Sam Altman's company World focuses on developing "proof of human" technology for identity verification, aiming to address an internet flooded with low-quality AI-generated material. Interestingly, Altman's other venture, OpenAI, is often cited as a major source of such content, though one might note he anticipated these issues when founding World. This week, Tools for Humanity (TFH), the startup responsible for World, launched a beta version of a new verification tool. This tool is intended to advance agentic commerce—the rapidly expanding use of AI programs to browse the web and make purchases automatically for users.

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While this trend offers automated convenience, it also introduces risks like fraud, spam, and widespread online abuse. In response, World introduced AgentKit on Tuesday. This software development tool allows commercial websites to integrate a verification system that confirms a real human is authorizing an AI agent's purchases.

AgentKit is built around World ID, the core of TFH's verification framework. The most secure form of this ID comes from scanning a user's iris with World's Orb device, which creates a unique, encrypted digital code. This verified World ID grants access to TFH's services through the World app.

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With AgentKit, a user's World ID can be linked to the x402 protocol, a blockchain-based open standard developed by Coinbase and Cloudflare. This system enables automated programs to transact directly online without constant human input. Users simply register their AI agents with their World ID, which then signals to websites via x402 that a verified human has approved the agent's actions.

"AgentKit is built as a complementary extension to the x402 v2 protocol, in coordination with Coinbase," Tools for Humanity stated. "The integration is designed so that any website already using x402 can enable proof of unique human verification alongside (or instead of) micropayments."

According to the company, this verification allows websites to assess whether to trust transactions from AI agents. The World ID badge confirms that someone is a genuine, unique person, though sites can still block users suspected of bad faith.

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AgentKit is now available in beta to developers, with plans to refine it based on feedback. Users will need a verified World ID from an Orb scan to use this verification method.

This launch comes at a pivotal moment, as major e-commerce and financial services adopt agentic commerce. Last year, Amazon and MasterCard added automated buying features, and Google recently introduced its own supporting protocol. As the field expands, the industry will seek reliable safeguards—a role World is clearly aiming to fill as the go-to provider for stability.