors are high. Frictionless and fraud resistant digital identity helps to align incentives and benefit both consumers and companies. This could even incept a new wave of companies owned in part by its users.
Equal Distribution of Scarce Resources: Crucial elements of modern society, including subsidies and social welfare, can be rendered more equitably by employing proof of personhood. This is particularly pertinent in developing economies, where social benefit programs confront the issue of resource capture—fake identities employed to acquire more than a person’s fair share of resources. In 2021, India saved $5 billion in subsidy programs by implementing a biometric-based system that reduced fraud. A decentralised proof of personhood protocol can extend similar benefits to any project or organisation globally. As AI advances, fairly distributing access and some of the created value through UBI will play an increasingly vital role in counteracting the concentration of economic power. World ID could ensure that each individual registers only once and to guarantee equitable distribution.
Overall, the problem that World Coin is trying to solve is very real, and a solution will be required in the future. Whether World Coin is the project to do deliver that solution remains to be seen.
Brilliant but deeply disturbing. How much further can humankind go in duhumanising humankind? Trust will be a thing of the past, charmingly antiquated. Wait until the serious hackers get going with AI! We are in for absolutely nothing working - except perhaps old fashion person to person meetings.