TechInside Sam Altman’s eye-scanning crypto partyThe cryptocurrency project is now available in the US and brought its eye-scanning orbs, too.The cryptocurrency project is now available in the US and brought its eye-scanning orbs, too.by Alex HeathMay 2, 2025, 9:21 PM UTCLinkFacebookThreadsAlex Heath is a deputy editor and author of the Command Line newsletter. He has been reporting on the tech industry for more than a decade.On the evening of April 30th, the hottest ticket in San Francisco was a buzzy crypto startup’s coming-out party at a warehouse-like complex on the northern edge of the city. It had all the makings of an event you’d only find near Silicon Valley: Anderson Paak, champagne, and a bunch of eye-scanning orbs.Onstage, Sam Altman and co-founder Alex Blania announced that the cryptocurrency Worldcoin is coming to the US for the first time, along with a bevy of orbs. The idea is straight out of science fiction. It may be too far-fetched to work, but given Altman’s involvement, it’s something worth paying attention to.World is opening stores in six cities across the US — Atalanta, Austin, Los Angeles, Miami, Nashville and San Francisco. Photography by Vjeran Pavic / The VergeThe iris-scanning orb is there to verify your humanness and will reward you with 16 WLD. Photography by Vjeran Pavic / The VergeThe company also teased a smaller iris-scanning device called the Orb Mini. Photography by Vjeran Pavic / The VergeThe startup says that, so far, its orbs have verified 12 million humans from over 100 countries on its Ethereum-based World Chain. Photography by Vjeran Pavic / The VergeThe event ended with a live performance from Anderson Paak. Photography by Vjeran Pavic / The VergeSee More: CryptoFeatured VideosTechMost PopularMost PopularMark Zuckerberg just declared war on the entire advertising industryGrand Theft Auto VI release delayed to May 2026Slate Auto confirms where it’ll build its $20,000 TruckGoogle’s Play Store lost nearly half its apps‘Cook chose poorly’: how Apple blew up its control over the App StoreInstallerA weekly newsletter by David Pierce designed to tell you everything you need to download, watch, read, listen to, and explore that fits in The Verge’s universe.Email (required)Sign UpBy submitting your email, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Notice. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.Advertiser Content FromThis is the title for the native ad
