What Human & Digital (HAND) does

Human & Digital (HAND) operates a two-entity structure: a Delaware-registered, 501(c)(6)-applying nonprofit trade association (HAND — The Universal Talent Identifier) and its commercial services partner Human & Digital, Inc. HAND issues persistent, globally resolvable identifiers for notable public figures in the sports and entertainment industries, built on the Digital Object Identifier (DOI) infrastructure under ISO 26324:2025 and the Handle System developed by Dr. Robert E. Kahn. The company is one of only 12 DOI Registration Agencies worldwide and the first to focus exclusively on human talent, issuing three identifier types: Type 01 (Legal & Natural Persons for athletes, actors, creators), Type 02 (Licensed Human Likenesses with auditable consent chains for AI-generated replicas), and Type 03 (Fictional Characters for IP tracking). Eligibility is governed by its proprietary Citation-Backed Notability™ methodology, which scores notability through multiplicity of independent citations rather than self-reported claims.

HAND's commercial offering is organized as a tiered membership model — Institutional Corporate Membership for studios, guilds, leagues, and streaming platforms (multi-year enterprise contracts with unlimited API access, bulk catalog mapping, and board-level governance participation); Associate Membership for independent producers, boutique agencies, and regional leagues; and Developer API access for platform integrators. A free public registry at registry.handidentity.com allows universal lookup and verification, which the company treats as a public-utility commitment rather than a freemium funnel. Commercial Identity Intelligence Services — including enriched talent records, Citation-Backed Notability scoring, NIL analytics, and enterprise integrations — are delivered through Human & Digital, Inc.

The company pursues three intertwined GTM motions: enterprise field sales to studios, leagues, guilds, and player associations; API-first distribution to developer and platform integrators (with C2PA/CAWG and EIDR interoperability); and community-led adoption via working-group participation in C2PA, CAWG, EIDR, IPTC, DPP, and the DOI Foundation. Named enterprise engagements include the 2025 NBA Draft Class and 2025 MLB First Round Draft Class (issued proactively in September 2025), 2025 Primetime Emmy nominees, Sony Pictures Entertainment, AFI, Fabric (including BB Media across 4,400+ streaming services in 250 countries), and Opus Data / The Numbers, plus an active commercial engagement with an unnamed major Hollywood studio. Strategic advisors include the co-founder of EIDR, the C2PA Conformance Lead/CAWG Co-Chair, the former CTO of IFPI/RIAA, and the former US ISRC Agency Executive Director.

Name

Human & Digital (HAND)

Legal name

HAND — The Universal Talent Identifier

Website

https://handidentity.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2025

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Human & Digital (HAND) is a nonprofit trade association and DOI Registration Agency that issues persistent, globally resolvable talent identifiers for athletes, actors, and creators under ISO 26324:2025, serving sports leagues, studios, guilds, and entertainment platforms via tiered membership and a free public registry.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Talent Identity Infrastructure

NAICS

Other Similar Organizations (except Business, Professional, Labor, and Political Organizations) (813990)

akta.pro primary industry

Consent, Privacy & Preference Management (BPAMAEAK)

Keywords

• Talent identification
• Digital identity infrastructure
• Content provenance
• Persistent identifiers
• NIL compliance

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Institutional Corporate Membership: Studios, guilds, leagues, networks, and streaming platforms pay for unlimited API access, bulk catalog mapping and registration, deduplication services, custom integration support, dedicated account contact, standards governance participation, and board-level engagement opportunities.
2. Associate Membership: Independent producers, boutique agencies, regional leagues, and small guilds pay for API access for ID resolution, talent record registration, technical documentation, free training, and working group participation.
3. Developer API Access: Platforms and integrators pay for full DOI resolution API, sandbox environment, SDK documentation, C2PA/CAWG integration guidance, EIDR cross-reference support, and technical integration support.
4. Commercial Identity Intelligence Services: Human & Digital, Inc. (commercial services partner) provides enriched talent records, Citation-Backed Notability scoring, NIL analytics, and enterprise integrations.
5. Public Registry Lookup: Free public access to search the HAND registry and resolve any HAND ID. Lookup is always free - this is a foundational commitment, not a freemium hook.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

HAND issues and manages persistent, globally resolvable DOI-based identifiers under ISO 26324:2025 for quantifiably notable athletes, actors, creators, and other notable public figures in sports and entertainment. The system comprises three identifier types — Type 01 (Legal & Natural Persons), Type 02 (Licensed Human Likenesses linked back to Type 01 via auditable consent chains), and Type 03 (Fictional Characters) — supported by the proprietary Citation-Backed Notability™ verification methodology. A publicly accessible registry at registry.handidentity.com enables free ID lookups, while tiered membership (Institutional Corporate, Associate, Developer) provides API access, bulk registration, and standards governance participation for institutional members.

Product overview

HAND (Human & Digital) operates a two-entity structure comprising a nonprofit trade association (HAND) and its commercial services partner (Human & Digital, Inc.). The core offering is the HAND Universal Talent Identifier — a DOI-based persistent identifier system built on ISO 26324:2025 that provides globally resolvable identity for talent in sports and entertainment. The system encompasses three identifier types: Type 01 (Legal & Natural Persons for athletes, actors, creators), Type 02 (Licensed Human Likenesses for AI-generated content with consent chains), and Type 03 (Fictional Characters for IP tracking). HAND's proprietary Citation-Backed Notability™ methodology verifies eligibility through independent citations. The public registry is freely accessible for lookups, while tiered membership (Corporate, Associate, Developer) provides API access, bulk registration, and governance participation. Human & Digital, Inc. provides commercial services including enriched talent records, NIL analytics, and enterprise integrations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• HAND Universal Talent Identifier (Types 01, 02, 03) Persistent, globally resolvable DOI-based identifier system covering the full talent lifecycle. Type 01 issues IDs for legal and natural persons (athletes, actors, directors, musicians, creators) verified through the Citation-Backed Notability™ methodology using independent, verifiable citations. Type 02 issues IDs for AI-generated likenesses and synthetic voice models, always linked back to Type 01 via an auditable consent chain enabling compliance with CA AB 1836, AB 2602, NY S.8420-A, and the federal NO FAKES Act. Type 03 issues IDs for IP-protected fictional characters from film, TV, gaming, and publishing, enabling character-level rights tracking, licensing automation, and disambiguation across reboots, remakes, and digital continuations.
• HAND Public Registry Freely accessible registry enabling any person, organization, or system to search and resolve HAND IDs, view public talent records, and verify Licensed Human Likeness consent and provenance status. Lookup is always free as a foundational commitment to the public utility of the standard, not a freemium hook.
• Human & Digital, Inc. Commercial Identity Intelligence Services Commercial services provided by Human & Digital, Inc. (the for-profit partner to the nonprofit trade association HAND) including enriched talent records, Citation-Backed Notability™ scoring, NIL analytics, and enterprise integrations for clients requiring commercial identity intelligence beyond the free public registry and standard membership tiers.

