Advancing the next generation of non-invasive, real-time alcohol biosensing technology
The RADx® Coordination Center at Cimit, on behalf of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD), and the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB), announces the Advanced Wearable Alcohol Real-time Ethanol Sensor (AWARES) Funnel. This initiative aims to accelerate the development of non-invasive, inconspicuous wearable alcohol biosensors that continuously detect blood alcohol concentration (BAC) with high accuracy and high resolution in real time with personal attribution and calibration. Technologies that detect alcohol in breath or sweat are outside the scope of this initiative.
Accelerating Innovation in Non-Invasive Alcohol Monitoring
The AWARES Funnel will accelerate innovation and support the rapid development of next-generation alcohol biosensors that leverage cutting-edge non-invasive biosensing technologies to transform real-time BAC monitoring, with user authentication and possible multiplexing capabilities.
Current wearable alcohol biosensors are limited by insufficient sensitivity and accuracy, delayed measurement, inadequate accounting for interindividual variability, obtrusive designs, limited tamper resistance, and a lack of personalized calibration. Responses to this call are expected to address these limitations by leveraging advanced, non-invasive wearable biosensing technologies combined with advanced analytics to enable reliable, real-time, passive alcohol monitoring in naturalistic settings.
Through this effort, AWARES aims to rapidly de-risk next-generation, non-invasive wearable alcohol biosensors and accelerate their validation and path to market readiness. The outcome of AWEARS will transform alcohol consumption monitoring, advance personalized care, and enhance treatment, recovery, and relapse prevention.
Key Areas of Innovation
- Continuous, real-time blood alcohol monitoring with high sensitivity and specificity
- Non-invasive, accurate, and inconspicuous wearable design
- Personalized calibration and user authentication
- Potential multiplexing of additional analyte(s)s and physiological measurements
- Advanced analytics including AI/SI to support data analysis and integration
Additional information about the program, including areas of interest, eligibility, key dates, awards, and how to participate, will be available when the AWARES Funnel officially launches.
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Coming Soon!
Launching November 12, 2026