The World Foundation, the nonprofit steward of Sam Altman’s World project, has raised $52.5 million through an initial token sale to expand World ID, its “proof of human” identity network, the organization said Friday.

The sale was led by Pantera Capital and also included Bain Capital Crypto, Nasdaq-listed Eightco Holdings, Selini Capital, and Susquehanna Crypto. All WLD sold in the transaction will be locked for 12 months, according to the Foundation.

The funding will be used to bring World ID to organizations, consumers, and their AI agents, the Foundation said, as the project argues that distinguishing humans from automated systems is becoming increasingly important while AI agents spread across the internet. The broader push reflects a growing challenge for online services: verifying that an account, signature, booking, or interaction comes from a real person without requiring users to expose more personal information than necessary. Pantera general partner Cosmo Jiang said the “need for Proof of Human is becoming acutely clear” as AI development accelerates.

How World ID works

World ID is designed to let a person prove they are a unique human without disclosing their identity. The system relies on a one-time iris scan conducted through a spherical device known as the Orb, which generates an ID stored on the user’s phone.

World, which rebranded from Worldcoin in 2024, was co-founded by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman with the goal of building a global “proof of personhood” system. The Foundation said the technology is being integrated this year with platforms including Zoom, Docusign, Okta, Vercel, and Tinder, putting the project in closer contact with mainstream use cases such as meetings, digital agreements, developer workflows, and online dating.

The rollout is also tied to World ID 4.0, a new enterprise-ready release that allows outside developers to build their own credentials into the system, according to the Foundation.

The fundraising comes as the project marks its third anniversary. The Foundation said more than 39 million people have joined the World network, 18 million have been verified in person through an Orb, and World has processed 475 million ID proofs.

Regulatory scrutiny and institutional interest

World’s use of iris-scanning technology has faced regulatory scrutiny in several jurisdictions over the handling of biometric data. Hong Kong ordered the project to cease operations in 2024, while a Kenyan court ordered it to delete users’ biometric data. Brazil barred World from paying people in exchange for iris scans.

Spain also moved to halt the project’s data collection, and South Korea fined World $830,000 for privacy violations. Those actions underscore that World’s expansion depends not only on adoption by platforms and users, but also on whether regulators are satisfied with how biometric information is collected, stored, and governed.

At the same time, institutional interest in WLD has continued. Eightco, one of the investors in Friday’s token sale, built the first corporate WLD treasury last year. Grayscale this week filed for the first U.S. exchange-traded fund tied to the token.