PW manager buys its way into passkeys, plans passwordless authentication solution

1Password says it is acquiring authentication player Passage. Details of the buyout have not been released. The combination is being billed by 1Password as a way to get to secure, simple sign-ins.

Jeff Shiner, CEO of password manager 1Password, wrote a post explaining that his company did not have enough to contribute to the rise of passkeys.

Shiner said he saw “an emerging consensus about how to make that technology available to any developer, business, or individual” regardless of device or platform.

Passage, according to Shiner, was his way to become a player in the growing niche. According to an Austin startup community, Built In Austin, Passage has five employees, including co-founders CEO Cole Hecht and Chief Technology Officer Anna Pobletts.

News publisher Axios, which got a briefing on the deal before it was publicly announced, says that Passage in February left stealth mode with $4 million in funding.

Passage has experience working with executives and developers to roll out passwordless authentication with a turnkey sign-in API.

It “prioritizes device-native biometrics like Touch ID, Face ID or Windows Hello,” Shiner said.

He predicts that in the first half of next year, 1Password will debut an end-to-end product for passwordless authentication. It will support creating, saving and using passkeys that are device agnostic.

1Password also joined the FIDO Alliance earlier this year.

Article Topics

1Password  |  access management  |  acquisitions  |  biometrics  |  password manager  |  passwordless authentication