Neoke is an Amsterdam-based travel tech start-up offering airlines a digital identity infrastructure that hands travellers control of their data while aiming to make the travel experience more seamless and personalized.
You and your co-founder Sebastian Honores collectively share decades of experience in this travel industry. What inefficiencies did you identify in the travel experience that led to the creation of Neoke in 2022?
Having worked together for many years, we often discussed unresolved problems in the travel industry. One major issue was the fragmentation of traveler identity across different platforms. Each step of a traveler's journey—from booking flights to renting cars—requires separate profiles and systems that do not communicate with each other. This fragmented process creates inefficiencies in data exchange, which are not only inconvenient, but also insecure. Our goal was to resolve these challenges by developing a connected, interoperable system for secure information exchange.
On the business side, we identified significant inefficiencies in business-to-business interactions, particularly in airline distribution systems which do not necessarily have visibility on all parties involved in the booking process, leaving them susceptible to potential fraud and inefficiencies. It’s not end-to-end secure. By bridging these gaps, we create substantial value, not just in terms of revenue, but also by saving time and enhancing productivity for businesses and consumers alike. Neoke focuses on decentralizing identities and building the missing identity infrastructure in the travel industry.
While Neoke operates both as a B2B and B2C platform, your customers are travel companies. Specifically in the aviation industry, who are you currently targeting?
We primarily collaborate with companies that are ready to adopt forward-thinking solutions, such as integrating digital identities into modern airline retailing. Our partnerships often involve creating digital travel credentials that enhance passenger experience by enabling personalized service and streamlined processes. For instance, our system allows loyalty credentials to be used more dynamically, providing passengers with tailored offers and enabling airlines to manage customer data more effectively. This leads to a more connected and efficient travel experience through a single customer profile verified across multiple touchpoints.
We engage with various major airlines, airline alliances, and travel technology providers, often through their innovation teams.
Given the sensitive nature of digital identities, what are the barriers to adopting this technology?
In the past, there has been a lack of universally accepted standards, which you need to implement any interoperable technology at scale. Initially, this absence hindered widespread adoption because effective implementation at scale requires a robust framework for interoperability. However, recent progress in establishing verifiable credentials and digital travel credentials has significantly improved. These evolving standards are crucial for ensuring that different systems can work together seamlessly, which is essential for the technology to take off.
Legacy systems prevalent in the airline industry often rely on outdated technology making integration of new solutions challenging. Our approach is to develop API-first solutions that overlay existing infrastructures, thus facilitating easier integration. This strategy focuses on secure information exchange, ensuring that data about who is accessing what information and why is carefully controlled and transparent. While immediate exponential adoption might be unrealistic, the groundwork we are laying now is expected to lead to a significant uptake in the coming years as more industries recognize the value of secure, decentralized digital identities.
Given the competitive nature of the aviation industry, how can smaller, more nimble startups like yours compete effectively?
Startups often succeed due to unique approaches and avoiding common pitfalls. The key to competing in a highly consolidated industry has been collaboration and participation in innovation programs. Our strategy focuses on co-development and iterative testing rather than rushing into the market. We've benefited from partnerships with major players like Microsoft, which has helped us gain visibility, attract talent, and secure necessary resources. We combine detailed industry knowledge with technical expertise from our engineers and computer scientists, which is essential for deploying our technology at scale.
You described 2023 as ‘a year of intense product development’. How do you plan to expand your portfolio in the coming year?
In 2023, we graduated our offerings to include three core products, each designed to enhance digital identity management. The first is the Neo Key Hub - the initial touchpoint for customers interacting with any digital platform. It incorporates the latest in authentication technologies, including biometric and passwordless methods, thereby streamlining the digital identity verification process.
The second offering is Yoki Vault, which combines cloud wallet and net wallet infrastructures. The cloud wallet keeps users connected and responsive, allowing for the seamless exchange of information upon user consent. The net wallet, on the other hand, securely stores sensitive data such as biometric identifiers and passports. Lastly, we focus on the orchestration of secure data exchanges. This involves managing how and why information is requested and shared, emphasizing user consent and the justification for data access. Together, these products form a comprehensive suite that addresses various aspects of identity management—from the initial verification to the ongoing data interaction.
Our approach is unique, integrating elements into a cohesive infrastructure which is crucial for scalable implementations. This focus on combined functionalities sets us apart from competitors who only specialize in specific areas of identity management.
