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Should you stare into Sam Altman’s orb before your next date?

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Why This Matters

The expansion of World’s in-person facial verification orb to mainstream apps like Tinder highlights a shift towards more secure, user-controlled identity verification methods in the tech industry. This development could influence how digital platforms combat bots and fake profiles, emphasizing privacy and user agency. For consumers, it offers a potentially more trustworthy way to verify identity across multiple services, enhancing online authenticity and safety.

Key Takeaways

Tinder users who prove they’re a real person by visiting an identity-verifying orb will soon be able to get five free boosts in the app — and it’s just the latest service to embrace the orb. World, which was co-founded by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, initially tested Tinder verification using its facial scanning orbs through a pilot program in Japan last year. It’s now expanding the service to “select markets, including Japan and the United States.”

To verify that they’re not a bot or an AI agent, users have to physically visit one of World’s orbs in person. According to World, the orb “takes pictures of your face and eyes, then encrypts and stores them on your phone so that only you control them by default.” After completing the facial scan, users can connect their World ID to eligible apps like Tinder, which gives orb-verified users a “verified human badge” on their profile. Tinder users can also verify their profile with a photo or a government ID, but the offer for five free boosts is currently only for those who verify with World ID, and is only available for a limited time.

World is also launching a World ID app, distinct from the World super app it announced last year. The World ID app is specifically for managing “proof of human” verification with the various apps and services that currently accept it, which doesn’t just include Tinder — World is also integrating its ID service into Zoom and Docusign.