Loomia, a Brooklyn-based startup wants to change the way smart clothes are made. The 3-year-old startup wants your ankle boots to detect when it’s cold out and heat up to keep your feet warm. Or your jacket to light up at night to let passing motorists see you while you’re riding your bike.
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Loomia makes a fabric layer that has electrical components built in. The LOOMIA Electronic Layer (LEL) is a soft, flexible circuit that can be embedded into textiles. This makes it possible to create clothing with heating, lighting, sensing or data tracking applications, reports D/SRUPTION.
“The LEL is a proprietary blend of materials that is washable and dryable,” Lynne Guey, Head of Communications at LOOMIA told D/SRUPTION. “What’s interesting, and what sets LOOMIA apart from other companies, is that the material is really soft, flexible and wire free. When this is integrated into your clothing you barely sense it because it is so thin.”
“This goes in line with our general philosophy that the materials we use and integrate into our garments can be responsive and intelligent in a very sophisticated, seamless and simple way,” she added. “Just like our devices learn from our habits to create better experiences online, we think our clothes can provide even more, in a way that the user has much more control over what is done.”
Loomia doesn’t want to be a fashion company. According to CEO Janett Liriano, Loomia is a tech company, which doesn’t sell directly to consumers.
The company creates very thin and almost weightless textile layer with built-in electronic circuits. To power the whole thing, this layer connects to a slim battery, called Loomia Tile. With agreement with companies, Loomia will allow them to add the technology to their clothes. The process is very simple; all they need to do is sew it in their fabrics.
Loomia’s sensor-laden fabrics collect data about the person wearing Loomia-powered apparel. The sensors collect data about motion, temperature, or frequency of wear, and then store it in the Loomia Tile.
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Loomia wants to allow customers to make money off that data by selling it back to the companies whose clothes they’re wearing.
The company eventually wants to allow customers to create a blockchain-based user profile. The customers will then put their Loomia Tile on a connected dock and decide who to sell their data to. In return, Loomia will give them tokens as rewards.
“We may serve the fashion industry, but we’re a tech company. We’re just focused on making enchanted technology,” said Liriano.
