YES!Delft

Ubiqu: the future of digital identification

Published
By Tessa van Breeden - How often do you identify yourself? From opening a bank account to online identity verification for social media, identification is necessary for many things.

When identifying yourself online, digital security is a top priority. But, as Boris Goranov, founder of Ubiqu, says: “We still don’t have passports on our mobile phone.” Why is that, and how can we make it happen?

Physical passports have various security features, like chips, holograms, and watermarks. Also, it’s an internationally recognized official document. Transferring that to the digital world and replicating this kind of security level is challenging. Nevertheless, Ubiqu found a way to make it happen. They have created a solution to make your digital identity easy, accessible, and safe. Their goal is to enable digital identification for many situations, from using only your smartphone to travel, collecting that document to buy your new house, or signing into your favorite retail app.

The road to digital identification

Boris Goranov started Ubiqu in 2010, based on his experience as a security consultant and passion for digital security. Back then, smartphones were still upcoming. Boris saw a chance to develop a solution that used a mobile phone as a key for physical doors, such as office buildings. With that business idea, he was admitted to the YES!Delft incubator. Of course, one of the first things you learn at YES!Delft is to do your due diligence. Through market validation, Boris discovered that the physical security industry wasn’t optimal for Ubiqu’s purposes. For example, the need to innovate within digital security was low. Though Ubiqu already had customers, Boris started to look for possibilities to pivot towards digital identity security.

That opportunity presented itself in the second half of 2016 with the first-ever framework for identification and trust services within the European Union, called eIDAS. For 2,5 years, Boris and his team put all their effort into developing a new solution based on these new standards. After an alteration period, the product was ready to go to market; in 2020, sales started picking up.

Though we pivoted in 2016, one customer stayed with us because our mobile lock security system proved very valuable for them. Today, in 2024, they are still a customer, and we’re proud of that.Boris Goranov, founder of Ubiqu.

From surviving COVID-19 to growing exponentially

It didn’t take long for the next trial to present itself. Unfortunately, the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a significant project falling through. As we all know, many companies were struggling. Luckily, Ubiqu rose to the challenge and survived this difficult period. During the pandemic, the European Union proposed an updated version of the eIDAS framework. 

Ubiqu responded cleverly to this, emerging from the pandemic with a solution that adheres to this framework, mainly by using robust security measures, allowing you to store valuable documents in your wallet, and allowing you to check which information about you is available in government databases and which instances looked up that information.

Though inspired by the eIDAS 2.0 framework, their customer base is not limited by European governments. For example, they received much attention after a demonstration and pitch in the United States during the Silicon Valley Innovation Program by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security in May 2024.

It was cool that they realized that our technology was the solution to a problem they didn’t know they had. They understood the problem and solution simultaneously and are eager to work with us.Boris Goranov, founder of Ubiqu.

Today, the scale-up is still part of the YES!Delft ecosystem. Up until now, their office has been located in the YES!Delft building, with 20 employees working at Ubiqu. Currently, they are working towards growing their business even more. In the upcoming six to twelve months, they are setting up processes for scalable sales and expanding the team, all while keeping their company culture and customers happy.

Your dream can become a reality too!

As long as you want to make a change, don’t miss the opportunity to boost your startup by joining the YES!Delft Validation Lab or Accelerator Program. However, if working for a startup resonates more with your ambition, we got you! Check out vacancies placed by our startups.

Be the change, as change starts with you.

To top
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12