Midjourney pivots from AI art to body scans
What's the story
Midjourney, the popular AI image generator company, has unveiled its first-ever hardware product - the Midjourney Scanner. The innovative device is an ultrasound-based full-body scanner that uses a ring of sensors to capture vertical slices of the human body. It examines muscle, fat, bone, and organ composition. David Holz, CEO of Midjourney, said that the quality of images produced by this device would be "comparable to MRI in many ways."
Health tracking
The scanner was developed in collaboration with Butterfly Network
Holz sees the Midjourney Scanner as a potential tool for users to monitor changes in their body due to diet and workout. The company hopes to make this technology accessible through a unique spa experience. The scanner was developed in collaboration with Butterfly Network, an ultrasound tech company which said it uses 40 Butterfly Ultrasound-on-Chip imaging modules per system.
Scanning process
How the Midjourney Scanner works
The scanning process with the Midjourney Scanner involves stepping onto a platform that descends into water on rails. A ring of thousands of transducers generates ultrasonic waves, which pass through your body and are recorded to create detailed 3D images. The scan takes about 60 seconds and has already been successfully performed on a dozen people.
Expansion plans
Spa to be opened by end of 2027
Holz plans to install 10 of these scanners at a Midjourney Spa in San Francisco's Union Square by end of 2027. The spa will also feature a gym, saunas, and cold plunges. Although some medical applications would need FDA clearances, Midjourney is currently working on "body composition maps" that don't require such clearances as diagnostic imaging. Users can share their created "library of scans" with doctors or AI health tools while taking data privacy seriously.