The Covenant

Summary

Bright Sol Tech partnered with Covenant Whisper LLC to develop a first-of-its-kind digital legacy platform. The Covenant enables users to record private video messages ("whispers") that are securely stored and only released to designated guardians after the creator's passing, verified through a death certificate processing workflow. The platform also features a public social video feed called "Visionary" for sharing messages with the broader community.

The project was delivered through an agile methodology with 3-week development cycles, transforming the client's vision from initial concept through a fully functional MVP with Stripe-powered subscription billing, secure video hosting, and a comprehensive guardian management system.

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The Challenge

Marco Castro, founder of Covenant Whisper, came to Bright Sol Tech with an innovative concept: a platform that would allow people to leave lasting video messages for their loved ones, accessible only after death through a verified process. The challenge was multi-faceted:

• Create a secure, emotionally sensitive platform for recording and storing private legacy videos
• Implement a legal verification workflow involving death certificates and identification documents
• Build a guardian system where multiple trusted individuals could be designated to unlock videos
• Integrate subscription billing with multiple tiers and prepaid death certificate processing fees
• Develop responsive web application optimized for mobile video recording and viewing

Our Solution

Core Platform Features

Private Whispers: Users can record video messages up to 6GB that remain encrypted and locked until guardians submit verification documents after the user's passing.

Guardian System: Creators designate trusted individuals who receive email invitations. Guardians can accept or decline the responsibility, and must submit death certificates and identification to unlock videos.

Visionary Feed: A public social feed where users share 2GB public videos with hashtag support, likes, and infinite scroll functionality.

Video Vaults: Specialized rooms including War Dogs (for military veterans), Survivors Room, and Terminal Illness Room for community-specific content.

Technical Implementation

• Ruby on Rails backend with PostgreSQL database
• Stripe integration for subscription management and one-time death certificate processing fees
• AWS S3 and Cloudinary for secure video storage and optimization
• Responsive Progressive Web App design supporting Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge
• Webhook-driven automation for payment processing and subscription lifecycle management
• Comprehensive admin portal for content moderation and unlock request processing

Development Process

The project followed Bright Sol Tech's proven agile methodology with 3-week development cycles. Each cycle concluded with a client demo and review session, allowing for continuous refinement based on Marco's feedback and evolving requirements.

Phase Deliverables| Discovery  | User stories, technical requirements, mockups, project roadmap| Cycle 1  | Infrastructure setup, authentication, navigation, admin portal foundation| Cycle 2  | Visionary feed, video upload, profile pages, search functionality| Cycle 3  | Guardian system, Stripe checkout, subscription plans, contract page| Cycle 4  | Unlock whisper workflow, death certificate processing, avatar system, webhooks| Post-MVP  | Legacy Feed, video vaults (War Dogs, Survivors, Terminal Illness), UI/UX refinements

Results & Impact

• Delivered fully functional MVP within projected 19-week timeline
• Platform positioned for scale with infrastructure supporting 1,200+ initial users
• Secure payment processing with tiered subscription model and one-time fee options
• Client secured significant investor interest, including $5M+ investment discussions
• Ongoing $500/month maintenance retainer for continued development and support
• Patents filed for AI, blockchain, and metaverse-related features planned for future phases

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