ID R&D Acquired by Digital Identification Software Developer Mitek

Biometric technology startup ID R&D has announced its purchase by digital identity verification platform Mitek for an undisclosed sum. The deal will fold ID R&D’s voice and facial recognition services into Mitek’s array of fraud detection and elimination tools.

Recognition Acquisition

ID R&D is best known for the combination of voice and visual biometric tech it provides to clients. The company combines hardware sensors and software analytics to determine if the authorized person’s voice and face match its records. ID R&D has regularly upgraded what its devices can do. The startup’s AI is more accurate than ever in confirming who someone is and if they are a recording or live.

Since it debuted a few years ago, the company has reduced the time it takes to check someone’s identity by an order of magnitude and cut the energy consumed by ID R&D devices enormously. Now, all of that tech will go toward supporting Mitek’s endeavors when it comes to authenticating identity claims using AI. As ID R&D mentions in their announcement, Juniper Research suggested recently that 1.4 billion people will be using facial and vocal recognition tech to handle bank transactions and other activities in the next two years.

“Consumers want an easy, frictionless experience. We are proud to join Mitek to scale our leading voice biometrics, facial liveness and deepfake detection technologies,” ID R&D CEO Alexey Khitrov said. “This move accelerates our vision to be the industry’s center of excellence to fight fraud more seamlessly without inconveniencing customers.”

New ID

Mitek is augmenting its platform’s ability to determine someone’s identity in one fell swoop. As ID R&D mentions in announcing the deal, a fifth of successfully identify fraud in the next two years will use some combination of fake voices and faces to steal identities. Improving how well Mitek can defend clients against that eventuality is crucial for the company’s long-term success. A better platform will also boost Mitek’s presence in the industry, which Markets and Markets says will be worth $15.8 billion by 2025 in the U.S. alone. Though no specific amount of cash was mentioned for the sale of ID R&D, stockholders can expect to pick up as much as $49 million in Mitek stock and cash.

“Today’s consumers are transacting in a digital-first world, and they expect to trust technology to keep them safe against burgeoning threats. Identity verification has never been more relevant,” Mitek CEO Max Carnecchia said. “Rapid advances in artificial intelligence are enabling novel forms of fraud, which means technologies like those pioneered by ID R&D are critical in this fight.”

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