Sramana Mitra: Do you call yourselves an identity management firm?

Ananth Siva: We are more of a secure communication platform that uses key carrier partner networks. In the US, T Mobile is our strategic partner. We only work with T Mobile, but our service is deployed across any underlying device. Then we wrapped it with some AI capability. We are now an AI-powered secure communication company that allows employees to interact with their customers on a number that is separate from the person.

Sramana Mitra: Let’s double-click down one level to see how this happens. Talk to me in technical terms. I’m a computer scientist from MIT. I want you to talk to me in my level.

Ananth Siva: Our service is on the cloud. We have a very rich pedigree in voice and message processing. We have now integrated with T Mobile at a SIP and SMTP level where that number is a fully FCC-compliant mobile number. T Mobile’s number is the oil in our engine. We’ve been able to do it in software.

Sramana Mitra: That number is provided by T Mobile?

Ananth Siva: That’s correct.

Sramana Mitra: Who’s selling?

Ananth Siva: Our go-to-market strategy is to use channel partners. T Mobile sells at scale. Every one of their reps sells the multi-line service across the United States. Similarly, we have partners overseas including Blackberry, Syntel. Ultimately, it’s a number tied to software that provides the same functionality that a mobile experience would be required for any employee of the firm.

Sramana Mitra: What is the interface between the T Mobile number which is the corporate identity and the employee’s personal number which is a Verizon or AT&T.

Ananth Siva: Or it could be T Mobile. For the Movius multi-line service, you can go to the app store. You get all your credentials from your administrator or a robot. Once it’s done, our service sits there and has its own contacts, voice mail, and SMS capability. We have the patent to use the underlying SIM’s cellular minutes to make the call rather than relying on typical VoIP services. VoIP services today are secondary to the primary SIM services.

Because we can write the underlying SIM, no matter which carrier it belongs to, we can provide a quality experience. The voice quality is critical. Imagine a very scratchy voice call and you’re on the run. That’s why we will use any underlying path that’s available. In addition to typical mobile data and WiFi, we have the IP to use the underlying SIM cellular minutes, no matter which carrier it comes from – inbound and outbound. That ensures a quality of service that we’re proud of.

Sramana Mitra: You said T Mobile is your only partner in the United States. Is that by design? Is it in your interest to do similar deals with the rest of the major carriers?

Ananth Siva: When you’re a disruptor, you need a brand that’s equally willing to challenge the market and be disruptive. Some years ago, we started this journey with Sprint. It was a deliberate strategy on our part. When you have incumbencies, it’s difficult to see how disruption happens. We see ourselves as a disruptor.

Today, we’re pleased with our partners that we don’t see any need to go to another carrier. Our service is bought by businesses that we serve. Just about every Wall Street bank today is a customer of ours. The reason they’ve all done that is they made one decision across the firm without having to worry about the underlying SIM. We believe in having strong partnerships. We are committed to our partnership with T Mobile. I would be hard-pressed to find another carrier. All it does is create noise in the market.