OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s Worldcoin project has introduced a developer preview of World Chain, a new blockchain designed to prioritize human needs and scale with the expanding Worldcoin ecosystem.

World Chain, constructed on the OP Stack and integrated with the Worldcoin protocol, aims to provide developers with access to over 10 million users across 160 countries, all using compatible wallets, starting with the World App.

The Worldcoin Foundation is inviting a select group of participants to explore, build, and test on the platform during this preview phase, which is critical for developers to set up their deployments before the mainnet launch expected later this summer. This preparation is essential for the anticipated migration of users from OP Mainnet to World Chain.

Positioned as a Layer 2 solution secured by Ethereum and designed for scalability within the Superchain ecosystem, World Chain features several key innovations. Among these is the use of Reth, a high-performance Ethereum execution client developed by Paradigm, which will operate in shadow mode during the preview—a first for Optimism.

Thibaut Sahaghian, Head of Network at Safe, commented, “We are dedicated to achieving self-custodial ownership for every human, and we’re thrilled to support World Chain with Safe’s advanced smart account infrastructure.”

Ryan Wyatt, Chief Growth Officer at Optimism Unlimited, added, “The launch of World Chain’s developer preview marks a significant step forward, enabling Worldcoin’s developers to leverage the power of the OP Stack to build ambitious applications, further enhancing the Superchain’s impact.”

The development of World Chain addresses the scalability challenges faced by the rapidly growing Worldcoin network. Currently, Worldcoin user transactions account for about 50% of OP Mainnet’s activity, sometimes exceeding 80% during peak periods. To address this, World Chain will launch with a block gas target set to 10,000,000, effectively doubling the processing capacity compared to OP Mainnet.

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