$WLD (now World Network) recently made an intriguing post, possibly teasing their in-development social platform.
Their core strategy revolves around using iris authentication as a universal human verification system. Those who've scanned their iris already have the World App, which houses numerous mini-apps they're looking to expand.
Why build this ecosystem? Because iris verification eliminates traditional identity verification methods like ID cards or phone numbers. This could provide digital and financial access to the roughly 600 million people worldwide who can't verify their identity traditionally, and 1.4 billion without bank accounts.
Beyond financial inclusion, World ID addresses a growing internet problem: AI-generated content and bots making it impossible to distinguish real from fake online. By ensuring only verified humans can create content or comment, World ID could significantly reduce bot-related issues.
Consider dating apps - if only verified humans could join, users would trust the platform more. If even one app successfully implements World ID's anti-bot features, we could see rapid ecosystem growth as others follow.
While this presents promising opportunities, we should consider potential downsides like China-style social credit systems or security risks if iris data were compromised.
As someone optimistic about this project, I'm incredibly curious about their upcoming announcement.