Persperity Health announces $1 million funding for new sweat-sensing wearable

Persperity Health, a start-up developing a wearable to help women manage their fertility and menopause, has raised $1 million in pre-seed funding. The company is developing technology that uses non-invasive sweat analysis, rather than blood-based analysis, to determine hormone levels.

The start-up has created a patented ring-like biosensor with sweat-sensing technology invented by co-founder Dr Wei Gao, which is exclusively licensed from Caltech. Users will not need to undertake a gruelling workout to measure their hormones; instead, a non-invasive process, iontophoresis, is used to make you sweat on demand.

According to Persperity Health, levels of hormones such as estradiol, progesterone, and luteinizing hormone (LH) can all be detected in sweat. The company lists three areas where tracking these hormones would be particularly useful: to spot early signs of hormonal imbalance, to monitor ovulation and enhance fertility treatments, and to manage your menopause symptoms.

In its announcement, Persperity Health said the money would be used to “accelerate” its product development. On it’s website, the company lists FreeFlow, Wilson Hill, Caltech, Alma Capital, and Merkin Family Office among its investors. It is unclear when the first consumer product from Persperity Health could launch.