Market Trends of Digital Scent Industry
This section covers the major market trends shaping the Digital Scent Market according to our research experts:
Introduction of AI in Digital Scent Technology
- The human nose employs odor molecules emitted by inorganic and organic things to enable the sense of smell. When the energy in things increases, the odor evaporates, allowing them to be inhaled and absorbed through the nasal cavity. Digital olfaction functions similarly. It first gathers odor signatures with biosensors, analyzes the odor data, and displays the results with software solutions. Artificial intelligence helps interpret the signatures and classify them based on a database of previously collected smells.
- According to National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence, In its final report, it proposed Congress increase federal R&D funding for AI by a factor of two annually, up to a total of USD32 billion in fiscal 2026. The federal R&D budget will be increased by 28% from FY 2021 authorized levels to more than USD 204 billion under the Biden administration's fiscal of this year budget plan. The National AI Research Institutes, both new and established, would get some of that funds. Such investments are expected to drive the demand for incorporating AI in digital scent technology.
- Further, according to Stanford University, global total business investment in artificial intelligence (AI) will reach almost USD 94 billion in 2021, a considerable rise from the previous year. The annual investment in AI showed a modest decrease in 2018. However, this was only temporary. The majority of overall AI business investment is made up of private investments.
- In September last year, Google AI used artificial intelligence to create a map correlating odors to chemical structures. It is as accurate as a human in describing a substance's stench, and the researchers behind the experiment think it is an important step toward digitizing scents. A fundamental difficulty in olfaction is mapping molecular structure to odor perception. The Google AI researchers create a Principal Odor Map (POM) that preserves perceptual associations and enables odor quality prediction for novel odorants using neural graph networks (GNN).
- Similarly, a team of scientists led by Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) has developed an artificial scent system that reliably assesses the freshness of meat by mimicking the mammalian nose. The 'electronic nose' (e-nose) consists of a 'barcode' that changes color over time in response to the gases released by meat as it decays and a barcode reader in the form of an artificial intelligence-powered smartphone app. The e-nose has been trained to recognize and predict meat freshness from a wide library of barcode colors.
North America is Expected to Hold Major Share
- North America is expected to gain traction in the global digital scent market during the projected period. Top North American manufacturers such as RoboScientific, ALPHA MOS, and others are aiming to reduce the size of electronic noses through research and development (R&D) operations to boost their client base and gain a competitive advantage. The goal is to create a portable, cost-effective, and tiny electronic nose that can produce accurate results and suit market demands. This is fueling the expansion of North America's worldwide electronic nose market.
- The increase in healthcare spending is likely to drive the market. According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, U.S. healthcare spending would increase by 2.7% in 2021, reaching USD 4.3 trillion, or USD 12,914 per person. Health spending accounted for 18.3%of the nation's GDP. Further, it is also possible to use eNose to diagnose various disorders. It has long been recognized that certain diseases affect internal organs or metabolism and alter the composition of exhaled air. Diabetes patients, for example, expel comparatively large amounts of volatile chemical compounds such as acetone. The eNose, which comes with an easy-to-use smell sensor, could be used to determine blood sugar levels and monitor diabetes settings.
- One of the driving factors for market expansion is the growing health concern. Thus, demand for digital scents is predicted to rise for usage in the food and beverage (F&B) business to improve food quality, which in turn aids in the reduction of diseases caused by food contamination. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 48 million people get sick from food-borne infections yearly, with 3,000 dying. This electronic nose comprises sensors that can detect the presence or absence of toxins and associated chemicals. As a result, this electronic nose is employed throughout the food manufacturing process to ensure food quality.
- The explosive detectors segment in the North America region is expected to develop during the forecast period due to its extensive application in military and defense. The growing number of terrorist bombings has produced a significant demand for technologies that can detect explosives accurately and swiftly to limit damage. The military and police employ explosive detectors to identify explosives in combat zones and public locations in order to protect citizens.
- The recent applications of digital scent technologies have come through advancements in sensor design, material improvements, software innovations, and progress in microcircuitry design and systems integration. The developing infrastructure in the region, coupled with the rising adoption of technological advancements across various industries to better the business model, is set to boost the growth of the overall digital scent market.