Breathometer
InventorCharles Michael Yim
Inception2013
ManufacturerBreathometer
AvailableNo
Websitewww.breathometer.com

Breathometer was a device that claimed to measure someone's blood alcohol content using their iOS and Android smartphones.[1] However, the app proved unreliable, and was shut down by the Federal Trade Commission.[2]

Company history

Breathometer was founded in 2012 by Charles Michael Yim, a serial entrepreneur who had earlier founded three startup companies including Chatterfly, a mobile loyalty platform for businesses that was acquired by Plum District in December 2011.[3][4][5][6] Yim noted that there were no commercial breathalyzers for the smartphone market, and the only portable breathalyzers commercially available were both expensive and impractical for users to take with them on a night out.[1][7]

The company was partly funded through preorders collected via an Indiegogo crowd-sourcing campaign, which ran until April 2013.[1][8][9] The campaign's original goal was to raise $25,000, but by the time it closed, it had raised over $138,000.[10][11]

In September 2013, Yim appeared on Shark Tank. He originally asked for $250,000 for a 10% stake in Breathometer, but all five "sharks" ended up investing a total of $1 million for a collective 30% stake in the company.[12][13]

Controversy

FTC complaint and product refunds

In 2017, an inquiry by the FTC resulted in a settlement with the company. The FTC charged that the company knew the product frequently underreported BAC levels and knowingly made false marketing claims of accuracy.[14][15] The app was shut down and customers were required to be notified and offered full refunds. According to the complaint, sales of Original and Breeze totaled $5.1 million.[2] Following the FTC controversy, Mark Cuban called Breathometer the "worst execution" in the history of Shark Tank, blaming the founder's mismanagement of funds.[16][17]

Products

The Breathometer

The Breathometer was a small device that plugged into the audio jack of a smartphone, coupled with a dedicated app that reads the user's blood alcohol content (BAC).[8][18][19][9] The app utilized the smartphone to provide the processing power, which allowed the device to be small enough to fit on a standard keychain.[8][18] If the user's BAC level was over the legal limit, the app displayed one-click calls to local taxi services, friends from contact lists living close by, or local hotels.[7][19]

Sample beta units were handed out at the 2013 SXSW in Austin, Texas.[7] The app was shut down in 2017 as the result of a settlement with the FTC.[20]

Mint

The company pivoted transforming its technology into a new product to measure bad breath and oral health, called Mint.[21] Breathometer released the Mint in September 2016. Sensors in the device measured sulfur compounds associated with bad breath and that scientists associate with periodontitis aka gum disease.[22] The company partnered with Philips to bundle the Mint with Sonicare oral health products.[23] As of 2021, the Mint is no longer available on its site or Amazon.[24][25]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Lawler, Ryan (April 5, 2013). "The Breathometer Will Ensure You Don't Drive (Or Do Video Interviews) While Drunk". TechCrunch.
  2. 1 2 ""Breathometer" Marketers Settle FTC Charges of Misrepresenting Ability to Accurately Measure Users' Blood Alcohol Content". FTC. January 23, 2017. Retrieved April 25, 2017.
  3. ↑ Sarah Perez (August 17, 2011). "Chatterfly Launches Mobile Digital Loyalty App". TechCrunch. Retrieved April 9, 2014.
  4. ↑ Sara Perez (December 8, 2011). "Moms Love Daily Deals: Plum District Raises $20 Million, Acquires Chatterfly & DoodleDeals". TechCrunch. Retrieved April 9, 2014.
  5. ↑ Timothy Hay (October 18, 2013). "Fresh From Swimming in 'Shark Tank,' Breathometer Raises $2M for Smartphone Breathalyzer". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved April 9, 2014.
  6. ↑ Jameson Ketchum (March 15, 2013). "Breathometer Helps You Party Responsibly". Substream Magazine. Retrieved April 9, 2014.
  7. 1 2 3 "Breathometer Helps You Party Responsibly". Substream Music Press. March 15, 2013. Archived from the original on 6 October 2018. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  8. 1 2 3 David J. Hill (April 9, 2013). "BREATHOMETER — A BREATHLYZER FOR YOUR SMARTPHONE". Singularity Hub. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  9. 1 2 Dean Takahashi (March 13, 2013). "Breathometer unveils the first smartphone breathalyzer". Venture Beat. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  10. ↑ Charles Michael Yim. "Breathometer - A Smartphone Breathalyzer". Indiegogo. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  11. ↑ Shane McGlaun (March 27, 2013). "Breathometer blows past funding goal and adds new stretch goals". Slash Gear. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  12. ↑ Hay, Timothy. "Fresh From Swimming in 'Shark Tank,' Breathometer Raises $2M for Smartphone Breathalyzer". WSJ. Retrieved 2017-01-24.
  13. ↑ "Charles Yim: Breathometer Talks how Indiegogo Lead to Shark Tank – SXSW 2014". Geekazine.com. 2014-03-15. Retrieved 2017-01-24.
  14. ↑ "The FTC's sobering truth about Breathometer". Consumer Information. 2017-01-23. Archived from the original on 2021-06-02. Retrieved 2021-05-28.
  15. ↑ "Feds claim Breathometer made false claims about accuracy". RTTNews. Jan 27, 2017. ProQuest 1862151101.
  16. ↑ Brian, Greg (November 3, 2019). "'Shark Tank': Mark Cuban Says This Product Has the Worst Execution in Show History". Showbiz Cheat Sheet. Retrieved 2021-05-28.
  17. ↑ "The Cast of Shark Tank Reviews Their Favorite Pitches". Vanity Fair. Condé Nast. Retrieved 2021-05-28.
  18. 1 2 "Smartphone breathalyzer tells when you're too drunk to drive". CBS News. March 19, 2013. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  19. 1 2 Eric Griffith (March 29, 2013). "Breathometer Turns Smartphones Into Personal Breathalyzers". PC Mag. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  20. ↑ Paredes, Gemma (27 January 2023). "Breathometer Net Worth - One of Shark Tank's Biggest Flops!". Techiegamers.com.
  21. ↑ Miller, Marc D.; Jackson, Lonnie; Campbell, Nathan (2020-10-01). "Breathometer: Shut Down by the Federal Trade Commission". Entrepreneurship Education and Pedagogy. 3 (4): 364–370. doi:10.1177/2515127420916739. ISSN 2515-1274. S2CID 216363434.
  22. ↑ Becker, Rachel (2016-11-19). "This smart device sniffed my morning breath to check for gum disease". The Verge. Retrieved 2021-05-28.
  23. ↑ "Breathometer teams up with Philips to take on bad breath". TechCrunch. 8 September 2016. Retrieved 2021-05-28.
  24. ↑ "Breathometer Store". Archived from the original on 2017-06-06. Retrieved 2021-05-28.
  25. ↑ "Amazon.com: Breathometer, Mint: The Smart Oral Health Monitor, White: Health & Personal Care". www.amazon.com. Retrieved 2021-05-28.

Further reading

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