Worldcoin Shifts Focus to Asia and Latin America Amid European Regulatory Scrutiny

Worldcoin, the digital identity initiative co-founded by OpenAI’s Sam Altman, is shifting its strategic focus from Europe to regions in Asia-Pacific and Latin America, as the company seeks to tap into markets with a greater openness to emerging technologies. According to Fabian Bodensteiner, managing director of Worldcoin Europe and a founding member of the team, the dynamic in these non-European regions is more favorable, driving the project to prioritize markets like Japan, Malaysia, and Argentina.

Speaking at the Sifted Summit in late September, Bodensteiner explained that while the company continues to maintain a presence in Europe, its resources are being redirected to regions with a more receptive environment. “We are not a 1,000-employee company, so we need to prioritize where the biggest business opportunities lie,” he remarked, underscoring the momentum in Asia-Pacific countries and Latin America.

Worldcoin is making significant strides in these regions, particularly in Malaysia, where the company is collaborating with major game publishers to integrate its technology, as well as with local institutions like Mimos, the national applied research center. The focus is not just consumer-facing, but also aims to educate local businesses on the integration of its digital ID technology, known as World ID.

Despite these efforts, the project hasn’t abandoned its roots in Europe. Worldcoin remains committed to its ongoing discussions with European regulators, even as it faces regulatory hurdles. The Bavarian State Office for Data Protection Supervision (BayLDA) launched a probe into Worldcoin’s biometric data collection practices in July 2023, and other European countries have temporarily suspended the project over privacy concerns. However, the project has recently launched in Poland and Austria, signaling that Worldcoin is determined to maintain a foothold in the region.

While regulatory decisions loom in Europe, Bodensteiner emphasized that Worldcoin is not turning its back on the continent. "We want to make it work here; we don’t just want to leave Europe and dodge things," he said. The upcoming months will be critical as the company awaits a regulatory decision in Europe while it accelerates its expansion efforts in Asia and Latin America.