At first glance, the newest device from PNOĒ looks like something a comic-book villain might wear. The mask, which covers the nose and mouth and straps around the back of the head, bears more than a passing resemblance to the one worn by Bane, Batman’s hulking nemesis. But its purpose is far more benign; it measures how much oxygen you consume and how much carbon dioxide you exhale, then turns that data into advice about how to eat, train, and, the company hopes, live longer.
PNOĒ, which is based in Malden, Massachusetts, and has operations in Athens, Greece, is preparing to launch the PNOĒ 2.0 on October 1. The big change from its current device is that users can administer the test themselves. According to co-founder and CEO Apostolos Atsalakis, someone can walk into a gym, “just wear the mask, push the button, sit down,” and breathe for eight minutes. “That’s it. It’s that easy,” he said recently, talking with this editor over a Zoom call from the company’s Athens location.
