When people think of AI (artificial intelligence), they see chatbots, driverless vehicles, or facial recognition. But last year at the tech expo in Bengaluru, I was intrigued when a startup digitally demoed a smell device, which released a faint aroma of freshly brewed coffee when I clicked a button. This is what digital smell technology is.
It was not just a novelty—it was also connected to an AI-powered smell recognition system. That moment made me think: if AI has already learned to hear and see in a manner comparable to humans, then why not smell?
The answer is—yes, it can! And it is evolving faster than most people think.
Think of a world where you could smell the delicious aroma of freshly baked pizza found in an advertisement. It seems almost like science fiction, doesn’t it?
For centuries, our interaction with technology has been primarily mediated through sight and sound. Now, the other primal and most powerful of our senses—our sense of smell—has remained outside the realm of the digital frontier for too long!
Imagine if I told you this is all changing—we are on the verge of new kinds of experiences with technology content, as artificial intelligence has started to crack the complex code of smelling, which promises to bring the sense of smell to the digital ecosystem in ways we cannot imagine right now.
Image Source: Ambiq.com
What is digital smell technology?
This technology (aka AI smell recognition) is a machine’s ability to detect, characterize, and interpret smell in a manner similar to the human sense of smell.
Smell, unlike vision or sound, is a chemical, and therefore digital smell technology collects volatile compounds via sensors, transforms them into digital signals, and has AI models categorize them and/or recreate them.
It’s like having a digital nose: sensors collect molecules → translate into chemical signals → AI recognizes the signals → recognizes a smell or synthetic smell output.
How Do Digital Smell Devices Work?
I spoke with a researcher once at IISc Bengaluru who explained it very simply:
- Scent Capture: Sensors (elements of the electronic nose, or “e-noses”) are used to collect molecules in the air.
- Signal Processing: Those collected molecules are converted into a digital chemical signature.
- AI Interpretation: Machine learning models compare this digital chemical signature to known smell profiles.
- Smell Output: The device identifies a smell or releases a synthetic smell.
Digital smell technology applications already exist in wine quality detection, health diagnostics, and environmental monitoring.
Here’s a fun fact: dogs can smell disease, like cancer, in their human scents. AI smell recognition attempts to digitally replicate a dog’s nose.
Human Nose vs. Digital Nose
| Feature | Human Nose | Digital Nose |
| Detection Ability | ~1 trillion scents | Depends on sensor quality (~1000+) |
| Speed of recognition | Milliseconds | Milliseconds to seconds |
| Bias | Emotional, subjective | Objective, data-driven |
| Learning process | Through experience, memory | Through AI training, datasets |
| Applications | Survival, memory, pleasure | Healthcare, e-commerce, gaming, and safety |
Applications of Smell Technology
The applications of AI smell recognition would be extensive, spanning a wide range of fields. Some of the different sectors where smell recognition using AI can be applied are described below:
In Healthcare
I met a physician during my MBA studies who described how a breath analysis AI could identify early indicators of diabetes or lung cancer. Here’s how it works:
Patients exhale volatile organic compounds (VOCs).
The AI recognizes patterns that correlate with diseases.
A non-invasive diagnostic tool is possible—no needles, no pain.
It is already being piloted in Europe—AI breathalyzers are being trialed in hospitals. Imagine being able to identify cancer with just a breath versus a biopsy—that would shake up medicine. Hence, the Smell technology in healthcare would surely bring revolutionary transformation.
In Online Shopping
I tried to order some perfume online last year, and the biggest agony was not being able to smell the perfume. This is where digital aroma for online shopping comes into play.
Imagine this:
You are on Amazon searching for coffee.
Rather than comparing with others’ reviews, your phone pops up an aroma sample.
The AI has generated a personalized smell profile for you based on previous buying choices.
This could be the next evolution in e-commerce personalization. You will never experience the same sensation as when you sniff fragrance, even if the stock photo is a great representation.
In Gaming
Gamers, buckle up because this could get crazy.
I once tried a prototype VR headset with a smell device at a gaming café in Hyderabad. When my character walks into a forest, I can smell pine. When I walked into a battlefield, I could smell gunpowder.
This kind of immersive realism could change gaming forever. I think digital smell in gaming increases emotional engagement, creating experiences that go beyond visuals and audio.
AI Smell Recognition in Healthcare: Case Study
One of the most compelling real-world pilots I’ve read about was in Tokyo, where AI smell recognition was used to detect Parkinson’s disease years before motor symptoms were present.
Why? Because the body produces unique scent markers long before visible changes.
This ties into other trends in preventive healthcare, capturing disease early using non-invasive tools.
Ethical and Privacy Implications
And here’s something that won’t be addressed by most blogs: privacy of smell data.
Your smell profile could give insights into conditions like diabetes, diet, or habits of consumption like smoking or drinking. Is that data something companies should be able to harvest?
As facial recognition sparks debates, so too could olfactory recognition in the near future.
Emerging Trends: Where Is It Headed?
- Wearable Digital Noses: A watch with smell sensors integrated into the device.
- AI Food Safety Drivers: Hot and fresh evidence of spoilage is produced and detected immediately while in the food supply chain.
- Wellbeing Recommendations: AI detecting, analyzing, and recommending diets based on your body odor.
- Cross-Industry Application: Military (explosive detection), smart homes.
My Personal Take
Initially, I was a skeptic of digital smell when I first encountered the technology; as I tested this technology in gaming and with its possible applications in healthcare, I understood there is more here than a novelty.
The population expects that smell recognition through AI is simply entertainment, but odor and smell recognition technology has a remarkable future to save lives and change the way we shop and engage with digital environments.
And here is my prediction: we will be scenting and smelling our phones routinely within the next decade, instead of just having it be a meme.
Conclusion
Artificial intelligence smell recognition technology is at a similar point in its development as speech recognition was 15 years ago—exploratory, clumsy, and full of possibility.
Digital smell for online shopping, to non-intrusive health care inventions, arguably represents one of the least talked-about but impactful areas of AI.
The future is not simply about machines that can see and hear, but machines that can smell, feel, and sense the world as we do.
And when that happens, the margin between the digital and the physical worlds will shrink faster than ever before.
FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)
What is digital smell technology?
Ans: It enables computers and devices to create, record, or reproduce smells using chemical cartridges and an AI-based recognition system. This technology adds a sensing characteristic to both physical and digital experiences by adding the sense of smell to a digital experience.
How Do Digital Smell Devices Work?
Ans: Digital smell devices operate using scent cartridges that house chemical compounds. Each scent cartridge’s chemical component can be mixed to reproduce a specific smell. The AI and sensors quickly analyze, process, and emit the right smells based on user interactions or programmed triggers.
How does AI allow for the recognition of smell?
Ans: AI analyzes scent patterns from electronic nose sensors that act like human olfactory receptors. As it trains on large datasets of smells, it’s capable of classifying and identifying odors in real time.
How Is Digital Smell Being Used in Gaming?
Ans: It allows smell interfaces to become part of the gaming experience, immersing the user in an adventure. For example, digital smell devices may allow a user to smell the forest and the ocean to add a whole new sensory dimension to their virtual reality gameplay.
Can Digital Aroma Make Online Shopping Better?
Ans: Yes. Digital aroma devices can allow customers to “smell” perfumes, foods, or home products, maybe before the customer buys them online.
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