World ID verifications will soon be available in Austria, marking the Worldcoin Foundation’s expansion throughout Europe. On Wednesday, the company announced the project in a blog post, saying it intends to make its revolutionary “proof of humanness” technology more accessible in the region. Vienna, the capital of Austria, has installed eyeball-scanning spheres so that anyone over 18 can use their World ID to access the Worldcoin network.
Worldcoin Expands Operations in Europe
Worldcoin’s operational footprint in Europe has grown substantially with the addition of Austria to its orb network, following in the footsteps of neighboring Germany. But Worldcoin has run into trouble with regulators all over the continent. For example, Spain has now extended its prohibition on Worldcoin until an audit of GDPR is finished.
Similarly, earlier this year, Portugal ordered the initiative to temporarily halt collecting biometric data in response to larger worries about data privacy and protection. The Worldcoin Foundation addressed these concerns by highlighting the excellent feedback its technology has received from users in Portugal and Spain.
According to the Worldcoin Foundation, “in a 2024 survey in Spain, 82% of the 21,000 World ID holders who responded agreed that technologies such as Worldcoin/World ID are important for distinguishing between humans and bots online” (with 13% remaining undecided). “In a similar vein, out of 19,000 World ID holders in Portugal, 77% are in agreement that Worldcoin can improve their digital interactions, while 13% are uncertain.”
Worldcoin Takes Measures to Address Privacy Concerns
Concerns over data privacy have prompted Worldcoin to adopt preemptive measures. The project has shown its dedication to protecting users’ biometric data with efforts like “Personal Custody,” which give users more say over how your data is stored and deleted. World Chain, Worldcoin’s forthcoming Layer 2 network, will bring about a new age of efficiency and scalability for the project.
In preparation for the main net launch later this summer, World Chain has made its developer preview available so that developers may try out the network and give it their comments. The permissionless, open-source, and community-governed network architecture is built on Ethereum within the Superchain framework.
The Worldcoin project was mainly spearheaded by Tools for Humanity, an organization that OpenAI CEO Sam Altman helped form. Its main idea is to protect the future of the internet by differentiating between human and non-human entities.
People can earn WLD tokens associated with their World IDs by scanning their iris, which proves their humanity. On June 26, Worldcoin partnered with Alchemy, a web3 infrastructure platform.
By working together, Worldcoin and Alchemy can use Alchemy’s infrastructure and tool suite to create the new World Chain blockchain. While maintaining privacy and security, World Chain will prioritize digital identities, decentralized apps, and human verification.