Reddit is reported to be looking at which of World’s crypto projects’ eye scan technology to implement. This interest in Reddit eyeball-scanning technology demonstrates their focus on new biometrics. The platform is looking at biometrics in the form of Orbs, which put out a user’s irio. This, in turn, creates a World ID. This ID is put forward as a solution to pass off AI-generated content and bots.
The aim is to increase trust at the same time that we preserve Reddit’s culture of anonymity. That put forth has brought up discussion; some are into the innovation, and others are skeptical of the privacy issues it presents.
A Privacy Issue
World out there is giving crypto incentives to new users via WLD tokens. This, at the same time, is also to get sensitive biometric data. The Orbs have seen in Tinder’s Japan pilot and are to grow into Telegram, Discord, and Shopify. Reddit is considering incorporating similar eyeball-scanning technology as part of its strategy.
Reddit was also quick to react to a scandal which broke out over the University of Zurich research. This research put AI bots in the r/changemyview sub. In that study, the bots, which passed as trauma survivors and other personae, put out over 1,000 persuasive posts. These were done without user knowledge. Also, in very short order, Reddit banned the accounts which put forward this research. They declared it to be ethically unacceptable.
The World has raised over $250M in funding and in May 2025 we rolled out U.S. operations into 6 cities. Reporting that by year end we will have 7,500 Orbs installed which may bring in 180 million American users.
Reddit Eyeball-Scanning Technology Faces Global Scrutiny
Despite that there was a lot of hype the Reddit eye scan tech has some very real legal issues. Innovations like Reddit’s potential eyeball-scanning technology must comply with regulations such as the GDPR, which protects biometric data. World has seen bans in Spain, Kenya, France, Germany, Indonesia, and Hong Kong and investigations into it. Also each of these issues raised risks related to data protection, consent, and national security.
Still, World’s larger goal is to put in place a digital framework. This will include identity validation and a financial safety net, a kind of universal basic income. To those that are worried about job loss to AI, this could be a game changer.
With a reach of 11 million verified users which span 160 countries and a $1.87 billion token market cap, World is leading. Additionally, large scale platform partnerships position World as the leader of what will be the digital identity of the future. Reddit’s foray into this space with potentially cutting-edge eye-scanning technology is a shift. This may see platforms go toward human verification at the expense of anonymous freedom. Alternatively, it could lead toward a balance between the two.
