Humanity Protocol is moving in a new direction following the devastating cyberattack that drained roughly $30 million from the project and sent its native H token into freefall. Founder Terence Kwok says that the company is now repositioning itself around enterprise artificial intelligence products, marking a significant shift away from the blockchain identity narrative.
Speaking publicly for the first time since the June exploit, Kwok explained that the strategic change had been under discussion for months. However, the security breach accelerated the timeline, forcing the team to rebuild both its infrastructure and its long-term vision.
The comments come as Humanity Protocol continues working through the aftermath of one of the year’s most damaging crypto attacks, with little expectation that the stolen assets will ever be recovered.
Hack Accelerated an Existing Strategic Shift
Kwok revealed in today’s crypto news that Humanity Protocol had already spent much of the past year reassessing its future before the exploit occurred. While blockchain-based identity remained an important part of the project, the company had increasingly been exploring enterprise AI applications behind the scenes.
According to him, the attack simply pushed those plans forward.
Rather than positioning itself primarily as a decentralized identity network, Humanity Protocol now intends to focus on building AI products and services for enterprise customers. Kwok argued that a reliable digital identity will become even more important as artificial intelligence becomes more deeply integrated into everyday business operations.
The project originally launched as a proof-of-personhood blockchain designed to verify human identity while supporting credentials tied to employment, financial assets, and credit scoring. It also partnered with Mastercard on proof-of-assets initiatives aimed at expanding digital credentialing.
Despite the recent setback, Kwok said Humanity Protocol has enrolled around 10 million users, with several million already holding completed digital credentials.
Developer Laptop Was Entry Point for Attack
Kwok clarified that the cause of the breach was not a vulnerability in Humanity Protocol’s smart contracts. Instead, attackers gained access through a compromised developer laptop after targeting members of the team with phishing emails. Although the phishing attempts initially appeared unsuccessful, the attackers eventually obtained private keys linked to a Humanity Foundation team member.
The attacker drained project-controlled wallets following the credential compromise, minted additional H tokens, and sold them across multiple blockchain networks. The incident caused the token to collapse by nearly 90% within about 24 hours as panic spread across the market.
Kwok said the team detected unusual wallet activity shortly after monitoring systems raised alerts. However, fully understanding the scope of the breach required several days of forensic analysis across internal systems and devices.
Notably, recovery efforts remain ongoing, but expectations are modest. Kwok acknowledged that recovering the stolen funds is unlikely, pointing to last year’s massive Bybit hack as an example of how difficult it can be to retrieve assets once sophisticated attackers move them through multiple wallets and networks.
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Focus on Rebuilding Humanity Protocol: Founder
Instead of focusing on recovering the missing funds, Humanity Protocol is prioritizing rebuilding the ecosystem. The foundation has already issued a replacement token and begun distributing it to eligible wallets and major exchanges.
The migration process remains complex because exchanges will fully review every transaction executed after the attack before they can fully resume normal operations. Discussions continue regarding snapshot dates, liquidity pools, custody arrangements, and suspended deposits and withdrawals.
Law enforcement agencies in Hong Kong, the United States, and other jurisdictions are also involved in the investigation.
Humanity Protocol Founder Rejects Rug Pull Allegations
The collapse of the H token quickly sparked speculation that the project may have orchestrated its own downfall.
Kwok rejected those accusations, saying early reports mistook the incident for an insider operation. He specifically referenced early public reactions from blockchain investigator ZachXBT, who initially questioned the circumstances surrounding the collapse.
However, Kwok noted that later blockchain analysis linked the attacker’s address to wallets associated with previous hacks, supporting the view that the incident resulted from an external compromise rather than an internal scheme.
The founder, who previously built hospitality technology company Tink Labs before entering the crypto sector, acknowledged that his business history came under renewed scrutiny following the exploit.
Despite the severe financial damage and the dramatic decline in the H token, Kwok said Humanity Protocol is now concentrating on rebuilding around enterprise AI while maintaining that digital identity will remain a key component of its long-term product strategy.
Temitope Olajide
Josiah Oluwadare
