Serving just under 40 million residents (and 35 million vehicles), the State of California DMV is the largest identity issuer and host in the nation. It has established itself as a global leader in technological innovation through a combination of forward-thinking legislation, strategic partnerships, and a commitment to cutting-edge technology. SpruceID worked with the California DMV to design and implement a solution that brought its driver’s license program into the digital age while ensuring security, privacy, and a user-centric approach.

Read on to learn more about how SpruceID partnered with the California DMV to solidify its reputation as a trailblazer in digital credentials, including state requirements, challenges faced, and results achieved since the program launched in August of 2023.

In 2022, a new legislative mandate authorized the California DMV to pilot a mobile driver’s license (mDL) program. Assembly Bill 1503 (AB 1503), which was signed into law by Governor Gavin Newsom, allowed the DMV to explore the use of digital driver’s licenses as a complement to physical licenses in a pilot phase.

With a strategic vision of providing residents with the best possible solution, the California DMV, under the leadership of executives including Steve Gordon and Ajay Gupta, evaluated many solution providers to determine which could best meet the project requirements and prove to be trusted partners in launching the state’s first digital ID for its residents.Some challenges the DMV faced that forced them to consider implementing a new solution included:

They were spending tens of millions annually to verify identity and maintain physical IDs (issue, print, mail, and replace cards).

California residents and businesses experienced long wait times and manual processes when much of what they do now is online.

Identity theft is on the rise, and CA lost $20B+ in fraudulent unemployment payments during the pandemic.

Marginalized communities were unable to access key financial, educational, and government resources and antiquated ID verification processes contributing to bias in resource distribution decision-making.

California required a system that offered flexibility, interoperability, and scalability beyond what many vendors in the market offered as a ready-made solution. The system needed to adapt to future innovations, work across various platforms, and support diverse in-person and online applications. In addition, seamless integration with their existing systems was essential for reliability and efficiency, providing a smooth experience for DMV employees and California residents.

SpruceID partnered with the California DMV to implement a comprehensive mobile driver's license (mDL) solution for the California DMV that addressed its unique challenges. The California DMV Wallet solution combined the DMV’s vision with SpruceID’s technology and expertise.

SpruceID built a mobile driver’s license issuance engine that augments the DMV’s existing systems with the required issuance protocols, cryptography, and standards compliance, rather than creating a new walled-garden. The issuance engine supports program participants in claiming their mobile driver’s license in the custom, state-owned wallet application (developed by SpruceID) or adding their mobile driver’s license to either their Apple iOS or Android wallet.

California’s mobile driver’s license was deployed to residents in August 2023 through a phased approach, and SpruceID has continued to support and innovate with the DMV post-launch, helping expand use cases and improve functionality based on user feedback.

As of today, Californians can use their mobile driver’s license in many scenarios, including at security in local airports, signing into online government services, entering a bar, and claiming disability placards online — just to name a few. California was the first state to deploy online use cases of their mobile driver’s license, shepherding Californians into a new era of how online interactions can be simpler and more secure.

The mobile driver’s license implementation protects Californians' privacy in digital interactions by allowing them to share only the required information requested for a specific interaction. This means that rather than showing someone all the personal information contained on your ID, you only need to disclose the relevant attributes, such as your age being over 21. It also upholds residents' privacy by eliminating the DMV's ability to track where and when the holder has used the credential.

Residents can even be offline and present their mDL anywhere accepted, from at a local bar to on an airplane.

The California DMV Wallet app allows any wallet holder to verify another California mobile driver’s license via functionality that allows a user to scan a QR code associated with someone’s mobile driver’s license. This expands resident use cases from solely having their digital credential to present to also being able to verify other’s credentials as well.

The CA DMV wallet supports both the ISO mDL and W3C Verifiable Credential formats, enabling a wide range of use cases, from in-person identification to digital verification. Each of these credential formats has burgeoning support in various industries and rather than picking a winner, we took a “use-case” driven approach to ensure Californians could use their credentials where and how they wanted. This dual-format support enhances the utility and accessibility of the mDL system, keeping California at the forefront of digital identity technology.

Ultimately, SpruceID helped the California DMV deliver a secure, user-friendly, and innovative solution for California residents while also creating savings and efficiencies across state agencies. The phased rollout ensured a smooth deployment and allowed for incremental testing and feedback, ensuring reliability before a wider public launch that required transparency and communication with California residents.

The mDL wallet app received high ratings on app stores, with 4.8 on Google Play (7K reviews) and 4.7 on the Apple Store (40K reviews). Users appreciate the ease of use, security features, and convenience of having digital credentials easily accessible on their mobile devices, as shown below.

The CA DMV Wallet received a prestigious Gartner Eye on Innovation award, highlighting its innovative approach and success using open-source technology, allowing for customization, third-party audits, and increased trust and transparency. This recognition underscored the project's impact and has set a benchmark for other states and organizations.

Nearly half a million mDLs have been issued, making California the leading issuer in the country. As of May, California has an average of 2,000 daily app downloads. This widespread adoption demonstrates the program's effectiveness and the public's trust in the new digital credential system.

Ajay Gupta, California DMV's Chief Innovation Officer, praised SpruceID as an "excellent high-tech partner," saying:

‍This feedback highlights the partnership's success and the project's success in meeting its goals.

Next up, California plans to expand existing adoption and add new use cases spanning travel, daily life, and digital life. Regarding travel, they plan to continue with a statewide rollout of mDL readers at California airports and create customer awareness. In addition, California is collaborating with convenience stores nationwide to roll out age verification and law enforcement to help police officers safely and securely accept a mobile driver’s license. California also plans to implement online KYC checks with banks, digital registration cards, and car titles, as well as sharing identity online for recruiting purposes.

They’re also exploring additional digital credentials using mDL identity as a foundation, for example, facility IDs.

The collaboration between the California DMV and SpruceID resulted in a groundbreaking mDL solution for California, setting new standards for digital identity credential management and allowing the DMV to innovate and improve government digital services in California. California’s story demonstrates the power of strategic partnerships in transforming public services while enhancing security and convenience for residents.