Matthias Jugel was part of the team responsible for developing a vaccine passport drive in Germany as part of UBIRCH GmbH, which developed the technology that allowed those in the EU who had been vaccinated against Covid-19 to travel. Matthias studied computing science at Birkbeck in the early nineties and this led him to where he is now, a Big Data software specialist, Chief Technology Officer and one of the founders of UBIRCH.  

Matthias and his team were able to use blockchain technology to create a QR code that would work offline to verify a person’s vaccination status. This application of the technology was developed under highly pressurised circumstances in a matter of weeks and may have revolutionary applications for pharmaceuticals, car insurance and manufacturing industries.