Patented, science-backed technology precisely measures expressions, eating habits, attention and physical activity, unlocking transformative insights into emotions and behaviors with profound impacts across a wide range of applications
BRIGHTON, United Kingdom, Oct. 15, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Emteq Labs, the market leader in emotion-recognition wearable technology, today announced the forthcoming introduction of Sense, the world’s first emotion-sensing eyewear. Alongside the unveiling of Sense, the company is pleased to announce the appointment of Steen Strand, former head of the hardware division of Snap Inc., as its new Chief Executive Officer.
Over the past decade, Emteq Labs – led by renowned surgeon and facial musculature expert, Dr. Charles Nduka – has been at the forefront of engineering advanced technologies for sensing facial movements and emotions. This data has significant implications on health and well-being, but has never been available outside of a laboratory, healthcare facility, or other controlled setting. Now, Emteq Labs has developed Sense: a patented, AI-powered eyewear platform that provides lab-quality insights in real life and in real time. This includes comprehensive measurement and analysis of the wearer’s facial expressions, dietary habits, mood, posture, attention levels, physical activity, and additional health-related metrics.
“Our faces reveal deep insights about our minds and bodies. Since founding Emteq Labs in 2015, we have been on a mission to improve lives and health outcomes through a deeper understanding of our emotional responses and behaviors,” said Dr. Charles Nduka, founder and Chief Science Officer at Emteq Labs. “Our proven, breakthrough Sense eyewear allows us to look inward, rather than outward. Wearers will peer into the future to see how subtle, nearly invisible factors can shape long-term health and wellness like never before.”
Emteq’s Sense glasses are equipped with contactless OCO sensors that detect high-resolution facial activations at key muscle locations, as well as a downward-facing camera for instantly logging food consumption. Data collected is analyzed using proprietary AI/ML algorithms, and securely transferred to the Sense app and cloud platform. The user has full control over the data and can choose to share it with researchers, trainers, coaches, or clinicians upon consent.
The powerful insights that Sense uncovers have a transformative impact on weight management and mental health, as well as broader healthcare applications, consumer sentiment, augmented reality, and more.
Science-Backed Technology Proven to Address Critical Health Issues
According to the World Health Organization, more than 1 billion people in the world are living with obesity and approximately 970 million people worldwide are living with a mental health disorder. Emteq’s platform helps address these critical health issues by enabling a deeper understanding of everyday behaviors, decisions, and the emotions that drive them.
A recent peer-reviewed study in the Journal of Medical Internal Research found that Sense accurately tracks food intake and eating behavior in everyday settings, overcoming the major limitations of traditional self-reporting methods such as manual food logs. This research confirms the effectiveness of Emteq’s technology for precise dietary monitoring, which is essential for successful interventions to promote a healthy lifestyle.
Additionally, research published in Frontiers in Psychiatry journal demonstrated that Emteq’s platform can distinguish between depressed and non-depressed people as compared with current gold standard diagnostic methods. By effectively assessing affective behaviors in remote settings – such as the home, office, or school – Sense is poised to significantly improve the diagnosis and monitoring of chronic mental health and neurological conditions including depression, anxiety, autism spectrum disorder, and more.
"Having spent my entire career at the intersection of innovation and consumer products, I can confidently assert that Emteq will transform the smart eyewear landscape and, more importantly, improve and save lives," said Steen Strand, CEO of Emteq Labs. "Health applications have catalyzed the rise of wearables, and eyewear is the next frontier. Emteq will deliver the most compelling case for smart glasses yet—proving that they can dramatically improve your health."
Prior to joining Emteq, Strand led Snap Inc.'s hardware division, SnapLab, where he was responsible for the Spectacles line of augmented reality eyewear as well as the company’s hardware-related investments and acquisitions. "Emteq's technology will change how we understand ourselves and will create strong use cases that will soon drive the adoption of AR eyewear," Strand continued.
Emteq Labs’ Sense development kit will be available to commercial partners tackling a wide range of applications starting in December. For more information, visit www.emteqlabs.com.
About Emteq Labs
Emteq Labs is a UK-based deep technology company pioneering real-time emotion recognition in virtual and augmented environments. The company’s patented emotion-sensing eyewear captures facial muscle activity across diverse settings, leveraging proprietary AI/ML algorithms to provide insights on expressions, eating behaviors, attention and physical activity. With nearly a decade of research backing its innovations, Emteq Labs holds 27 patents, has published 28 peer-reviewed publications, and has earned multiple awards for its cutting-edge technology. Supported by funding from the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR i4i), Innovate UK and Horizon 2020, the company is actively conducting research validating the health applications of its technology. Emteq Labs is headquartered in Brighton, UK, with additional offices across multiple countries.
Press contact:
emteqlabs@launchsquad.com
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