SAN FRANCISCO– As much on the forefront of nicotine innovation as the Juul vaping device currently is, its makers say the product will receive an upgrade along the lines of other smart, connected technologies, according to TechCrunch.
Pending approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Juul plans to introduce a “connected” device next year that will authenticate the device’s owner. Speaking at a TechCrunch event in early September, James Monsees, co-founder and chief product officer for San Francisco-based Juul Labs, said that when consumers first use the device, they’ll be asked to connect it to their phone, which will allow them to keep their Juul from being used by others.
He cited a scenario in which a consumer drops his or her device and a 12-year-old finds it. That minor wouldn’t be able to activate the device, because it would be tied to the original user.
A usage-tracking function can also allow consumers to dictate how often they use the product. In that example, the user could direct the device to drop its usage 20% over two weeks, Monsees said.
“If a consumer wants to quit our product, they can,” said Monsees. “We will give them the toolset to do that in the smoothest possible way.”
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