In this episode of The Future of Identity Podcast, I’m joined by Robin Tombs, co-founder and CEO of Yoti, one of the earliest and most widely adopted reusable digital identity wallets globally. Robin shares the long journey behind Yoti - from early frustrations with knowledge-based identity checks to building a biometric, user-controlled identity app years before reusable identity became a mainstream concept.

Our conversation explores what it really takes to build a reusable identity network from the ground up. Robin reflects on the challenges of solving the cold start problem, navigating regulatory friction, and earning user trust, while steadily growing Yoti to over 23 million downloads across multiple markets. We also dig into how adoption is finally accelerating as governments, businesses, and users begin to align around the value of portable, privacy-preserving identity.

In this episode we explore:

• Why knowledge-based verification failed and how biometrics and document verification changed the game.
• The realities of the cold start problem in identity and why utility and acceptance must grow together.
• How regulation both slows and unlocks adoption, from right-to-work checks to age verification laws.
• The importance of trust frameworks and certification in helping relying parties confidently accept reusable identity.
• Why acceptance networks are critical to scaling identity ecosystems and ensuring wallets can be used everywhere they matter.

This episode is essential listening for anyone building or investing in digital identity. Robin offers a rare, candid look at what it takes to persist through a decade-long journey in identity and why the next phase of growth will be driven by interoperability, networks, and real-world utility.

Enjoy the episode, and don’t forget to share it with others who are passionate about the future of identity!

Learn more about Yoti.

Reach out to Riley (@rileyphughes) and Trinsic (@trinsic_id) on Twitter. We’d love to hear from you.

Listen to the full episode on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or find all ways to listen at trinsic.id/podcast.

In this episode of The Future of Identity Podcast, I’m joined by Ross Freiman-Mendel, Head of Product Growth at Persona, to explore the shift from one-off, siloed KYC toward network-based and reusable identity products. Ross walks through Persona’s consumer and enterprise identity networks, including Reusable Personas, Persona Connect, and emerging work on Know Your Agent (KYA), and explains why redundant verification has become one of the biggest unsolved problems in identity.

Our conversation goes deep on the practical realities of building reusable identity at scale. Ross shares concrete adoption metrics, including 2× higher conversion rates, significantly faster completion times, and why over 90% of Persona customers are now activated on the network. We also unpack how network-based identity improves fraud detection while simultaneously reducing user friction - one of the rare win-win scenarios in identity.

In this episode we explore:

• Why redundant KYC is breaking onboarding experiences and how transferable identity solves it.
• The difference between consumer-owned identity wallets (Reusable Personas) and enterprise-to-enterprise sharing (Persona Connect).
• How network-based identity acts as a trust signal, improving fraud outcomes without global blocklists.
• Where mobile driver’s licenses and digital wallets fit into Persona’s platform-agnostic acceptance strategy.
• Why AI agents are accelerating the need for identity portability and what Know Your Agent could look like in practice.

This episode is essential listening for anyone building or buying identity verification technology. Ross offers a grounded, metrics-driven perspective on how reusable identity is finally moving from theory to production and why networks, not standalone checks, will define the next era of digital trust.

Enjoy the episode, and don’t forget to share it with others who are passionate about the future of identity!

Learn more about Persona.

Reach out to Riley (@rileyphughes) and Trinsic (@trinsic_id) on Twitter. We’d love to hear from you.

Listen to the full episode on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or find all ways to listen at trinsic.id/podcast.

In this episode of The Future of Identity Podcast, I’m joined by Chris Goh, former National Harmonisation Lead for Australia’s mobile driver’s licenses (mDLs) and the architect behind Queensland’s digital driver’s license. Chris played a pivotal role in driving national alignment across states and territories, culminating in the 2024 agreement to adopt ISO mDoc/mDL standards for mobile driver’s licenses and photo IDs across Australia and New Zealand.

Our conversation dives into Australia’s path from early blockchain experiments to a unified, standards-based approach - one that balances innovation, security, and accessibility. Chris shares lessons from real-world deployments, cultural challenges like “flash passes,” and how both Australia and New Zealand are building digital ID ecosystems ready for global interoperability.

In this episode we explore:

• Why mDoc became the foundation: Offline + online verification, PKI-based trust, and modular architecture enabling scalable, interoperable credentials.
• From Hyperledger to harmony: Lessons from early decentralized trials and how certification and conformance reduce fragmentation.
• Balancing innovation and standardization: Why agility and stability must coexist to keep identity ecosystems moving forward.
• The cultural realities of adoption: How flash passes, retail constraints, and public education shaped Australia’s rollout strategy.
• The road ahead: How national trust lists, privacy “contracts,” and delegated authority could define the next phase of digital identity in the region.

This episode is essential listening for anyone building or implementing digital credentials, whether you’re a policymaker, issuer, verifier, or technology provider. Chris offers a clear, grounded perspective on what it really takes to move from pilots to national-scale digital identity infrastructure.

Enjoy the episode, and don’t forget to share it with others who are passionate about the future of identity!

Learn more about Valid8.

Reach out to Riley (@rileyphughes) and Trinsic (@trinsic_id) on Twitter. We’d love to hear from you.

Listen to the full episode on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or find all ways to listen at trinsic.id/podcast.