From palm print "revolution" to access control manufacturers, tearing apart the dual facade of Humanity technology.

Original author: Fairy, ChainCatcher

Original text edited by: TB, ChainCatcher

On one side, there is the enthusiastic support of top-tier capital, while on the other, there are controversies surrounding technical outsourcing and privacy issues; one side raises the banner of “anti-witch”, while the other is exposed to have the logo of a Shenzhen access control manufacturer hidden in the code.

Humanity Protocol, known as the “strongest anti-witch network”, is a Web3 identity verification star project with a valuation exceeding $1.1 billion. It is backed by a luxurious lineup of capital including Pantera, Jump, and Animoca, and has been seen as a strong competitor to Worldcoin.

But on the other side of the spotlight, that layer of “technological revolution” and “privacy shield” is peeling away inch by inch. What kind of “two-faced drama” lies behind Humanity?

Capital Deification: The Instant Success Password Valued at 1.1 Billion

Humanity Protocol was established in 2023, with its core selling point being a human proof system based on palm print recognition, claiming to solve the “witch” problem in the Web3 world through non-invasive biometric technology.

The scent of capital was quickly attracted: Humanity has completed three rounds of financing to date, raising over 50 million USD, with a fully diluted valuation of 1.1 billion USD. Investors include 31 well-known institutions such as Animoca Brands, Blockchain.com, Polygon, IDG Blockchain, and others.

The Humanity Foundation also gathers a star-studded lineup, led by Yat Siu, the chairman of Animoca Brands, with co-founding directors including Mario Nawfal, the founder of an international blockchain consulting firm, and seasoned investment expert Yeewai Chong from Morgan Stanley and Ortus Capital.

On June 17, the Android version of Humanity supporting palm print scanning verification was released, with over 8 million users reserving Human ID. Shortly after, on June 22, Binance announced the launch of Humanity Protocol (H) on the Alpha and contract markets. At this point, the development momentum of Humanity seems very strong, but with the initiation of the airdrop activity, more and more hidden information has been uncovered by netizens, and doubts are gradually emerging.

Core technology sourced from Chinese outsourcing factories?

According to user @LianFang, the Humanity Protocol may be a “domestic project shell,” as images from the Shenzhen access control manufacturer ZhangTeng Information are still found in the APP code material library, and it is claimed that the social media platform’s popularity is largely orchestrated by the project’s small accounts.

The crypto KOL AB Kuai.Dong further disclosed that the information behind Zhangteng is a Shanghai outsourcing company that specializes in providing comprehensive outsourcing services for identity verification systems. This stands in stark contrast to the “technological innovation” promoted by Humanity.

In response, Humanity founder Terence Kwok stated that Changteng Information is an early partner, and the relevant materials are “historical legacies” from the packaging process. He emphasized that the other party’s founder is a former Tencent executive who has also collaborated with UnionPay and has extensive experience in the field of biometrics.

However, this response did not dispel the community’s concerns. AB Kuai.Dong retorted, if it is just a collaboration, why can their codebase be used, even including the cover of their company?

In fact, this is not the first time that Humanity has sparked controversy on a technical level. As early as December 2024, Yuxian, the founder of Slow Fog Technology, posted on the X platform pointing out that Humanity had serious security vulnerabilities during the testnet phase: if users use the Web2 login method (such as email), the platform would automatically assign a wallet address and store the private key in plain text in the browser’s sessionStorage.

The technological foundation of humanity, under a gorgeous packaging, gradually loses its halo as more and more revelations come to light.

Founder’s Resume Shadow: $170 Million “Lessons from the Past”

When faced with team disputes, Humanity Protocol founder Terence Kwok stated: “I am a Chinese person who has given up my American passport and only holds a Hong Kong passport.” However, as his background was further investigated, a less-than-illustrious entrepreneurial history came to light.

According to foreign media Protos, Terence Kwok almost doomed his $1.5 billion smartphone company Tink Labs due to aggressive expansion, burning through more than $170 million in investment funds. Tink Labs gained favor from several giants including SoftBank and Foxconn for its innovative service of providing free smartphones to hotel guests, but it fell into difficulties due to changes in the market environment, imbalanced operational models, and a broken capital chain, ultimately entering bankruptcy liquidation in 2020.

The former head of human resources at Tink Labs candidly said: “I never expected it to last too long, but I didn’t expect it to collapse so quickly. All Kwok cares about is making money.” This old case of the “unicorn’s fall” has now planted another concern in the hearts of users.

! From the palm print “revolution” to the access control manufacturer, tear open the double-sided drama of Humanity technology “painted skin”

Airdrops Become a “Joke”

On June 22, the Humanity Protocol announced the launch of the first “Proof of Humanity” Fairdrop airdrop. Eligible users for the airdrop include: participants in the early testnet, real users, contributors to the promotional community, etc. However, this highly anticipated airdrop ultimately sparked collective outrage within the community.

According to crypto KOL Bing Frog, someone spent a year persistently completing sign-in tasks, only to receive an airdrop worth 1 dollar in the end; many others were directly shown as “not qualified.” Long-term community maintenance, content production, and volunteering as an official Mod were also brushed off with “0 airdrops.” Meanwhile, multiple ghost addresses appeared on-chain, with no interaction or contribution records, yet they received airdrops of up to 40,000 $H.

In the past year, Humanity has frequently launched various “anti-witch” limited-time form-filling activities, requiring users to provide detailed information, cooperate with verification, and participate in interactions. However, the fact is that these actions have not become true reference standards for airdrops, but rather operations by the project party to create activity.

Terence Kwok, the founder of Humanity, responded to the airdrop controversy, stating: “We have taken note of the widespread feedback from the community and are seriously addressing the complaints regarding fair airdrop distribution.” However, the future of the project remains uncertain, and the community is eagerly awaiting a more open, transparent, and accountable response.

The Humanity Protocol has been elevated to the cloud by capital and vision, yet it teeters on the brink amid a whirlpool of doubt and controversy. What is labeled as “innovation” may just be another instance of capital hunting dressed up in a technological narrative.