Juul Plans Comeback with High-Tech, Age-Gated Juul2

Juul Labs, a company once at the center of the teen vaping crisis, is attempting a major comeback with a new high-tech device, the Juul2, designed with safeguards explicitly aimed at keeping its products out of the hands of teenagers. After years of legal battles and paying out $1.7 billion to settle claims of misleading advertising, the company is seeking to return to its original mission: creating smoking cessation devices for adult smokers trying to quit combustible cigarettes.

Central to this revival strategy is the Juul2’s innovative age-gating technology. To use the device and unlock its flavored pods, users will be required to verify their age and identity through a companion smartphone app. This process will utilize phone-based biometric logins, such as an iPhone’s Face ID, to ensure only authorized adult users can activate the product. Each Juul2 pod will contain a hardware chip that connects to the app via Bluetooth, effectively locking the pod until it is paired with a verified user’s identity. “The new product is basically trying to solve [two problems simultaneously],” James Sagan, CEO of Architect Capital and a Juul investor, told NYNext. “How do you keep vapes out of the hands of people who shouldn’t be using them — kids — and how do you make it appealing to smokers?”

• Read more: FDA Authorizes Juul’s Tobacco and Menthol E-Cigarettes for US Market

This pivot comes after a tumultuous period for the company. In 2022, Juul faced a Marketing Denial Order (MDO) from the FDA that nearly forced it off U.S. shelves and agreed to a massive $1.7 billion settlement over claims its products were more addictive than advertised. Tobacco giant Altria, which had taken a 35% stake in Juul in 2018, divested in 2023 after Juul’s value plummeted. Sagan described Altria’s exit as a “blessing in disguise,” allowing the company to become independent again, now owned by its founders and early investors.

The Juul2 device, which also features a larger battery and an LED display for puff count and battery life, is currently awaiting regulatory approval in the U.S. A version without the biometric safeguards is already for sale in the UK. The comeback is a bold bet in a crowded smoking cessation market, but investors are optimistic that Juul’s focus on technology-driven youth prevention can help it reclaim its mission and tackle what Sagan calls “the most important public health problem.”

• Read more: Juul Labs UK Expands JUUL2 Pod Flavors to Boost Adult Smoker Transition
• News source: Juul is waging a comeback with high-tech safeguards meant to keep vapes away from teens

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Matthew Ma

Marketing at Ecigator

With over a decade of experience in the e-cigarette industry, Matthew Ma is a seasoned expert in both the manufacturing and usage aspects of vaping products. His extensive background has provided him with a deep understanding of the intricacies and evolving dynamics of e-cigarettes.

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