As digital identity verification becomes increasingly important, many cybersecurity companies are working to address the challenges posed by AI and online fraud. One such developer is Tools for Humanity, the company co-founded in 2019 by Alex Blania (CEO) and Sam Altman (Chairman), which develops the World ID project. The technology aims to provide a secure, privacy-respecting way to verify human identity in an era of increasingly intelligent and hard-to-get-rid-of AI-powered bots.
AIN had an opportunity to talk with Karol Chilimoniuk, Tools for Humanity's General Manager for Central and Eastern Europe. Leveraging his experience of expansion in Europe and Asia, Karol discusses the company’s role in cybersecurity protection, the growing adoption of World ID in Poland and across other regions, and its potential to change the way we approach online trust.
Interview with Karol Chilimoniuk, General Manager at Tools for Humanity, on World ID
Could you briefly introduce our readers to Tools of Humanity and its products: World ID and World App?
Tools for Humanity is a global technology company established to accelerate the transition towards a more just economic system. TFH provides services to World Foundation. One such “tool” is World ID - a privacy-preserving proof of humanness for the age of AI.
The goal of World is to prepare humans for the age of AI. The focus of World ID is on solving a more fundamental challenge—proof of personhood verification in the age of AI. The increasing prevalence of AI-powered bots and the erosion of trust in online interactions create a need for a reliable way to distinguish humans from bots. World ID offers a solution to this by providing a secure, privacy-preserving method of proving humanness and uniqueness.
World App Interface Demonstration. Image: Tools for Humanity's website
And what is your role in the company?
I am responsible for operations in Poland. I am responsible for coordinating and developing activities related to the implementation of humanness verification services, including engaging with the community, managing local partnerships and organizing verification points in cities across Poland. Additionally, I focus on the growth of the real human network and public education about World technology.
How does the World identity verification system work and what makes it stand out from the competitors?
If you want to use World ID - the first step is downloading World App and finding a local World Space, or location to verify your unique humanness. The Orb, developed by Tools for Humanity, will take images of your face and eyes to generate a unique iris code. Iris image will be sent as an end-to-end encrypted data bundle to your phone and will be immediately deleted from the Orb. Then verified users are able to use fully-verified World ID, and World Network’s entire platform.
The iris code is not kept or retained by the network. Instead, the iris code is further processed through an advanced anonymizing technology to ensure that no personal data is stored. World ID is designed to enable anonymous actions. When someone uses World ID, their World ID is not revealed to that third party.
With growing concerns about deepfakes and AI-generated identities, such as the recent case with Vidoc Security Labs, what advice would you give founders to avoid such fraud?
As always, prudence and attentiveness are invaluable. The increasing prevalence of AI-powered bots and the erosion of trust in online interactions create a need for a reliable way to distinguish humans from bots. I really believe this is the future.
In the case of recruitment, in contact with an unverified person, it is necessary to pay attention to even the smallest details. If a candidate or a potential partner seems to be more than ideally suited for the position, and passes the sample tasks at a record pace, a red light should go on. Other alarming things are applications flowing as soon as the job advertisement is published or an accent that does not match the person's supposed background, such as an Asian accent in a person from Central and Eastern Europe.
Online humanness verification can be incredibly beneficial for founders as it helps them distinguish humans from bots in a reliable and secure way. This technology ensures that only genuine, human users are interacting with their platforms, which is vital in a digital age where bots are increasingly sophisticated. World can help enhance trust and security by verifying the uniqueness and humanness of users.
Bots can be used to manipulate or defraud systems, whether through fake account creation, spamming, or data scraping. By using identity verification, businesses can prevent such activities. What’s more, bots can lead to poor interactions on platforms, and individuals can become frustrated by these interactions.
In essence, online humanness verification helps businesses mitigate risks, build trust with their community, and grow securely in a world where distinguishing humans from bots is increasingly challenging.
How can World’s verification prevent more cases like that?
Proof of personhood or proof of humanness that World provides, is a mechanism that digitally verifies an individual’s humanness and uniqueness, serving as a fundamental building block for establishing digital identity. A proof of personhood protocol that iris recognition provides is nearly impossible to fake — no two irises are the same.
How widely used is the solution in Poland and Europe? Could you share any numbers?
While we do not share country-specific numbers, in Europe almost 2,5 million people are using the World App!
World Network in Poland is growing rapidly, with more and more Orbs that people can find across the country. A significant proportion of those affirming their humanness in Poland are Ukrainians. We know this because each person subject to verification must confirm that he or she is of legal age, either with proof or a passport. However, this data is not assigned to the World ID, so we are unable to provide exact numbers.
Sam Altman on World
As many know, lots of Ukrainians have relocated to Poland since 2022. Have you noticed any differences on how Ukrainians are using the verification service compared to people in Poland and Europe?
One of the foundational aspects of the World Network is privacy and anonymization. World does not know who its members are, it does not want to know and it is technologically not possible for it to know. For these reasons, we are not in a position to provide any insights regarding Ukrainians and the network.
Back to your specialization. What are the main challenges in scaling such a solution across Europe and globally?
Scaling a network such as World which offers novel and cutting edge technology across Europe and globally presents several opportunities. The most notable is introducing the technology and its purpose in a way that meets people where they are from a cultural standpoint.
Looking ahead, what plans does Tools of Humanity have?
From a global perspective, as we work to build the largest network of real humans, we focus on three key areas: increase accessibility to serve everyone in the world, continue to advance and launch technology and products that advance the World mission and goals and forge alliances with organisations that align and advance our mission. As the network grows, the project aims to integrate World ID into more platforms and applications globally, offering individuals more use cases and opportunities.
AI is rapidly advancing all over the world which speaks to the increasing and time sensitive need for technologies such as proof of humanness. As a result, we are committed to making World accessible to everyone around the world.
There are also plans to make World verifications more widely available in Poland, with additional verification points and deeper collaboration with local organizations.
