ASI invests in developing time stamp technology

The goal of the joint venture is to develop a mass market technology that enables users attach a time stamp proving the creation time and the integrity of digitally archived documents. The stamp can be attached to text documents, tables, graphics, audio and video files.

"GuardTime's technology has multiple applications," said ASI CEO Toivo Annus. "For example, it can be used to prove when a detailed plan was accepted or the exact time when an audio recording was made. Similarly to physical documents also the need for verifying the integrity of digital documents is increasing."

According to GuardTime CEO Märt Saarepera the technology, once ready, will be offered in various markets. "Our goal is to produce the technology and offer time-stamping service first in Europe and Asia."

For now, ASI will hold a small percentage of the newly created joint venture. In the near future ASI will increase its commitment to GuardTime. "For ASI the investment in the seed-stage of this knowledge intensive technology is very interesting since our goal is to finance promising technologies at the seed stage," concluded Annus.

GuardTime AS

The company was established by Märt Saarepera, Ahto Buldas and investment group Ambient Sound Investments (ASI). GuardTime develops technology for verifying the integrity of digitally archived documents. The employees of the company are experts of information security and digital verification technology.

Ambient Sound Investments

ASI is an investment group founded in 2003 by four Estonia-based founding engineers of Skype, the internet communication company. In March 2006, the group invested 1.6 million euros in Clifton, an Estonian start-up which plans to mass-produce heat-resistant low-cost semiconductor switches for the electronics industry. In April, ASI acquired a majority stake in Oskando, an Estonian telematics solutions provider. In May, ASI acquired a third of an Estonian developer of radio communications technology Modesat Communication and a third of Lithuanian telemetry start-up Connecty. GuardTime is the group's fifth investment.

Additional information: