The Digital Product Passport is moving from policy to obligation. The Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR) and Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) set the first deadlines, with batteries and construction products following, and further categories after that. In practice, this means a product must explain what it is made of, where it came from, how to keep it in use, and what should happen to it at end of life.

AKT-Origins is a Rotterdam-based company developing a Digital Product Passport platform. It began by noting what companies are subject to the new requirements. Most European businesses are SMEs: they face the same obligations as large brands but generally do not have dedicated compliance functions or big budgets. A passport approach that only works for large companies would leave most of the affected economy unserved.

• ORIGINS is being developed around three design principles:
  Verification without disclosure. Product data is held in European infrastructure while a compact identifier is anchored, so a record can be shown to be unaltered. Companies can substantiate claims without publishing commercially sensitive information.
• Standards rather than proprietary systems. Identifiers and data carriers follow established supply chain standards, so a passport remains readable by retailers, customs authorities, recyclers and resale platforms over the long term.
• Value beyond compliance obligation. The same passport that meets a regulatory requirement also provides repair, care, material and recycling information to whoever holds the product, and supports authenticity checks.