Worldcoin Parent Tools for Humanity Cuts Staff Amid Scrutiny

Tools for Humanity, the developer behind the World digital identity network co‑founded by Sam Altman and Alex Blania, informed employees on Monday that it will reduce staff as part of a strategic reset. The company set a town hall for Tuesday to provide details. The firm is valued at $2.5 billion and employs more than 500 people; it has not disclosed how many positions will be cut.

An internal email viewed by employees said the company had “made the hard decision to make changes to some roles and teams across the company.” Tools for Humanity is the lead developer of World, formerly Worldcoin, and has received hundreds of millions of dollars from investors including Andreessen Horowitz, Bain Capital and Khosla Ventures.

World uses a volleyball‑sized Orb that scans a person’s irises to create a digital identity and issues WLD tokens to participants. Regulators and privacy advocates have raised questions about how the project handles biometric data and about the sustainability of revenues from token economics and identity services.

Regulatory pressure has increased in multiple countries. South Korea’s privacy regulator fined the company 1.1 billion won (about $830,000) for alleged violations in the collection and transfer of personal data. Brazil’s National Data Protection Authority ordered the company to stop paying residents for iris scans, citing concerns about processing biometric information.

Company officials are expected to use Tuesday’s town hall to explain which teams will be reduced and how remaining resources will be allocated. The number of affected roles remained unclear before the meeting. The internal message framed the changes as a shift in operating priorities rather than a response to a single event.

The staff reductions came the same day OpenAI filed confidentially for a public offering. The timing coincides with wider investor interest in AI and other technology companies moving toward public markets.

The town hall is expected to address regulatory compliance, data security and the commercial model for the World network.