In this episode I sit down with Zain Zaidi, co‑founder and CEO of TransCrypts, to explore his personal story and the mission driving his startup. He shares how a misplaced grad‑school transcript sparked a blockchain solution for identity verification, how his company now serves millions of users and hundreds of enterprises, and why the deepfake era makes what they do more critical than ever. We dive into the tech, the regulatory hurdles, Web2 clients, Web3 opportunities, and what’s ahead for verified credentials across employment, health and education.
Key Learnings (with timestamps)
00:00:00 – Mark Cuban’s warning about digital misinformation and deepfakes; the trust crisis we face online.
00:02:00 – Zain’s personal trigger: grad‑school transcript error led to founding TransCrypts.
00:04:00 – What TransCrypts solves: giving individuals ownership of verified credentials (job, school, income).
00:06:00 – How the system works: integration with HR systems, issuance of on‑chain credentials.
00:07:00 – Focus and expansion: employment verification is central, health and education credentials coming.
00:12:00 – Technical and enterprise challenges: selling Web3 identity solutions to Web2 businesses.
00:14:00 – The synergy of AI + crypto: identity verification as the defense against AI‑driven fraud.
00:17:00 – Pitching and fundraising: cold‑emailing Mark Cuban, building traction, $15 M seed round.
00:18:00 – Humanitarian use‑case: helping Ukrainian refugees access medical records via their platform.
00:23:00 – If he were starting again today: focus on the solution not the tech; time your raise relative to market cycle.
00:34:00 – Roadmap and ambitions: becoming a major employment/income data provider, potential token launch.
Connect
https://www.linkedin.com/company/transcrypts/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/zainzaidi99/
Disclaimer
Nothing mentioned in this podcast is investment advice and please do your own research.
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