Spark subsidiary launches incubator to accelerate decentralised identity

MATTR, a subsidiary of Spark, has launched the MATTR CoLab Incubator to accelerate the development of decentralised identity technologies and solutions.

Decentralised identity aims to create an environment where people, organisations and things can prove things about themselves over the Internet in a privacy preserving way. 

This privacy respecting approach facilitates data minimisation which protects the rights of individuals and minimises risks for the organisations they interact with. 

Based at MATTR's headquarters in Auckland, MATTR CoLab is a space for participants to collaborate on specific, high priority use cases required to establish a thriving decentralised identity information ecosystem. 

 Organisations from both the private and public sectors will work with MATTR experts to develop proof of concepts (both technical and non-technical) that solve real world problems that stem from the need for robust digital identity.

MATTR says one of their first programmes involve the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) and the Companies Office, which is part of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment. 

Teams from both agencies are working with MATTR on a design experiment that allows businesses to use digital credentials to establish and audit trust when interacting online. 

This approach, it says, will reduce friction and fraud. This design experiment, called the Verifiable Organisations Network, is a collaboration that will contribute to the DIA's Digital Identity Transition Programme.  

In the incubator, participants will get early access to MATTR software assets and demonstration capabilities to build their own proof of concepts and values. 

Participants can use a shared space for education around emerging standards, validation of use cases, and insights into business and technical operating models. 

Credit: Spark

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