Indonesia Halts Sam Altman’s Global Eye-Scan Venture—Privacy Concerns or Protectionist Play?
Indonesia slams the brakes on Worldcoin’s biometric data grab—because nothing says ’trust us’ like a crypto billionaire scanning your irises.
Regulators cite privacy risks, but let’s be real: when has a government ever turned down surveillance tech without a cut of the action?
Meanwhile in Silicon Valley, VCs keep writing checks for dystopian startups—just don’t ask about the ROI on human identity tokens.
World roll-out hits roadblocks
This isn’t the first time that regulators have clamped down on World’s activities.
In December last year, German regulators ordered the firm to implement a GDPR-compliant data deletion protocol, while a month later, Brazil’s National Data Protection Authority (ANPD) levied a ban on the company from operating in the country, claiming its payouts could influence consumer behavior in unfair ways.
The start-up was banned for just under a year in Kenya, with local politicians criticizing its business practices and even calling the company “a gang of criminals,” before it resumed operations in June 2024.
However, though World may have lost access to the 280 million-strong Indonesian market, at least temporarily, its potential user base is expanding. World rolled out its service in six major American cities earlier this week: Atlanta, Austin, Los Angeles, Miami, Nashville, and San Francisco. Until recently, Americans were not allowed to receive their WLD tokens as payment.
The firm has also rolled out a number of integrations in recent days, including Tinder owner Match Group and prediction market Kalshi, along with a Visa card and charges for applications using World ID services.
