Clue

Clue is an app that uses machine learning (ML) to track a woman’s menstrual cycles, to offer more accuracy in predicting menstruation, fertility windows, and premenstrual syndrome (PMS) symptoms. The company was formed by female technology (femtech) veteran Ida Tin, who is credited for coining the industry term, and technology veteran Hans Raffauf. The app leverages user inputted data about sleep, skin condition, and various symptoms to offer insights on bodily functions. It allows users to share their data privately with their friends and partners. The company offers an online encyclopedia with information on topics such as contraception, fertility, and menstruation.

In addition to its basic free offering, Clue includes a premium version for USD 30 per year as of October 2020, which provides additional features such as cycle review emails and enhanced cycle analysis. Unlike most fertility tracking apps, Clue does not generate revenue from advertising, and instead focuses on its premium subscriptions for revenue. Clue has partnered with research institutions Kinsey and Stanford to facilitate studies on female health, using anonymized data from its users; but does not sell data to third parties.

In March 2021, Clue announced that it received FDA approval for its digital contraceptive, based on period tracking data, which is expected to launch during the year. The digital contraceptive utilizes Clue’s machine learning (ML) algorithms to predict days of high and low risk for pregnancy based purely on the period start dates. The algorithm has proven to be 92%-97% effective based on a year-long clinical trial.

Clue is currently in the process of relaunching its app with over 40 new evidence-based tracking options, improved usability, and support for three more languages. The company also postponed the scheduled 2022 launch of its FDA-approved Clue Birth Control solution after it laid off around 31 employees (25% of its workforce) in January 2023.

Key customers and partnerships

Clue served 11 million women across 190 countries, and was downloaded by 10 million users globally, as of January 2023.