GM. This is Milk Road PRO, the newsletter that separates narratives from fundamentals, so you can get a clearer picture of the market.
In crypto, wild swings are the norm. Double digit daily moves barely raise an eyebrow. But in traditional markets, that kind of action is almost unheard of.
Which is why all eyes turned to Wall Street when Eightco, a publicly traded company, stunned everyone with a 3000% surge after announcing a $250M Worldcoin treasury.
The story, though, is less about Eightco itself and more about the asset at the center of the announcement — $WLD (previously known as Worldcoin, recently rebranded to World Network).
The question now is simple:
Was that surge just hype, or is there real conviction behind what Eightco is trying to accumulate?
Worldcoin is not your typical crypto project. It was co-founded by Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, and it is aiming at one of the defining challenges of our digital future: proof of humanity.
At first glance, this might not feel urgent.
But as AI-generated content and bots multiply, the line between human and machine is already beginning to blur – and fast!
Meaning proof of humanity will hold more and more importance as time progresses. And in areas like social apps, finance, government services, and even dating – it could hold extra weight.
The World Network’s mission is to create a global proof-of-humanity identity system powered by blockchain technology.
👉 So it is not hard to see why a project tackling AI risks, while simultaneously riding the blockchain wave is turning heads. It combines the two biggest narratives driving markets this year.
But we are not here to chase buzzwords. Narratives do not define our investments — fundamentals do. And the real question is if $WLD has what we’re looking for.
That’s why today we are going deeper. We want to know if World Network’s fundamentals, traction, and tokenomics can support lasting value, not just hype.
Here is what we will cover:
- How does their product actually work?
- Is World Network seeing real adoption or is the growth just from incentives?
- Is this really the kind of business that could reach $100B+?
- Does $WLD’s tokenomics support long-term growth?
- Is it still a good buying opportunity?
Momentum is one thing. A solid investment case is another. Let’s find out where World Network stands.
WORLD NETWORK INTRODUCTION
Chances are, you’ve heard of this project — probably something to do with identity.
At first glance, World Network might seem just like another identity verification tool, but it's a lot more than that.
Yes, the platform does offer human verification (they scan your iris using a device called The Orb), but that’s just one part of the whole picture.
Behind the scenes, they’ve built a full ecosystem, complete with a native app, their own blockchain, and a growing catalog of mini apps. While their current focus is on scaling verified users, the bigger picture is what makes this project truly stand out.
World Network was co-founded in 2019 by Sam Altman and Alex Blania. Blania, who comes from a background in theoretical physics, now serves as the company’s CEO.
Since launching, they’ve raised around $250 million from top-tier VCs and investors — many of whom entered at a valuation between $3 billion and $5 billion.
Based on that, most investor tokens likely came in at a price between 20 and 35 cents.
Now let’s look at the numbers that matter:
- App downloads: 34.2 million
- Verified users (iris scanned with the Orb): 15.9 million
- Monthly active users: 9.7 million
- Mini apps on the platform: 434
- Total Value Locked (TVL): $223 million
- Current market cap: $3.9 billion
- Current FDV: $15.8 billion
Those are pretty good numbers and it’s important to highlight one key thing: we’re not just talking about wallet addresses. These are verified humans.
That’s a huge difference. In a space where bots and fake users are everywhere, World Network is building something that’s grounded in real, human identity.
And that’s just the beginning.
Proving you’re human is step one, but now imagine being able to prove you’re over 18 years old, or that you’re a citizen of Canada, without ever sharing your personal info.
That kind of privacy-first verification? It’s not some far-off idea. It’s already in the works and it’s coming soon leveraging zero-knowledge proofs.
But let’s not get ahead of ourselves.
Let’s break down all the key components World Network is building right now. There’s a lot more going on under the hood than most people realize.
THE PRODUCT
We see World Network’s ecosystem as having three core pillars: World ID, World app, World blockchain.
So before we connect all the dots, let’s walk through each part one by one, starting with World ID as their main product.
World ID
This product is designed to solve two big problems:
1/ Proving you're actually human
With AI taking over more online spaces, it's getting harder to tell real people from bots. This wasn’t a huge issue before, but now it affects everything — from social media and dating apps to online banking, games, and even government services.
2/ Verifying personal info without giving it all away (coming soon)
Right now, a lot of our personal data sits in databases. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Thanks to something called zero-knowledge proofs, it's possible to confirm things like your age or citizenship without exposing all your details. It's private, secure, and based on cryptography.
So what’s World ID really for?
Think of it as a digital passport that proves you’re a real person and, if needed, confirms things like “I'm over 18” or “I'm a Canadian citizen” — all without revealing anything more than necessary.
And no, this isn't a small issue.
If you’ve ever opened a bank account, signed up for a new service, or verified your identity online, you've already dealt with it.
As the internet evolves, the demand for this kind of proof only grows.
How do they make it work?
It all starts with a unique device called the Orb.
The Orb scans your iris (eyeball) and turns it into a unique cryptographic code — this becomes your personal World ID.
The blockchain stores cryptographic proof that you have a verified World ID, but it never shows your actual biometric data or personal info.
Think of it like a secure digital wallet that proves who you are, without exposing anything private.
Once your World ID is set up, soon you will also be able to link your passport to confirm details like your age, nationality, or address.
World Network supports modern passports that come with an NFC chip — also known as biometric or ePassports — that follow international ICAO standards. This means you can scan your passport using the World App, and it can read and verify the info directly through NFC.
As of 2025, around 178 countries issue these types of passports, so it’s not just limited to a few major nations. That wide coverage makes the system a lot more useful and accessible worldwide.
That said, there are currently only 1,006 locations worldwide where you can get your iris scanned to create a World ID.
For example, in the US, you can currently get your World ID in just six major cities:
- Austin, TX
- Atlanta, GA
- Los Angeles, CA
- Nashville, TN
- Miami, FL
- San Francisco, CA
These are the starting points. But the plan is to expand fast — by placing scanning devices in shopping malls and other busy public places, so people can do it on their own.
That move could make it way easier for more people to sign up and help speed up adoption globally.
Right now, there are 15.9 million verified users, but the goal is to hit 50 million by the end of the year.
They’ve got a long way to go, and a lot of work ahead to get there.
PS: They’re also offering big incentives for people to get verified, but we’ll get to that in a bit.
Now let’s talk about their main app.
Uh, Oh… 😧 The rest of this report is exclusive to Crypto PRO members!
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WHAT’S LEFT INSIDE? 👀
- Is this really the kind of business that could reach $100B+?
- Does $WLD’s tokenomics support long-term growth?
- Is it still a good buying opportunity?
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