PNOE’s new face mask wants to make lab-grade breath testing a self-serve affair

PNOĒ is rolling out a new version of its breath‑analysis device that the company says lets users perform metabolic testing on their own. The PNOĒ 2.0 is smaller and more compact than the company’s earlier system and is designed for self‑administered use: a user walks into a location, dons the mask, starts the test and breathes for eight minutes. CEO and co‑founder Apostolos Atsalakis said this eliminates the need for a trained operator, which he argues will allow the device to be used in fitness centers and potentially other retail locations. The device measures how much oxygen a person consumes and how much carbon dioxide they exhale, converting those measurements into metrics and software‑driven recommendations. PNOĒ says the test captures 23 biomarkers, among them VO₂ max, resting metabolic rate (calories burned at rest), and metabolic flexibility (the body’s ability to switch between fat and carbohydrate burning). The company positions the product as a wellness tool rather than a medical device and says it does not provide medical recommendations. PNOĒ emphasizes design changes that enable shared use while addressing hygiene concerns: the electronics detach from the silicone mask and straps so multiple users can share the hardware while keeping individual mask components. The new unit was developed with Milan‑based Design Group Italia after numerous iterations, the company says, and the simplified design is intended to improve reliability compared with the prior system. Founded from Atsalakis’s PhD work on sensing technologies, PNOĒ has operated for about a decade and sells its systems to businesses on a subscription model that bundles hardware, software, training and marketing materials. Clients named in the company’s roster include Equinox, Four Seasons, Red Bull, the NBA, Mount Sinai Health System and Restore Hyper Wellness. The startup has raised roughly $22 million to date, including a recently closed $11 million round, and went through Y Combinator’s Winter 2019 batch. While PNOĒ highlights potential future uses of breath data for disease detection, the company acknowledges regulatory and clinical hurdles ahead and says full diagnostic claims are years away. For now, the firm markets the device for wellness and performance insights, in a competitive space that includes VO₂ max estimates from wearable brands and other consumer breath‑analysis products.