Former Tesla product manager wants to make luxury goods impossible to fake, starting with a chip

Source: TechCrunch

The fake‑goods crisis cuts two ways. Luxury brands lose more than $30 billion a year to counterfeits, while buyers in the booming $210 billion second‑hand market have no reliable way to verify that what they’re purchasing is genuine. Veritas wants to solve both problems with a solution that combines custom hardware and software.

The Counterfeit Luxury Goods Problem

Traditionally, luxury makers rely on symbols or physical marks to authenticate products. As demand grows, counterfeiters create convincing copies of these marks and high‑quality fake certificates—often referred to as “superfakes.” Some maisons have even stopped authenticating goods because fakes have become too convincing to detect.

Veritas’ Solution

Veritas claims to have developed a “hack‑proof” chip that cannot be bypassed by tools such as Flipper Zero, a widely available hacking device. The chip is linked to digital certificates that verify product authenticity.

Chip Design and Functionality

• Form factor: The chip is the size of a small gem and can be inserted after a product is made without compromising its integrity.
• Technology: It incorporates NFC (Near Field Communication), the same short‑range wireless tech used in contactless payments. Users can simply tap a smartphone to the item to verify authenticity.
• Security features: A custom coil and bridge structure cause the chip to go dormant and hide its codes if tampering is detected.

Software and Blockchain Integration

• Product information is linked to Veritas’ backend, which monitors scanning behavior to prevent fraud.
• A blockchain‑based digital clone of each product can be used for digital art gallery shows or metaverse activities.
• Brands receive a software suite to manage chipped items, add team members, and enrich product stories—enabling exclusive invitations or early‑access campaigns for customers.

Founder’s Perspective

Luci Holland, former Tesla technical product manager and artist, says her dual background inspired the solution:

“For me, as someone who has a background in design and tech, I saw this problem and thought about the different ways we could solve it. We’ve combined hardware and software to protect brands and convey information.”

She adds that legacy brands, many over a century old, “deserve the most advanced protection to protect these designs.”

Funding and Future Plans

Veritas raised $1.75 million in pre‑seed funding led by Seven Seven Six, with participation from Doordash co‑founder Stanley Tang, skincare brand Reys’ co‑founder Gloria Zhu, and former TechCrunch editor Josh Constine. The capital will be used to expand the two‑person team.

Alexis Ohanian of Seven Seven Six praised the blend of design taste and technology expertise, noting:

“It’s absolutely an arms race against fake‑goods makers, but we’re used to fighting those and consistently winning in tech — and luxury brands need all the help they can get.”