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TrustRelay's website appears online with an innovative design. There it is possible to test the service free of charge. TrustRelay is intended to simplify the secure exchange of data between various organisations without restricting the privacy of those involved. Companies that work with external partners can take another step into a digital future thanks to TrustRelay.
Lourdes: Dear Lukas and Jorge, thank you for taking the time. Why don't you start by telling us how you came up with the idea of TrustRelay?
Jorge: It all started with the Security Campaign. I was in the role of Head of Technology of Blockchain and I was connecting different technologies with Blockchain. One of these technologies was IoT. With this, it was possible to create secure wallets. At this point, I asked myself if we didn't need a similar product to connect different IoT devices. In the meantime, Lukas sought internal and external contacts to get feedback for the idea. Through this feedback, we realised that our main problem is not the IoT device, but the data that the IoT device generates. The next question we had to answer was how can we exchange data between different companies. For this reason, we specialised in data that can be moved by us, so-called structural data.
Lourdes: How has your idea developed since the start?
Lukas: The foundation of our idea has remained the same, but iterations have played a key role in our process to find the gap in the market.
Lourdes: Is there a particular highlight from your journey with Kickbox?
Lukas: Swisscom allowed us to be part of InnoSwiss. That generated a lot of attention. We attracted the interest of the city of Lucerne and other data experts. This step was very important for the development of TrustRelay.
Lourdes: What lowlight will you remember?
Lukas: The first moment when we saw that other companies had similar ideas was very frustrating. But it showed us that our product has some relevance. We had confirmation that we were working on a forward-looking tool. Lowlights in general are part of start-up life, though - they happen every few days.
Jorge: In addition, it was difficult to find people at Swisscom who had the technical expertise in competition computing. That's why we often had to talk to many different people.
Lourdes: What specific lessons can you take away from the Kickbox adventure?
Lukas: With the simple question of exactly what problem our product would solve, we were somewhat overwhelmed for the first time during a presentation. We were so convinced of our own product that we neglected the essential questions. [Laughs.]
Lourdes: Looking into the future, what are the next steps?
Jorge: We are currently working on the communication for the release of TrustRelay. For this, we are continuously looking for new meaningful applications.
Lukas: I am looking forward to the very first customer. Not because of the financial return, but to see that our product works in the market. As an entrepreneur, you've been dreaming of this moment since day one.
Lourdes: How would you represent your journey in a picture?
Jorge: I like the visualisation of a bamboo. It takes 2 years for the first roots to grow, then the plant grows several metres in half a year. You hope that your idea will grow as quickly as possible, and for that you need strong roots. They are the basis for every start-up.
Lukas: Normally I always have a picture in my head that visualises complex topics in a simple way. But right now I'm a bit overwhelmed with this question. [laughs]
Lourdes: Thank you very much for the great interview and the exciting insights into the process of TrustRelay. We wish you both all the best for the future.
- A good network.
- Always get up and don't let your head hang down. You and your idea have to stay alive.
- Be clear enough and don't lose the conviction of your own idea.
- Working in a team is important, trust each other and complement each other's skills. Different people help the development process.
Swisscom employees who have an idea can easily start and grow it with Kickbox . The physical box contains
- a starting credit of CHF 1,000
- 20% of working time for 2 months
- a manual explaining the idea validation process and providing valuable tips
In a multi-stage process and accompanied by a coach, the idea is pushed forward, pitched to juries and, in the best case, approved for the next stage.
More information on the Kickbox programme
Link to the Swisscom Kickbox ideas platform