While the concept of self-sovereign identity (SSI), wherein you own and control access to your personal data, has been widely discussed,
adoption has been slow.
But according to speakers at HITEC in Indianapolis last week, change is imminent, especially with travelers expecting more personalized experiences as the industry shifts towards an artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled marketplace.
During a presentation from the Decentralized Identity Foundation (DIF)—a nonprofit organization that focuses on SSI and decentralized identity approaches—speakers said existing centralized
data silos are delaying the coveted “seamless” travel experience.
“Travel represents the broadest range of demands on travelers in their needs to manage and share their identity information in a very compressed timeframe—and that ranges from personal preferences to passports and everything in between,” said Kim Hamilton
Duffy, DIF executive director. “For that reason, there’s an urgent need and demand for hyper-personalization, convenience and reduced friction.”
Putting the traveler in control
According to Nick Price, founder of Netsys Technology and co-chair of DIF Hospitality & Travel Special Interest Group, the current travel experience doesn't scale and is too difficult to manage, requiring travelers to download and use a different app
for each part of their trip.
“Decentralization makes a difference, because with decentralization, where all data is held by the traveler and she has the tools to use that data, the traveler is now in control,” said Price, who is also the former chief information officer of Mandarin Oriental
Hotel Group.
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According to Price, when people are in control of their data and have it stored in a single location under their control, they’re much more likely to value that information and keep it up to date.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is also key to this initiative, he said, and agentic AI is “imminent” and “expected to change how the traveler approaches interaction with intermediaries and travel providers.”
Trust is another consideration, and Price alleged that those promoting agentic AI right now are miscalculating the importance.
“It will require trusted traveler and travel provider identity to work in order to deliver the potential promise,” Price said. “How are you going to delegate responsibilities if the agent doesn't know who you are? How is a company going to give responsibility
to an agent if the agent simply doesn't know where the information is coming from? [You] can't trust it.”
But while Price outlined a series of use cases and evidence that SSI is moving forward—including the European Digital Identity scale project and Bhutan’s National Digital Identify program—the travel industry is still “not quite there yet.”
Navigating obstacles
According to Michael Yeomans, senior vice president of business intelligence and data solutions for Amadeus, SSI is becoming more common in the hotel industry,
specifically over the past 18 months in the Asia Pacific region. But there’s a disconnect.
“The challenge for the industry is fragmentation, and so, yes, you might want to roll it out, but when you’ve got vendors that are maybe not all in the cloud yet—that's an inhibitor we need to work through,” Yeomans said.
“I see movement, but I think there’s a way to go because of the fragmentation.”
The wider topic of digital ID was also discussed at Phocuswright Europe earlier this month. In an executive interview, Gillian Jones, senior business development manager of Condatis, and Vikas Bhola,
CEO of Neoke, suggested that this shift may help facilitate the connected trip, but it can feel daunting.
And while fragmentation presents a barrier, standardization is another concern, with regions and industries developing their own frameworks for implementing SSI.
According to Bhola, however, the standards from the International Air Transport Association and
the International Civil Aviation Office, combined with European Union’s efforts, put the “interoperable private layer” within reach.
Trust and the orchestration of trust is the holy grail to enable that connected trip, connected travel.
Vikas Bhola, Neoke
Trust, again, is a key component, specifically for providers like Neoke that will be responsible
for onboarding and adhering to varying standards.
“Trust and the orchestration of trust is the holy grail to enable that connected trip, connected travel,” Bhola said.
While travel stakeholders and brands may be resistant due to the nature of “owning the customer” and loyalty, Jones added that the traveler is the sole constant on a trip, making them the only reasonable custodian of their data and identity.
Like so many conversations in travel tech, roads do lead back to AI. As Price suggested, emerging technology is likely a crucial component of the connected trip.
“How it’ll all unfold, time will tell, but I think, clearly, if we want and imagine a world where end-to-end orchestration is in sight, [AI] is the missing link,” Bhola said, even if there are lingering concerns.
“Everything that’s good about AI is brilliant; however, if you do not couple that with a really strong digital identity strategy, you are potentially creating the wild west, in my opinion,” Jones said, stressing the need for mutual authentication, especially
with agentic AI.
“I want to know that this is rock solid, that this is who I’m speaking to, that they can do the things I say I want them to do. I authorize an amount of spend, and you know the agents, to each other, are both mutually authenticated—I think it’s something
that's not being discussed as much as I would like to see, but I think it’s imperative for us to maintain control.”
Watch the full conversation with PhocusWire senior reporter Morgan Hines in the video below:
Phocuswright Europe 2025 Executive Interview: The Promise of Digital IDs