Digital ID is already transforming how we move through the world. From faster airport check-ins to personalized hotel experiences, identity is becoming portable, private, and verifiable.
To explore what’s real, what’s next, and what identity organizations should be doing today, we hosted a live conversation with two people at the forefront of this shift. Annet Steenbergen, an advisor to the EU Digital Identity Wallet Consortium, shared insights from the large-scale pilots testing the EUDI Wallet across Europe. And Nick Price, CEO of Netsys and Co-Chair of the Decentralized Identity Foundation’s Travel & Hospitality Working Group, brought a global perspective from his real-world implementations of decentralized identity technologies.
Moderated by our CEO Nick Lambert, the session dug into how digital ID is being used right now, what’s still in development, and why the travel industry needs to start preparing for what’s coming.
Here are the key takeaways from that conversation.
The Travel Industry’s Identity Challenge
- Travel is inherently decentralized
- Every trip involves multiple providers: airlines, hotels, car rentals
- No single merchant covers an entire journey
- Identity is required at nearly every touchpoint
- From airport check-in to hotel stays to local experiences
- Current methods are fragmented and inefficient
- Manual ID checks, photocopying passports, and siloed data are common
- Creates friction for travelers and compliance challenges for providers
Digital ID: What’s Ready Today
- Digital Travel Credentials (DTCs) exist and are based on international standards
- Developed with ICAO and national governments
- Contain passport data in secure, signed format
- Cannot yet replace the physical passport for border crossing
- Verifiable credentials and wallets are being piloted
- EU Digital Identity Wallet (EUDI) rollout is a major milestone
- Pilots include payment + discount + ticket issuance in one flow (e.g., student ferry pass)
Travel-Specific Use Cases for Digital ID (Nick Price’s 6 Pillars)
- Frictionless Hotel Check-in
- Tap-to-check-in using digital ID and reservation
- Receive digital room key in one tap
- Eliminates front desk lines; repurposes staff for service
- Traveler Preferences and Profiles
- Store personal preferences (e.g. dietary needs, languages) with the traveler
- Only share relevant data per context (“just enough” info)
- Empowers personalization while preserving privacy
- Agent-to-Agent (AI + Decentralized ID) Travel Planning
- Delegation of booking tasks to AI agents
- Trust framework enables agents to act on behalf of travelers
- Real example: new company using DIDComm to power agent-based travel booking
- Ongoing Traveler-Provider Communication
- Enables in-band chat with providers (vs. emails or WhatsApp)
- Can power upsells, itinerary changes, and dynamic support
- Access Control
- Use digital ID to unlock hotel doors, access events, etc.
- Moves beyond clunky apps and cards to seamless taps
- Next-Gen Loyalty
- Loyalty tied to experiences and destinations, not just brands
- Enables VIP treatment (e.g., front-of-line access) across service providers
EU Digital Identity Wallet (EUDI Wallet)
- Legally mandated in the EU by December 2026
- Every member state must issue a wallet on request
- High-assurance identity anchor issued by the government
- Covers a wide range of use cases
- Travel, healthcare, payments, education, business ID
- Different from Apple/Google Wallets
- Anchored in public infrastructure and regulation
- Includes selective disclosure for data minimization
Highlights from EUDI Wallet Pilots (Annet Steenbergen)
- All-in-one student discount & ferry ticket
- Prove eligibility, pay, and receive a verifiable ticket in one flow
- Hotel check-in pilot in Spain
- Spain requires 20+ data fields at check-in
- Wallet used to share only legally required fields using a new “Photo ID” credential
- Airline check-in pilot with Lufthansa + Amadeus
- Verified passport data shared from wallet to airline
- Uses government-issued data; replaces manual upload
- Scalability
- Large-scale pilots involved major players and real-world testing
- New waves of pilots incoming with even broader participation
Mindset Shift Required
- Most users and businesses are used to centralized identity
- Users overshare without knowing the risks
- Businesses default to collecting and storing excessive data
- We need to promote a “data minimization” mindset
- Share only what’s necessary for the transaction (e.g. “over 18” instead of full DOB)
- Better aligns with GDPR and privacy regulations
- Education and advocacy are critical
- Concepts need to be simple enough to explain to your mom
- Good use cases will drive adoption and trust
Organizational & Thing Identity
- Travel companies also need verifiable identities
- Prove that a person works for a business and has authority
- “Hotel ID” concept
- Give buildings their own digital identity
- Useful for rebranding, reflagging, and operational continuity
- Device and infrastructure identities matter too
- IoT in travel requires trusted device communication
Scalability and Ecosystem Growth
- Technology must scale down
- Small businesses (e.g. pubs, boutique hotels) should be able to verify credentials with a QR code scan and tablet
- Reusable credentials create network effects
- One credential can serve many use cases across travel and beyond
- EUDI = operationalization of GDPR
- By accepting only what’s required, businesses improve compliance and reduce risk
Security, Privacy, and Cost Reduction
- Storing large amounts of personal data is a liability
- Businesses face legal, reputational, and insurance risks
- Decentralized ID reduces this exposure
- Businesses verify instead of storing data
- Reduces breach surface and compliance burden
- Verifiable data can be higher quality
- Users have more incentive to maintain accurate data
- Reduces fraud and false information at check-in
Interoperability: Current and Future
- Global interoperability is not here yet
- Years away from seamless global recognition
- But basic cross-border verification is already possible
- EU wallets can be read in Asia to verify passports
- mDLs and other digital IDs will need to interoperate
- Travel providers want this
- Reduces labor costs, improves guest satisfaction, and increases trust
