The way we prove who we are online is changing fast. With governments rolling out national digital ID schemes and fraudsters turning to deepfakes and AI to exploit old systems, businesses are under pressure to upgrade how they handle identity. For many, the shift to electronic IDs (eIDs) brings as many headaches as it does opportunities.
Authologic was founded in 2020 to smooth that transition. Its full-stack eID hub lets regulated companies plug into multiple identity methods through a single integration, combining new digital IDs with traditional KYC checks.
In this week’s Behind the Idea, we speak to co-founder and chief strategy officer Jarek Sygitowicz about why eIDs are coming of age, how Authologic is helping businesses prepare, and what lies ahead.
Tell us more about your company and its offering
At Authologic, we’re building a full-stack global eID Hub that enables regulated companies to easily manage, comply with, and harness the benefits of digital IDs. Our single API integration provides the infrastructure to aggregate multiple ID verification methods – including traditional as well as eID – and execute KYC processes securely and seamlessly.
This means that businesses can safely start to verify identities using different government-issued eIDs and identity wallets, while maintaining KYC and AML compliance. It is allowing them to fully reap the rewards posited by digital identities – such as enhanced privacy, smoother onboarding, and AI-fraud protection – and share these with their customers.
What problem was your company set up to solve?
eIDs are coming. With online security and privacy at increasing risk thanks to the growing sophistication of AI fraud and deepfakes, digital IDs are offering a safer alternative for proving identity online. Governments across the globe are introducing different digital ID solutions which can be used to prove identity across a wide range of digital services – from banking and government-led services to online gambling and age-restricted purchases.
Businesses are having to adapt, and fast. They face a challenge that is equal in size to the opportunity posed by digital IDs. While eID adoption promises to help increase security, boost efficiency and enhance the customer experience, the process can be complex. We’re helping to ease the transition.
Our global eID Hub is fully interoperable and integrates with businesses’ existing KYC infrastructure, enabling them to manage multiple new digital IDs, alongside traditional KYC methods, which many customers will still rely upon. We’re providing a one-stop integration that allows businesses to harness the full range of eID benefits and meet new regulations, without a complete overhaul of their existing systems.
Since launch, how has your company evolved?
Since I co-founded Authologic with Krzysztof Klimczak and Marek Rogoziński in 2020, the entire eID landscape has significantly evolved. New regulations have sprung up, such as the EU’s eIDAS 2.0, and adoption has accelerated. We’ve grown to meet this change. Right now, we’re working with many different companies of all sizes from around the world to support them in adopting and managing eIDs.
Alongside this, we’re partnering with a number of providers to help businesses continue managing their existing verification methods in tandem with digital ID adoption. Our eID Hub is currently being used more than 150,000 times a day. We’ve expanded to support companies across the EU, the UK and the US, and successfully tripled our revenue last year.
Additionally, we’re proud to be working with a number of significant EU-level infrastructure pilots that are playing a major role in shaping the future of digital identity for global citizens and businesses.
What has been the biggest challenge or most ‘tricky moment’ to overcome?
The biggest challenge has been navigating the extremely fragmented nature of the eID landscape. Whilst globally, governments are in agreement that digital IDs are the way forward, every country is taking a slightly different approach. This means that there are countless different eID solutions and products that businesses must adapt to.
Building an interoperable system that can single-handedly aggregate all of these and facilitate verification using a range of eIDs, as well as traditional ID documents, is a significant challenge – but it’s our raison d’être. We’re solving this problem so that businesses don’t have to.
What are your biggest achievements or ‘proudest moment’ so far?
Securing our Series A funding towards the end of last year was one of our most significant moments to date. Not only are we lucky enough to be backed by a team of brilliant investors – including OpenOcean, Y Combinator, Peak Capital and Smok VC – this round was a pivotal moment in terms of recognising how far we’ve grown to date and reaffirming the relevance and product market fit of the solution we are building.
The funding is enabling us to unlock our next stage of growth. It means that we can partner with a growing number of businesses and continue building on our global eID hub to lead the transition to a safer, secure digital identity future.
How would you describe the culture of your company?
Our culture is very much like our product: internationally-minded, techno-optimistic, and geared towards the future. We try to feed these values into everything we do and maintain a culture where performance, skill and dedication are consistently rewarded.
What’s in store for the future?
We’re ultimately working to be the number one global eID Hub for businesses. Our mission is to simplify the KYC landscape and ease the transition to eIDs – because it shouldn’t be so complicated! We believe that everyone should be able to prove their identity safely and securely online, and that businesses should be given the support to make this a reality. eIDs are coming; we’re helping businesses prepare.
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