BERLIN, 27 March 2026 – Castlabs is part of CleanFeed – a research initiative focused on verifying the origin and authenticity of digital media, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR).
CleanFeed is one of eleven projects selected under the German government’s #ForschungGegenDesinformation program. It brings together an interdisciplinary consortium consisting of Fraunhofer FOKUS, Deutsche Welle, G&L Systemhaus, and Castlabs to develop innovative solutions for verifying the provenance and authenticity of digital media across the entire content lifecycle.
Running from April 2026 through March 2029, the project focuses on building a proof-of-concept system that enables transparent tracking of media content—from creation and production to distribution and consumption—addressing the growing challenge of manipulated and #AI-generated content, including deepfakes.
Castlabs will focus on the technical backbone of that effort. This includes defining real-world use cases with a focus on forensic watermarking, developing robust identification and tracking mechanisms, and contributing to standards that allow different systems to work together. A key area of focus will be aligning these mechanisms with C2PA (Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity) standards, ensuring that provenance signals are interoperable, tamper-resistant, and compatible with emerging industry frameworks for combating disinformation, deepfakes, and tampered-content.
These efforts are central to ensuring that authenticity signals remain reliable—even across complex workflows such as transcoding, compression, and streaming distribution.
“We’re entering a phase where seeing is no longer believing, and trust is becoming the most valuable currency in digital media,” said Michael Stattmann, co-founder of Castlabs. “With CleanFeed, we’re applying our expertise in content security, playback, and media workflows to help build verifiable digital media ecosystems. Our goal is to ensure that authenticity and provenance can be preserved and validated—even in highly dynamic, real-world delivery environments.”
The CleanFeed project combines technologies – such as cryptographic signatures, provenance metadata, and forensic watermarking – with user-centered research to understand how audiences interpret and use authenticity indicators. This interdisciplinary approach aims to create solutions that are not only technically robust, but also intuitive and trustworthy for end users.
By integrating verification mechanisms directly into production and distribution pipelines, CleanFeed seeks to enable:
- Transparent and tamper-resistant media provenance across platforms
- Detection of manipulation even after transformation or loss of metadata
- New standards and frameworks for trusted digital media ecosystems
The initiative reflects a broader commitment by industry, research institutions, and public stakeholders to safeguard democratic discourse and restore confidence in digital information.
About Castlabs
Castlabs makes media possible by bridging gaps between technology and audiences. Their pioneering software and cloud services empower businesses worldwide to easily deliver premium, protected streaming experiences – covering content security, playback, monetization, and workflow management across a multitude of devices and platforms.
Discover more at castlabs.com.