Jakarta, Indonesia Sentinel — Throne, a startup based in Austin, Texas, is making waves with its innovative approach in the business world. The company has developed a camera that attaches to the side of a toilet bowl, to take a picture of your poop. Currently in its beta phase, the product aims to help users better understand their health through the examination of their waste.
According to TechCrunch, the startup has developed a smart camera integrated with artificial intelligence (AI) to analyze waste and provide insights into gut health, hydration, and other health indicators.
Throne refers to its technology as “artificial gut intelligence,” a system that has been trained by physicians to interpret the information found in human waste. According to the company, doctors are able to identify various health markers, such as hydration levels, through subtle nuances in urine and stool samples.
While the idea of a toilet camera may raise some concerns, especially concerning privacy, Throne has taken steps to address potential concerns. The company has posted a “privacy and security” page outlining its protocols, with one key point is that the camera is trained solely on the toilet bowl to capture only waste-related images.
“We only capture images of the contents of your toilet bowl,” Throne explains. “Any other data is irrelevant to our mission and could compromise our ability to provide accurate health insights. We use image recognition technology to automatically delete any non-relevant images, ensuring that only toilet-related data is retained.”
For those concerned about the handling of their data, Throne reassures users that all images are “anonymized”, and the data is encrypted using TLS 1.2 or higher. Additionally, users can request full access to their data and ask for it to be deleted at any time. The company emphasizes that its team only analyzes anonymized, aggregated data, which cannot be traced back to individual users.
A Surprising Pivot to Toilet Camera
Throne’s journey into the world of toilet cameras was unexpected. Throne CEO Scott Hickle explained that the company initially launched as a healthcare staffing marketplace. However, it quickly became clear that the market was saturated, prompting a swift pivot.
“Within six weeks, we came to the painful realization that the market was saturated and not a sandbox we wanted to play in,” Hickle said as cited from TechCrunch. “So we pivoted, and our investors were shockingly cool with us tackling consumer hardware.”
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After raising $1.2 million from investors such as Night Capital, Rief Ventures, and Hustle Fund, Throne shifted its focus to consumer health tech.
However, throne didn’t just pivot, its pivoted into poop. The company found a new market specifically targeting the aging population and individuals with chronic digestive conditions like Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).
For those willing to embrace this cutting-edge technology, Throne’s toilet camera system is now available for preorder. While the retail price is set at $499, early adopters can purchase it for $299 during the beta phase.
As Throne ventures into the uncharted territory of AI-powered health monitoring through toilet cameras, the company is confident that its technology will provide users with valuable insights into their health.
(Raidi/Agung)