Quantifiable outcome

• 3 billion DOI resolutions per month globally - machine-scale identity resolution
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• Sony Pictures EntertainmentcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 6 June 2025Industry partner participating in HAND Talent ID Registry non-profit trade association initiative for talent identification and digital replica authentication in entertainment and sports.
• AFI (American Film Institute)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 6 June 2025Industry partner participating in HAND Talent ID Registry non-profit trade association initiative for talent identification and digital replica authentication.
• Fabric (incl. BB Media)coreTechnology or IntegrationActive integration providing persistent talent disambiguation within Fabric's Origin talent database and metadata orchestration layer. HAND MATCHED designation in Fabric UI. BB Media acquisition extends into global streaming intelligence across 4,400+ streaming services in 250 countries.
• Major Hollywood Studio (unnamed)coreTechnology or IntegrationHAND in active commercial engagement with one of the world's largest film and television studios evaluating production-grade integration of HAND IDs into global talent metadata infrastructure and supply-chain workflows. Enterprise engagement at major studio level.
• Opus Data / The NumberssupportingTechnology or IntegrationCreating persistent cross-reference between talent filmographies and DOI resolution network enabling any system to resolve a person's complete verified career record from a single HAND ID lookup.
• C2PA (Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity)coreTechnology or IntegrationHAND is a C2PA member. C2PA's Content Credentials can attest chain of custody of a file. HAND attests who is in it - the talent layer answer to AI-generated content. Scott Perry (C2PA Conformance Lead, CAWG Co-Chair) serves as HAND Strategic Advisor.
• CAWG (Content Authenticity Working Group)coreTechnology or IntegrationHAND is a CAWG member. The organization provides identity assertions that complement C2PA content credentials for AI provenance. Scott Perry serves as CAWG Co-Chair and HAND Strategic Advisor.
• EIDR (Entertainment Identifier Registry)coreTechnology or IntegrationSibling DOI Registration Agency. EIDR identifies content (films, TV shows, edits). HAND identifies talent. Both operate on same Handle System. A production record can carry both. Raymond Drewry (EIDR Co-Founder, MovieLabs) is founding Strategic Advisor to HAND.
• DOI FoundationcoreTechnology or IntegrationHAND is one of only 12 DOI Registration Agencies worldwide. All HAND IDs issued under ISO 26324:2025 governance. DOI Foundation operates the global handle resolution system handling 3 billion resolutions per month.
• IPTC (International Press Telecommunications Council)supportingTechnology or IntegrationHAND is an IPTC member, participating in metadata standards ecosystem for news and media content.
• DPP (Digital Production Partnership)supportingTechnology or IntegrationHAND is a DPP member, participating in digital production partnership standards ecosystem.
• DONA FoundationcoreTechnology or IntegrationOperates the global root servers for the Handle System underlying DOI resolution. The Handle System was developed by Dr. Robert E. Kahn at CNRI with DARPA funding (1992-1996).
• Human & Digital, Inc.coreOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing PartnerCommercial services partner that operates HAND's registry infrastructure and provides enriched talent records, Citation-Backed Notability scoring, NIL analytics, and enterprise integrations. Will Kreth is Founder & CEO of Human & Digital and Executive Director (Non-Voting) of HAND.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• EIDR (Entertainment Identifier Registry): Sibling DOI Registration Agency operating on the same Handle System infrastructure. EIDR identifies content (films, TV shows, episodes, edits) while HAND identifies talent, making them complementary DOI-based identifier registries serving overlapping entertainment industry customers with structurally identical technical architecture.
• ISNI (International Standard Name Identifier): ISO 27729 standard identifier for public figures, creators, and contributors across all creative industries. ISNI is HAND's most direct existing competitor in talent identification, serving libraries, publishers, and rights organizations with a similar persistent identifier approach but lacking HAND's sports-specific focus and AI likeness consent chain.
• IPI (Interested Parties Information / CISAC): Global identifier system operated by CISAC for music rights holders and creators. IPI assigns 11-digit numbers to songwriters, composers, and music publishers for royalty attribution, representing an established talent identifier in a specific vertical where HAND also operates.
• IMDb / IMDbPro: Industry-standard entertainment talent identification database serving similar use cases for talent disambiguation across film, television, and production workflows. IMDbPro provides verified identity and filmography data to entertainment professionals, overlapping with HAND's core value proposition but using a proprietary database model rather than open DOI-based identifier infrastructure.

Broad incumbents

• ORCID: DOI-based persistent identifier for academic researchers demonstrating the DOI Registration Agency business model at massive scale (19M+ identifiers) in the research vertical. ORCID is the closest architectural parallel to HAND, validating the nonprofit-RA approach to persistent identifier infrastructure but in a more mature and well-funded market.
• Gracenote (Nielsen): Entertainment metadata and content identification platform operating at massive scale across TV, music, and film. Gracenote provides some talent identification and disambiguation services as part of a broader metadata portfolio serving the same studios, platforms, and distributors HAND targets.
• ROR (Research Organization Registry): Identifier registry for research organizations demonstrating the registry-as-public-utility model with community governance. ROR parallels HAND's structural approach to nonprofit identifier infrastructure, though operating in a different vertical with different funding mechanisms.

Others

• C2PA (Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity): Standards body addressing AI content provenance through Content Credentials. HAND complements C2PA by providing the talent-layer answer to AI provenance ('who is in the content') while C2PA attests 'what is in the content' — making them architectural complements rather than direct competitors.
• MovieLabs: Joint venture of major studios (Disney, Paramount, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros.) developing entertainment metadata and supply-chain standards. HAND Strategic Advisor Raymond Drewry is MovieLabs Principal Scientist and authored the 2019 white paper calling for exactly the talent identifier infrastructure HAND built.
• DOI Foundation: Parent infrastructure organization for the DOI Handle System. HAND operates as one of only 12 Registration Agencies under DOI Foundation governance, making the Foundation both enabling infrastructure and a structural dependency for HAND's core technology.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat7 records

Key risks1 record

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/handidentity

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds4 records

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Human & Digital (HAND)