Highlights
- Darren Johnson presents Ionic Ear, a surgically implanted Bluetooth device, on Shark Tank.
- He seeks $1 million for 15% equity to develop his prototype into a market-ready product.
- The Sharks unanimously reject the idea, citing concerns over the invasive nature and practicality of the device.
Overview
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Name | Ionic Ear |
| Founder | Darren Johnson |
| Industry | Technology/Wearable Tech |
| Product | Surgically implanted Bluetooth device |
| Funding | Self-funded |
| Investment Ask | $1 million |
| Equity Offered | 15% |
| Valuation | $6.67 million |
Darren Johnson pitches Ionic Ear – a surgically implanted bluetooth device – in the pilot episode of Shark Tank. Johnson invented the device, which includes a battery, speaker and microphone, to eliminate the problem of bluetooth earpieces falling off due to motion or excessive sweating. The device is implanted near the ear, under the earlobe.
Ionic Ear Shark Tank Recap
Johnson enters the Tank seeking $1 million for 15% of his company. The product isn’t in production, it’s merely a prototype at this stage. The Sharks are shocked by the fact Johnson wants to perform surgery to implant the device and laugh at him. Daymond goes out almost immediately after hearing this, saying “it’s pretty disturbing and it freaks me out.” When Johnson explains you need to insert a needle into the ear to charge the device at night, Barbara seeks clarification and Kevin Harrington abruptly goes out. Barbara goes out too.
In an attempt to save his rapidly failing pitch, he tries to compare his product to breast implants. The Sharks aren’t buying it. Mr. Wonderful is amazed Johnson hasn’t been locked up for being a loon! He goes out. Robert says Darren is “somewhere” and goes out too. The Sharks don’t believe what they just saw!
Ionic Ear Shark Tank Update
Ionic Ear goes down as one of the most bizarre pitches of all time on Shark Tank (or anywhere else for that matter). In a 2013 interview, Barbara called this the creepiest thing she’s ever seen. Ionic Ear never did get any investment to get past the developmental stages and has no business presence at all, anywhere. Johnson may be ahead of his time, maybe a little too far ahead. Both he and the business dropped out of sight not too long after airing. I can usually find something about a defunct company, but this guy is erased from the internet!
Posts About Ionic Ear on Shark Tank Blog
Company Information
Video:
Cut to the year 2015: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7JPlTEnUO4E Workers in Sweden getting RFID chips implanted in their hands.
My thoughts exactly
Cut to 2021, and im still not getting Bluetooth implemented in my ear.
Cut to 2023, Nerolink starts human test trials.