Sam Altman's Blockchain Venture, World Network, Launches Messaging App 'World Chat'

The new feature, a "mini app" accessible via the World App wallet, will offer special features to holders of World Network's digital passport

Sam Altman's blockchain venture is venturing into messaging with a new feature called World Chat.

The new "mini app," which is accessible via the World App wallet, will offer special features to holders of World Network's digital passport, which lets users scan their iris in exchange for an account that cconfirms their "proof-of-personhood."

World Chat is the newest addition to World's ongoing effort to help people identify bots from humans in the age of AI.

"By connecting to World ID, World Chat allows you to know when you’re chatting with a verified human," a World developer, known as Tools for Humanity, said in a statement.

Those who haven't yet scanned their iris with World's Orb will still have access to the new chat feature.

The new messaging app takes design cues from Apple's iMessage, which uses blue chat bubbles for iPhone users and green bubbles for everyone else.

"Conversations with verified World ID holders feature a blue chat bubble as well as a unique World ID gem in the upper right corner," Tools for Humanity explained. "Conversations with non-verified accounts feature a grey chat bubble and no such gem."

Mini Apps were launched back in October 2024, and there were more than 250 million Mini App opens in the first two months of 2025, according to Tools for Humanity.

“The World App has grown so much over the past year, we've continuously heard requests for a DMs layer. And we think that for some actions like sending money, that is just way more natural and fun than going to a wallet, and sending a transaction, and people have been asking for the chat product specifically,” Tiago Sada, the head of product at Tools for Humanity, told CoinDesk.

World Chat will be available on the World App for Android and iPhone iOS users starting Thursday.

In addition to World Chat, World and social protocol Friends With Benefits, are teaming up with Alchemy, Bain Crypto Capital, Blockchain Capital and Variant Fund to launch an incubator program called World Build.

The program, which includes hackathons, building retreats, and a demo day, is launching to encourage developers to create "Mini Apps."