ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE SOLUTION PROTECTING IDENTITIES FROM FACE RECOGNITION

Project Information

D-ID

Grant agreement ID: 854762

DOI

10.3030/854762

Project closed

EC signature date 30 January 2019

Start date 1 December 2018

End date 31 May 2019

Funded under

• INDUSTRIAL LEADERSHIP - Innovation In SMEs

Total cost

€ 71 429,00

EU contribution

€ 50 000,00

Coordinated by

DE-IDENTIFICATION LTD
Israel

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - D-ID (ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE SOLUTION PROTECTING IDENTITIES FROM FACE RECOGNITION)

Reporting period: 2018-12-01 to 2019-05-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

In recent years, public & corporate awareness to the importance of privacy has been increasing rapidly and is now at the forefront.
Dramatic advances in Face Recognition (FR) technologies in recent years have led to proliferation of the use of automated recognition using people’s face images, facilitating the identification or the authentication of a person. The statement ""Your face is your identity"" has become even more critical with the proliferation of FR. Face images, when created, extracted from enterprise databases or disseminated through the web, pose significant risks of misuse, violation of fundamental privacy rights, unauthorized tracking and even identity theft. These threats are swiftly growing, with the growth of the FR market. As a result, privacy regulations, such as the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), now treat face images not just as personal information, but as sensitive personal information, subjecting this data to strict privacy protection measures, security standards, and potentially large fines and lawsuits, in case of data breaches.

D-ID™ is a disruptive and innovative technology platform that seamlessly facilitatesenhanced privacy-protection of face images, while concurrently preserving their visual similarity (hence optimal usability of the images), thus, optimal usability of the images is preserved, while significantly reducing risks of breach of privacy, strengthening compliance with the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation, and reducing the risk for fines/lawsuits, as well as damaged reputation.

In the short term, the company plans to focus mostly on B2B sales, while the mid-range/long-term goal is to expand to B2B2C sales as well in order to make the D-ID privacy protection capability readily accessible and available to both businesses and consumers. Ultimately, this translates into the Company’s long-term strategic vision to see D-ID™ embedded in mobile devices, a goal which it expects to be able to achieve in the 2021 timeframe; and as a functional component of leading social networks.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

In Q3-2018, the Company embarked upon a comprehensive process, supported by the H2020 Phase 1 grant, to prepare for product commercialization and rollout, and for initial market penetration in 2019. The process comprised extensive internal work, for defining the scope of a focused market survey that will help in identifying key potential business segments and prioritizing the company’s Go to Market strategy. An external company was hired to assist with the market survey, which entailed interviews with executives (CISO’s, CPO’s, DPO’s and Business executives) in various market-segments and organizations. Concurrently, the company initiated an internal Product Market Fit analysis process in conjunction with potential customers and partners. Insights from the above steps have helped to focus on key verticals with the highest need and urgency for the D-ID solution; and assisted in fine-tuning the product scope and functionality.
Within the scope of the project, several PoC's were implemented, and initial commercial agreements were signed.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

The company has identified several new application areas of high potential for its core technology and unique know-how. Several additional PoC's and new deals in ongoing discussion are expected to materialize within the 2019 timeframe.
The Company strongly believes that its growing market presence and deployments will assist in leveraging the growing public awareness to the importance of privacy, and to significantly accelerate the demand curve, eventually leading to the huge consumer space.