I'm not sure what project you're referring to. But i think they should either expand on crypto-identities or indeed partner up with something like Civic or TheKey.
Civic or selfkey, thekey, lifeid, etc. are not competitors of Repu, so they could actually partner with them, it will make the project more valuable, and better, complimenting services that can interact with each other is a better move and will benefit all.
Partnering up with your competitor does absolutely make sense if there are exploitable synergies. Even Apple and Microsoft had a partnership for a very long time. And what happened to them?
Exactly what I said, it is not bad to partner with your competitor. If you can't win over your enemy you should make him your friend.