Faced with the rise of bots and deepfakes, Sam Altman’s World project is deploying its “proof of humanity” system on platforms like Tinder and Zoom.
AI is profoundly transforming the use of the internet, and between conversational bots, generated images and scams with increasingly credible deepfakes, distinguishing a human from an automated agent sometimes becomes difficult.
It is precisely this problem that the World project, led by Sam Altman, attempts to resolve. In an official announcement, the company announced new integrations of its identity verification system across several major services, including Tinder and Zoom.
Before integrating other partners like Shopify, Docusign, or even AWS, the objective is to allow users to prove that they are indeed human, without revealing sensitive personal information…
An iris scan to prove his humanity
The verification badge is displayed directly in front of each speaker – Source: World
The device is based on a rather particular technology: iris recognition. Using a spherical device called Orb, users can scan the colored part of their eye to generate a unique digital identifier, called World ID.
This system transforms the iris into an anonymous cryptographic fingerprint. Once verified, the user receives an identifier stored on their smartphone, which they can then use to authenticate across different platforms.
World claims that this method protects users’ privacy: no personal data like name or address is necessary. The system relies in particular on advanced cryptographic mechanisms, such as zero-knowledge proofs, to confirm that a person is human without exposing their identity.
To date, around 18 million people have already been verified via World ID in more than 160 countries.
Tinder and Zoom among the first partners…
Among the first platforms to adopt this technology is Tinder. Indeed, the dating application wishes to strengthen the fight against fake profiles, a phenomenon largely amplified by artificial intelligence.
Users who choose to verify their identity via World ID will be able to display a specific badge on their profile, to reassure other members that they are chatting with a “real” person and not a bot.
Contrary to what one might imagine, this problem is far from being anecdotal. In the United States, romance scams caused victims to lose more than a billion dollars last year, according to the Federal Trade Commission. In some user testimonials, up to 30% of the profiles encountered could be linked to automated systems or scams.
On the Zoom side, the problem is different but just as sensitive. The platform wants to limit the risks linked to deepfakes during professional meetings. In 2024, an employee in Hong Kong transferred $25 million after being duped by deepfake videos impersonating several executives at his company.
With the integration of World ID, Zoom will be able to compare several elements (initial image upon entering the meeting, live selfie, video stream of the meeting) in order to confirm that the person on the screen corresponds to an authenticated human.
Towards an authentication infrastructure for the AI era?
Beyond meeting applications or videoconferencing, World aims to extend this system to numerous areas, ranging from electronic signature with DocuSign, to concert ticketing or even other online services intended for businesses.
The company is also working on tools for the future “agentic web,” in which AI agents could act on behalf of users. Thus, the ability to prove that a human is behind certain actions would become a central component of digital trust.
For Sam Altman, as content generated by AI becomes the majority on the internet, it will become essential to be able to identify what is still human activity…
