Tools for Humanity Announces Layoffs as Sam Altman's Identity Verification Startup Struggles with Revenue
Tools for Humanity, the iris-scanning identity verification startup co-founded by Sam Altman, is laying off employees due to difficulties generating revenue, according to an internal email reported by Business Insider. The company, valued at $2.5 billion and known for its reflective silver Orb device that scans users' irises to verify human identity, has more than 500 employees though the number affected by the cuts remains unclear. The news arrives on the same day that Altman's primary company, OpenAI, announced it had confidentially filed for a U.S. IPO targeting a valuation of up to $1 trillion.
Tools for Humanity, the San Francisco- and Munich-based startup behind the World identity verification project, announced layoffs on June 8, 2026, citing a shift in company strategy and operating priorities. The company's signature product is the Orb, a chrome-plated sphere that scans users' irises to create a biometric proof-of-personhood, intended to distinguish humans from bots and support its Worldcoin cryptocurrency. Founded in 2019 by CEO Alex Blania and Chairman Sam Altman, the company raised $240 million in November 2025 at a $2.5 billion valuation from investors including Andreessen Horowitz and Bain Capital. Despite millions of sign-ups and partnerships with companies like Tinder, Zoom, and DocuSign in the U.S., the startup has struggled to translate its user base into a sustainable revenue model. The company has also faced significant regulatory and ethical headwinds internationally, including a ban in Kenya and an $830,000 fine in South Korea for alleged privacy law violations, partly stemming from programs that offered users roughly $50 in Worldcoin in exchange for their biometric data. The layoff announcement coincides with OpenAI's confidential IPO filing, a juxtaposition that highlights the contrasting fortunes of Altman's two major ventures. A town hall meeting was scheduled for June 9 to provide employees with further details on the company's revised strategy.
What's missing
Neither source specifies how many employees will be laid off or which teams and roles are affected.
How coverage differed
TechCrunch adopted a notably skeptical and sardonic tone, describing the Orb as 'creepy' and the company's ambitions as 'vague' and 'suspicious,' while editorially commenting that the regulatory backlash was unsurprising. The Times of India presented the same facts in a more straightforward, neutral manner without editorial commentary.
What different sources said
- Times of IndiaCenter
Layoffs announced at Sam Altman's $2.5 billion startup amid revenue struggles
- TechCrunchCenter
As OpenAI files for IPO, Sam Altman’s eye-scanning company is doing layoffs, report says
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