Why Worldcoin Sparks Conflicting Reactions
Free crypto coins may look like a good deal, especially for those that noticed the rise of all crypto prices from very humble beginnings. But not all free crypto coins are created equal. Worldcoin, a new project making the rounds in digital and physical space, is raising some eyebrows.
Worldcoin is currently met with divided attitudes, as it is both a sign of potential wider crypto adoption and a type of asset that may be going against the initial ethos of cryptocurrency as anonymous and voluntary.
Worldcoin’s proposition is to send a small, equal amount of crypto to all supporters who agree to have their retina scanned. This gathering of potentially sensitive biometric data raised red flags on the intentions of Worldcoin.
Worldcoin has the ambition to become a freely distributed digital coin with a wide outreach, only recently announcing its official launch. The project is headed by Sam Altman, former President of the Y Combinator startup incubator.
Despite the coin’s claim at fair distribution, there are many misgivings the project may actually be exploiting people by collecting multiple types of sensitive biometric data. The data includes not only retinal scans, but a 3D face and body model.
The Worldcoin team promises to keep those data encrypted and only use the data hashes to secure the network. But the fate of the raw data is still contentious and worrying.
What is the Orb
To collect the data, Worldcoin teams visit physical cities and use the Orb, a device to capture biometric images. The Orb also makes sure to compare the data and ensure no one will claim Onecoin more than once.
The orb’s physical design was also one of the reasons crypto proponents took Worldcoin to task, for its ominous look. Added to this are concerns about the actual safety of the data, and the disclosure that the biometrics, though anonymous, may be shared with third parties.
How Much Worldcoin Is There
The total supply of Worldcoin is 10B coins. Of that amount, 8B are earmarked to be distributed fairly. In the first few days of the Orb making the rounds, an estimated 130,000 persons have claimed coins.
The project also invited criticism due to the intention of the founding team to keep 20% of the coins as their own. The immediate, unfair advantage over what would be supposedly a worldwide asset caused additional skepticism for Worldcoin. Based on ideas of a universal basic income, the unequal distribution clause and the potential for resembling a pyramid scheme undermine the reputation of Worldcoin.
The usage of the data-collecting Orb is also tied up to a distribution scheme resembling multi-level marketing. Local teams hire the Orb for potential gains, creating incentives to push more Orbs similar to a MLM business.
This mode of asset distribution is quite different from the usual model of crypto mining, where participation is voluntary and a pressure to add new customers may be a sign of a scam.
Is Worldcoin Worth Anything
If everyone on Earth received a fair share of Worldcoin, they would have a little more than one coin. With the size of the world economy at around 80 trillion dollars, this would translate into a price per Worldcoin of around $10,000.
Whether this price is high or not might depend on the state of local economies, and stand somewhere between insignificant and life-changing wealth.
In reality, Worldcoin is not yet trading on any cryptocurrency exchange, and is yet to achieve any form of liquidity or price discovery. The new Worldcoin should not be mistaken with WorldCoin (WDC), a small-scale asset that started as an ICO in 2017 and currently trades around $0.06. WDC is not even rising based on a case of mistaken identity, as it is only traded on a couple of obscure exchanges.
Does Universal Distribution Succeed
Multiple crypto projects have hinged on distributing assets on a national or global scale. One of the most prominent projects currently is Universal Basic Income (UBI), which has been in a period of price discovery since October 20.
Unfortunately, UBI immediately went through a volatile pump-and-dump event through the Uniswap exchange. UBI rapidly rose to a peak at $0.78, only to crash over the next days to a current level around $0.14 and a downward trend.
UBI may yet take off, as Ethereum’s co-founder Vitalik Buterin has taken a mild interest in the project, buying and burning some of the coins to increase scarcity.
Other DeFi platforms and projects also propose various forms of passive income or even a universal basic income. The Tezos network has also been presented as a potential source of universal income through the process of delegating coins, known as “baking”.
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