Worldcoin Raises $135M for Orb Expansion

Wondering why Worldcoin (WLD) saw a +30% jump yesterday? This might having something to do with it:

World secured $135 million from Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) and Bain Capital Crypto to boost its global network growth, particularly for Orb-verified World IDs. 

The deal involved the sale of WLD tokens at market prices, increasing WLD’s circulating supply. Additional supporters from a previously disclosed round include Selini Capital, Mirana Ventures, and Arctic Digital. World Assets, Ltd., a subsidiary of the World Foundation, facilitated this sale. 

Backed by a mission to verify human uniqueness in the face of rapidly evolving AI, World has already attracted over 26 million participants from more than 160 countries. Among them, over 12.5 million hold an Orb-verified World ID, confirming they’re unique individuals rather than bots. 

The approach hopes to help the World protocol scale in lockstep with artificial intelligence, ensuring digital identity solutions remain, well, real.

The added $135 million injection addresses surging demand for Orb signups, including expansions throughout the US and other markets. Organizers view it as a step toward building a self-sustaining protocol, one where future network fees and usage eventually finance further growth. 

Builders say these funds will strengthen user on-ramps and help refine the biometric-based Orb design.

Orb verification is central to the World model, protecting user privacy while confirming uniqueness. The project hopes these newly secured resources will help meet user needs worldwide, fueling everything from new partnerships to improved device manufacturing. 

Ultimately, the team envisions a future where AI and human identity co-exist securely, letting individuals operate online without sacrificing data sovereignty. 

The network’s current adoption suggests the concept of biometric-based identity is gaining traction, especially as more folks grow wary of AI-driven impersonation risks. 

Or people are just scared of a Battlestar Galactica and/or Terminator future. Either way, proving a human is human is probably a good thing. 

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