Remember the World ID? Well, in mid-2024, the protocol received a pretty interesting update that greatly expanded its reach. It moved out of the testing phase and started integrating with everyday applications. The scale grew: it has over 18 million verified users through Orb, present in more than 160 countries. Nothing small.

What caught attention was the pragmatism of the integrations. It’s not just cryptographic theory; it’s stuff people actually use. Tinder implemented an authentication system to confirm you are a real person, reducing bots and fake accounts. Zoom added anti-deepfake verification in calls. There’s also the Concert Kit for event tickets, preventing fraudulent reselling. This shows that the protocol has moved out of the crypto niche and entered mainstream applications.

Technically, the update introduced multi-key management, key rotation, and account recovery. But the most interesting concept was "Human Continuity" — basically, verifying that you remain the same person across different interactions, not just validating a device or isolated account.

In the ecosystem, Reddit started testing it to identify bots, Razer and Mythical Games are already using it in games. The revenue model is straightforward: applications that connect pay fees based on the number of active users, while users continue to use it for free. Payments can be settled via blockchain or third-party services.

It was one of the biggest iterations of the protocol so far. It showed that decentralized identity can move beyond hype and become a useful tool in real-world applications, not just in exchanges.