AI can analyze your poop. Should it?
Toilet tech from companies like TOTO and Throne are turning bathrooms into health trackers, using AI to track stool, urine, and gut-health trends.
Throne Science, a startup co-founded by a former WHOOP employee, has launched its $10 million Series A funding round for Throne One, a smart camera that analyzes stool and urine using AI-trained sensors. The company aims to establish a baseline of a user's bowel movements and alert them to any significant deviations. Throne One is part of a growing market in toilet technology, which includes brands like Vivoo and TOTO that are turning bathrooms into health trackers.
Gastroenterologists find toilet tech appealing because patients often struggle to remember their bowel movements, while consumers are increasingly interested in gut health due to rising rates of colorectal cancer and digestive disorders like IBS. However, while these devices excel at recording toilet habits, they currently lack the capability to diagnose digestive disorders.
The toilet tech boom began in 2023, driven by better sensors and AI, growing concern about digestive health, and the success of wearables. Throne Science, led by CEO and co-founder Scott Hickle, offers a clip-on smart camera that maps trends in a user's app and includes an AI gut health coach. However, the effectiveness of these devices in providing actionable insights remains a subject of debate, as they rely on users' selective recall of factors influencing their digestive tract.
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