This Harvard iLab startup wants to stop sexual assault with smart jewellery

Flare Jewelry's first product will be modular and look like a regular accessory
15387-original
Wareable is reader-powered. If you click through using links on the site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Learn more

In a recent survey on what people actually want from wearable tech, a panic/SOS button came out on top. So it's no wonder that over the past few months, safety wearables of all shapes and sizes have been popping up.

One name to look out for could be Flare Jewelry. It's a Harvard Business School Innovation Lab startup co-founded by Quinn Fitzgerald and Sara de Zarraga, who have both had personal experience of sexual assault.

Read this: #Trending - Playing it safe with wearable tech

They are currently building their first smart jewellery prototype this summer with MIT engineers. It's designed to prevent, alert and record sexual assault and rape.

The features were actually developed in conjunction with survivors of attacks and the product will be tested on college students and young professionals. That said, the team reckons their tech could be used by travellers, the elderly, people with disabilities and children.

The modular smart jewellery, which would currently work as a bracelet or necklace, will feature a loud alarm, automatic texts to emergency contacts with your GPS location and an audio recording feature to capture evidence. It doesn't sound like there's GPS on the device itself so it will rely on your smartphone.

That's a familiar set of features so Flare Jewelry will have to live up to its promise of not impacting the look of the jewellery at all. We'll check in with the co-founders after the summer but if you're interested, you can sign up for updates on the website now.

Source: BostInno

This Harvard iLab startup wants to stop sexual assault with smart jewellery

TAGGED

How we test



By

Sophie was Wareable's associate editor. She joined the team from Stuff magazine where she was an in-house reviewer. For three and a half years, she tested every smartphone, tablet, and robot vacuum that mattered. 

A fan of thoughtful design, innovative apps, and that Spike Jonze film, she is currently wondering how many fitness tracker reviews it will take to get her fit. Current bet: 19.

Sophie has also written for a host of sites, including Metro, the Evening Standard, the Times, the Telegraph, Little White Lies, the Press Association and the Debrief.

She now works for Wired.


Related stories