Amit Sharma – Rethinking Digital Identity in the Age of AI and Verifiable Credentials

In this episode of The Future of Identity Podcast, I’m joined by Amit Sharma, Global Head of Digital Strategy at IDEMIA Public Security, to explore a more foundational question than usual: why digital identity matters right now. Rather than focusing on a single deployment or ecosystem, this conversation zooms out to examine how accelerating AI capabilities, data exploitation, and digital-first lives are reshaping the role of identity in society.

Our discussion connects big-picture philosophy with real-world infrastructure - covering everything from verifiable credentials and mobile driver’s licenses to identity acceptance networks and the economics of data. Amit shares a compelling perspective on why the current model of identity - built around detection, data aggregation, and exploitation - is breaking down, and what needs to replace it.

In this episode we explore:

• Why AI and agentic systems are breaking traditional fraud detection models - and forcing a shift toward proving authenticity instead of detecting bad actors.

• How verifiable digital credentials enable trust-first identity, reducing reliance on data brokers and improving both security and user experience.

• The role of identity acceptance networks in unlocking real-world utility for credentials like mDLs across industries.

• Why today’s data economy is fundamentally misaligned, and how user-controlled identity could reshape incentives around privacy and monetization.

• The importance of incremental progress over perfection, and why deploying imperfect digital ID systems today is critical to driving adoption and learning.

This episode is essential listening for anyone thinking about the future of identity beyond just technology - spanning business models, regulation, AI, and the fundamental question of how we build a more trustworthy digital world. Amit brings a rare combination of policy, security, and commercial perspective to one of the most important shifts happening in identity today.

I hope you enjoy the conversation and if it resonates, feel free to share it with others interested in where identity is headed.

Learn more about IDEMIA.

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Listen to the full episode on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or find all ways to listen at trinsic.id/podcast.