Does Worldcoin need to be re-evaluated? Learn about Sam Altman's Crypto-AI-UBI experiment

By Daniel Kuhn, CoinDesk, compiled by Song Xue, Golden Finance

A revolution is taking place in the tech sector, and cryptocurrencies are a part of that. On Friday, OpenAI co-founder and CEO Sam Altman was unceremoniously ousted. The organization, which began as a nonprofit and later added a profit-oriented corporate arm led by Altman, was first announced by the board of directors using drastic language when it initially announced the termination of the agreement.

Clearly, Altman “has not been consistently candid in his communications with the board.” Didn’t say anything, sparking speculation. OpenAI is the developer of several AI tools, including ChatGPT, the app that gained millions of users the fastest, and is often referred to as the “most important startup” in the world.

Cryptocurrencies, like almost every other industry, have been testing the field of artificial intelligence. This emerging technology is expected to change the way developers build and review apps, the way traders create portfolios, and the way users interact with them. One of the most important AI drivers of cryptocurrency, Worldcoin, is linked to Altman.

Worldcoin, a universal digital ID protocol built by Tools for Humanity, a company co-founded by Altman, initially saw its token crash in the news. Now, after Altman was poached by Microsoft to lead in-house AI R&D, the price of the token has risen – a sign of extraordinary trust when the inside story of the dismissal has not yet been fully revealed.

It also shows that when Microsoft invested $1 billion in OpenAI, it was investing in Altman. In many ways, world coin speculators are also betting on AI pioneers. ** While OpenAI and Worldcoin are completely different entities, there are close similarities between the two other than Altman’s interconnect points. (There is no reason to believe that Microsoft will make any transactions with WRD.) ）

The cryptocurrency-based Universal Basic Income (UBI) that AI and Worldcoin eventually built are largely unproven technologies. Both have equally skeptical audiences, albeit somewhat fascinated, with some believing that these technologies could tear society apart independently. They are moon landing programs that aim to move humanity forward as a whole.

To a large extent, Worldcoin has been unfairly slandered. When it was announced in 2019, the world was blown away by the project’s dystopian style. Not only was it founded by a man many thought could become the world’s first trillionaire, but the world identity system works by scanning people’s iris using a metal sphere called an Orb. It’s like a science fiction plot.

Appearances aside, there’s a lot of progress on the project itself. Some of the brightest minds in tech I know are obsessed with what is being built. Worldcoin developers are developing zero-knowledge (ZK) encryption solutions to enable more secure biometric scanning. No one has cracked a lasting personality online yet. And the leadership of the project, including CEO Alex Blania, sometimes whispered.

As with any startup, Worldcoin can end up being a costly mistake. But there is a difference in evaluating a company based on its merits and aesthetics. And, to borrow a phrase from Tyler Cowen, a well-known internet economist/blogger, most of the conversation around Worldcoin is just “emotional belonging” – people saying what they think others want to hear.

For example, it’s entirely possible that everyone I know who likes Worldcoin just wants to build a project that predicts when (or if) AI will have the ability to create its own real or fake virtual.

Altman’s reputation expanded dramatically after he became the face of OpenAI.

He is also very controversial. Some have called Altman a “generation of geniuses,” and he is one of Silicon Valley’s greatest leaders. Others say he “failed”. As president, YC grew rapidly under Altman’s leadership, but is said to have lost its soul as well. In 2014, he spent less than Scaramucci as CEO of Reddit.

He is also believed to be in talks to build a chip foundry to compete with NVIDIA, backed by controversial investors. He is the largest shareholder in Humane AI, which is developing a mobile AI “pin” that is not a mobile phone, but has been ambivalent about its launch.

In other words, Ultraman’s connection to Worldcoin is an interesting question, but the likelihood of him being involved in it is zero. Other factors, such as privacy concerns raised by the Kenyan government, onboarding questions raised by MIT Technology Review, and concerns about the system’s know-how, are more prominent.

It’s no secret that technology is in a moment of transformation. The so-called “tech resistance” is waning, in part because the promise of artificial intelligence now seems revolutionary – a technology that seemed almost unfeasible this time last year. But extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence, and deserve careful scrutiny. Some technologists, who see Altman as a symbol of progress, joined OpenAI’s camp without even waiting 30 days for OpenAI’s new interim CEO to conduct an internal review of Altman’s dismissal.

At this moment, Worldcoin can be seen as an imperfect barometer of these competing currents of technological frenzy and technical skepticism in society. Before you decide whether to love or hate this ball – or for that matter, invest in it – all I ask is to see what it can do.

Source: Golden Finance