Know Labs Inc (KNW)

[tim00mike]

Diabetes startup brews up $11M after 'serendipitous spill' led to creation of new CGM tech

https://www.fiercebiotech.com/medtech/hagar-brews-up-11m-after-a-serendipitous-spill-led-to-creation-new-cgm-tech

Perhaps aiming to join their ranks is Israeli startup Hagar, with its GWave technology that measures blood sugar levels using noninvasive radio waves rather than an implanted sensor or repeated fingersticks.

According to Hagar lore, the technology came about after Geri Waintraub, the company’s co-founder and chief technology officer, accidentally spilled a cup of tea on a radio frequency device during a separate research project and concluded that the ensuing reaction was caused by the sugar in his tea. Thus, GWave was born.

The first generation of the GWave sensor is a device about a third the size of a standard smartphone, inserted into a ceramic bracelet. It uses Bluetooth to transmit its glucose readings to an accompanying mobile app that tracks readings and alerts users to fluctuations in their blood sugar levels.

While radio waves are a form of electromagnetic radiation, GWave produces “significantly less” amounts than a smartphone, according to Hagar.

A proof-of-concept study found the company's radio frequency technology was able to continuously measure glucose levels with at least 90% accuracy, compared to the estimated 70% rate for traditional continuous glucose monitors.

According to the company, that difference stems from the fact that Hagar’s system directly measures glucose in the blood in real time. Other CGMs may use a sensor implanted under the skin to take measurements from the interstitial fluid between cells and may often have to be calibrated throughout the day with routine fingerstick blood tests.