Pet Smart Thermometer

Pet health management often relies on periodic check-ups at the vet, making it difficult to closely monitor temperature or ear inflammation at home. Existing animal thermometers are mainly rectal thermometers, which are difficult for owners to use and cause stress to pets.

Also, dogs and cats commonly suffer fromear diseases (such as otitis media), but owners often have difficulty noticing abnormalities externally and often seek medical attention only after the condition has significantly worsened. This can lead to missed opportunities for early treatment, resulting in chronic diseases or hearing loss.

Otiton Medical developed a non-invasive and user-friendly animal thermometer based on these problems – the desire of pet owners to easily check their pet's temperature and ear health at home. In other words, the Pet Smart Thermometer has emerged as a solution to fill the home care gap in pet healthcare and detect early abnormalities.

The Pet Smart Thermometer (product name: Dr. PetCare Thermometer) is the world's first integrated thermometer and ear disease monitor for pets. Using a non-contact infrared method, it accurately measures the pet's temperature within seconds by simply placing the device slightly inside the ear. Simultaneously, the built-in HD camera captures images of the eardrum and external ear canal, recording the ear condition as video.

This data is transmitted via Wi-Fi to the Dr.PetCare app, where it can be viewed in real-time, and accumulated temperature and ear condition records are managed as pet-specific profiles. Owners can zoom in on photos in the app to directly examine ear inflammation or foreign substances, and if necessary, export and share the images with a veterinarian (via email, etc.).

Unlike existing thermometers, it provides video data, allowing users to quantify signs of disease by identifying trends such as "the ear is becoming redder and more swollen," going beyond simply knowing whether there is a fever. Future software updates will add a feature that uses AI to analyze accumulated inner ear images and patterns to automatically predict diseases such as otitis media.

In short, this product is a digital veterinary assistant tool that combines hardware (sensors) + software (app) + AI analysis platform, and its multi-functionality, which differs from existing simple thermometers, is a key differentiator.

The product buyers arepet owners (B2C).General consumers who raise dogs or cats purchase the device for home use, especially those who raise elderly pets or care for pets with chronic diseases (e.g., chronic otitis media).

Also,animal hospitals (B2B)can use it as an aid for diagnosis or for owner education. The startup has already conducted clinical tests in collaboration with animal hospitals in Seoul with the support of the Seoul Metropolitan Government.

In the future, Otiton plans to enter the North American and European markets, opening up the possibility of partnerships (B2B2C) with pet insurance companies or telemedicine platforms in those regions. However, the primary scenario is that a large number of general pet owners will individually purchase it as a universal device that is not too expensive.

This product has a foundation to be expanded into a pet health management platform. Data such as temperature and ear condition accumulated in the app can be used to advance AI diagnostic algorithms for remote veterinary care in the future.

Otiton Medical has also announced plans to enter the North American and European pet healthcare markets and secure distribution partners, leveraging the CES award, increasing the possibility of global expansion. Certifications in each country (e.g., FCC, CE) are merely procedural and do not pose significant technical barriers. Having been recognized for its technology with the support of local governments such as Seoul, it is also in a favorable position for attracting future investments.

In terms of expansion direction, it is currently for dogs and cats, butapplications to other pets (e.g., rabbit ear examination)are possible. Since Otiton originally has technology related to human hearing loss, there is also the possibility of technology spin-offs into the human medical device field in the long term. In other words, it is a company with a portfolio that can enter the human medical market with electronic drugs (electronic vestibular stimulators, etc.) after being verified in the pet market.

In summary, the Pet Smart Thermometer has high potential for expansion, not only in terms of globalizing the product itself but also in terms of the company's strategy.

It is receiving great attention both domestically and internationally as a "convergence of veterinary medicine and AI technology." It has been recognized for its technology on the world's most prestigious stage by winning the CES Innovation Award, and has been introduced in leading overseas media outlets.

The Dong-A Ilbo English edition reported on Otiton's award, stating that it "integrates AI-based ear video analysis and temperature monitoring, presenting a new standard for pet healthcare." The domestic veterinary community also expects it to help owners check their pet's ear condition at home and seek early treatment.

In terms of technical completeness, the real-time video transmission and accurate temperature readings were well-executed in the hardware demonstration, earning the assessment of being "already at a commercial level." In the market, there is great anticipation for commercialization, calling it a "must-have device in the era of pet families," but there are also views mentioning commercialization challenges such as FDA and other overseas certifications and insurance coverage. In other words, it is pointed out that "while innovation is outstanding, accumulating clinical data and the licensing process are important to establish itself as a global medical device."

Overall, there is a sense of anticipation rather than underestimation, and there is a prevailing atmosphere of hoping that Otiton will quickly establish itself in the overseas market with the help of the CES award.