Makalot's "AI Medical Smart Clothing" enters the U.S. healthcare industry, the first of its kind in Taiwan. As per Frank Chou, chairman of Makalot, the U.S. client has obtained FDA approval, and Makalot's Taiwan factory has also been approved by FDA, which is the first in the garment industry for a Taiwanese manufacturer and a rarity globally, and Makalot is releasing orders for the first batch of 2,000 pieces, with continuous shipment going forward.

Chou said that their product is equipped with AI sensing, measurement and other intelligent medical functions, and the price of one piece is as high as several thousand US dollars. It is a real "medical device" for patients to wear, combining temperature control, ECG/heartbeat sensing, heating and cooling temperature control, EMG muscle sensing, EMS electrical stimulation, and other functions.

As for the AI-based medical smart clothes, which have obtained FDA's approval for marketing and the FDA's inspection of Taiwan's factories, Chou said that there should not be too many ready-made garment factories that can do it, and that Makalot "dare not say that it is the only one in the world but at least it is the first one in Taiwan".

Industry experts expected Makalot's ability to make medical devices and its mature technological mastery of "smart sports clothing" will make it possible for the manufacturer to enter the consumer market in the future.

In terms of the development process, Chou pointed out that Makalot has invested in the research and development of "AI medical smart clothes" for seven to eight years, and it was not until the last two years that Makalot determined the direction of medical-related physiological monitoring as the main focus.

Because many medical exams are required for patients, it also causes inconvenience or lack of comfort during the course of exams. If it can be as convenient as wearing a piece of ordinary clothing, it can greatly improve the patient experience. Makalot solves the "pain point" of the healthcare industry, and it is also the key to victory.

Regarding the co-operation with the technology sector, Chou revealed that Makalot's AI medical smart clothes are not only smart, but also very ergonomic and well-designed, with all the wires hidden in the clothes and fabrics, and that Makalot has indeed enlisted the help of its technology partners.

He indicated that all the conductive materials of the AI medical smart clothes have to pass the biocompatibility test to avoid causing allergic reactions, and must be "cross-border" co-operation, including electronics, software and hardware partners, which is also the biggest barrier to entry.

In terms of the market and demand for AI medical smart clothes, the chairman disclosed that they will be sold to major hospitals in the U.S. through their customers. In addition, Makalot has also signed a contract with European and American professional football teams to cooperate, so that the athletes can wear smart clothes to monitor their physiological status when they are in training, and the combination of "biomedicine and sports" with the relevant technology will be Makalot's ultimate lethal weapon in the future.

According to Chou, the unit price of AI medical smart clothes is high, with each piece costing a hundred times more than the price of a typical garment.

Zhou believes that more and more cross-border integration products like smart clothes will be developed, but he believes that the most likely niche markets for quantitative commercialisation in the next five to ten years will be medical monitoring and ultra-high-end sports training.