Technological advancements have the capability to improve the quality of the customer experience in just about any industry – and the cannabis niche is certainly no different. Specifically, artificial intelligence (AI) has increased the efficiency of operations in banking financial services, marketing and sales, and sports and entertainment. Now, a startup called PotBot is utilizing AI to help select the perfect medical cannabis strain for patients.
The PotBot app starts off by asking the user/ patient to provide it with their specific condition and symptoms. Within seconds, the app searches through peer-reviewed medical journals in order to give the user recommendations for the perfect cannabis strain and cannabinoid levels that are known to best treat what ails them. The app will initially recognize 37 conditions/ symptoms based on the user’s medical information and then will pick out the most effective strain for them. The interesting technology is still in its infancy, but Potbotics CEO David Goldstein told CNBC in the interview that the startup has already secured $5 million in funding.
“We definitely see there’s interest in the industry, for sure,” Goldstein said in the interview with CNBC. “It’s one that has real potential in the United States and internationally. A lot of investors like non-cannabis touching entities, because they feel like they are hedging their bets a little bit.”
As with any other area of the ever-growing cannabis industry, PotBot in up against some roadblocks when it comes to differences in legality and regulations from state to state. Since seeing one of his family members become seriously ill, Goldstein says seeing the full legalization of medical cannabis has become a lifelong passion of his.
“She refused to get this medicine because she felt it wasn’t a professional experience,” Goldstein continued. “There are great applications like Leafly and Weedmaps. We didn’t feel like there was something that helps the medical patient.”
The sentiment of Goldstein’s family member is certainly not a unique one, as there are still many patients who could benefit from medical cannabis that otherwise choose not to; despite all of the science backing up its effectiveness and all of the legalization efforts solidifying its legitimacy. Even though there is a mountain of evidence indicating that cannabis can successfully treat a myriad of conditions and symptoms, the infectious brain worm that is the rhetoric of prohibitionists that still support the failed war on drugs is still alive and well in the minds of a large number of Americans.
Are you a medical patient that would consider using PotBot to find the best strain for you? Let us know in the comments.
I suffer from bipolar disorder type 2, intractable migraines and severe osteoarthritis. I would be overjoyed to have access to an app that would ascertain specific strains to treat these motherfucking disorders. Keep up the good work. I am not in a legal state (Kansas) but would happily make the drive to Colorado to obtain what what might help me the most. Currently I am managing them with CBD isolate, tincture, salve and spray, but I know I could feel a lot better. Thanks for the info!
Sue Haley
suey@mac.com