Tools for Humanity lays off staff amid revenue challenges

Tools for Humanity, the biometric startup co-founded by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, has begun laying off employees as it struggles to generate revenue and navigate regulatory hurdles for its iris-scanning technology. The company informed staff of the cuts in an internal email sent on Monday, June 8, 2026, citing a strategic shift.

The layoffs affect an unspecified number of the company's more than 500 employees. According to the internal communication, management made the difficult decision to make changes to some roles and teams as it enters the next stage of its strategy. The company planned to provide further details on its direction during a town hall meeting scheduled for Tuesday, June 9.

Founded in 2019, Tools for Humanity developed the "World" identity system, which uses a device called the Orb to scan a person's iris. The goal is to create a unique digital ID that proves an individual is human and not an artificial intelligence bot. Participants in the scanning process can receive Worldcoin cryptocurrency as an incentive. The company had raised hundreds of millions of dollars from prominent investors, including Andreessen Horowitz and Bain Capital, achieving a valuation of...