Getty Images; Rebecca Zisser/BI
In over a decade as a health journalist, I've interviewed people about some deeply personal health experiences, but this was a first.On a video call, Scott Hickle, CEO and cofounder of the startup Throne Science, held his phone up to the camera to show me a detailed diary of his bowel movements.He pointed to a stretch of blue ("that's healthy"), then an erratic jumble of colors — yellow (hard), orange (loose), blue again.These were the findings from the smart camera in his toilet in early January, when he returned from Christmas break to the stress and buzz of preparing Throne's launch."Our whole thing is, first of all, let's establish your baseline and then notice any significant deviations from that baseline," Hickle told me.
Throne One by Throne Science is a clip-on smart camera that scans stool and urine using AI-trained sensors
Throne Science
We're in a toilet tech boom, moving beyond heated seats and bidets to health tracking. In the last 18 months, industry giant TOTO launched Stool Scan in Japan, which uses LED technology to analyze stool consistency; wellness-tech startup Vivoo launched its Smart Toilet, which analyzes urine and hydration; and Throne shipped to customers and raised $10 million in a Series A funding round last week.Brian Comiskey, senior director of innovation and trends at the Consumer Technology Association, said the category began taking off in 2023, driven by better sensors and AI, growing concern about digestive health, and the success of wearables. But this is the year it has come into its own.
