Y Combinator backed medtech startup granted US patent for home diagnostics technology

Inito, a Bangalore based medical technology startup that is also India’s first Y-Combinator backed medtech startup has been granted patent rights for their Flat-lens technology by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). This patent will further Inito’s mission of becoming a global health-tech company out of India.

The patented Flat-lens technology allows the Inito device to perform dozens of lab-grade diagnostic tests at home just using a smartphone and a low cost device. Inito comes with the Inito Reader, App and the Test strips. The sample is put on the test strip and the strip is inserted into the Inito device. The device is then attached to the phone whose camera captures images of the strip through the flat lens. The device also automatically calibrates the variations between different phones giving the same accuracy irrespective of the phone used. The Inito app displays the result and also tracks the values for analysis.

Fertility is the first test supported by the Inito device. It enables women to track their fertile days at home and increase their chances of getting pregnant by 89%. It does so by measuring two fertility hormones, Estrogen & Luteinizing Hormone (LH) in urine. Inito’s AI based app then uses the data to understand cycle variations for every individual user and gives highly accurate results unique to every woman’s body. The results have been found to be 99.12% correlated with those obtained from lab grade scanners in a study conducted by IIT Delhi.

Till now, the data set of hormones collected through 150,000 plus tests taken on the device is arguably the largest cloud based dataset of fertility hormones in the world. In the next one year, Inito further plans to add 8 more hormone tests to the device. Coupled with big data analytics and artificial intelligence, the device will be able to predict several key metrics of fertility for users and diagnose various fertility conditions like anovulatory cycles, PCOS etc. without going to the lab. By doing so, the company aims to disrupt the US$30 billion fertility market.

Commenting on the news, Mr. Aayush Rai, Co-Founder and CEO, Inito said “Inito’s Flat Lens technology is the world’s leading smartphone connected technology that allows you to perform dozens of tests on your phone. The patent grant by the US Patent Office provides us defensibility in the global market and will help us cement our leadership position in bringing the quality diagnostic tests to every home. ”