Mom’s Choice Awards is excited to announce another post in our interview series where we chat with the inventors, designers, publishers, and others behind some of our favorite family-friendly products.
Hello, Mom’s Choice readers! We’re very excited to give you all another interview with one of our amazing honorees, Frank Jiang! Frank Jiang is the Founder and CEO of Mintal, the company behind the MCA award-winning product, Mintal Tracker! Mintal Tracker is the perfect combination of a sleep tracker and snore recorder to help users understand their sleep habits and improve their sleep quality. Driven by AI, the app monitors and analyzes sleep stages, snoring, and apnea risks throughout the night, as well as provides detailed sleep analysis via a customized report. Keep reading to find out more about Frank and his award-winning product, Mintal Tracker!
MCA: Hi Frank, thank you so much for joining us today, and a big congratulations on your Mom’s Choice Award! I first have to say, Mintal Tracker is something I have personally benefitted from and am a huge fan of! Sleep is something that is so essential to every process in the body, and as parents, we need to be in top shape both physically and mentally. I think I can speak for a lot of parents when I say that I am so happy you have created an app that helps us be our best selves thanks to a great night’s sleep. Can I start the interview off by finding out a little bit more about the man behind such an innovative product?
The MCA award-winning app, Mintal Tracker!
Frank: On the clock, I’m a software product manager with extensive experience in designing and developing various mobile apps—like Mintal Tracker.
Though I don’t like working out, I follow a ketogenic diet, which helps me maintain a healthy weight and ensures my energy levels are high.
MCA: Tell us about the creation of Mintal!
Frank: Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, many people have stayed at home more than before as well as experienced more stress — potentially leading to lower overall sleep quality. Like many, I suffer from sleep problems, struggling with snoring and sleep apnea. Unfortunately, many people who face the same sleep issues don’t realize they have them.
I found that through technology, we can inspire people to pay more attention to their sleep quality and want to improve it.
MCA: What needs were you trying to fill when you created the Mintal Tracker app?
Frank: I snore and have sleep apnea myself, so when creating this app, I hoped I could help others who have sleep issues.
Looking back at the development of the product — the engineer in charge of the AI model training found he was at risk for sleep apnea by using this app. Based on his findings, he went to a hospital for more thorough medical testing, and now he uses a CPAP (Continuous Positive Airway Pressure) machine. Without the app, he might have never noticed that he had sleep apnea, so he always says, “This App saved my life.”
Stories like these are why we’re firmly committed to making this app the best it can be.
MCA: Tell us about the research and technology that went behind Mintal Tracker‘s unique features and describe these features!
Frank: Leveraging industry-leading AI technology, the Mintal R&D team developed a sophisticated deep learning model that maintains high accuracy with low device storage requirements. In real time, Mintal Tracker analyzes your sleep sounds, including accurately identifying when you snore and/or display signs of OSAHS (Obstructive Sleep Apnea/Hypopnea Syndrome). Based on what the app picks up throughout the night, it quickly generates a sleep analysis report each morning, enabling users to review and understand their sleep habits.
The report contains key metrics, including how long and frequently the user snored and/or sleep talked, their risk of sleep apnea, a sleep cycle analysis, and personalized sleeping tips. The analysis then allows them, or their doctor, to get a well-rounded idea of the user’s sleeping habits. Further, the report also allows users to go back and listen to their snoring, sleep talking, and environmental noises—this can be a fun activity for the curious type.
Setting up the app is easy—users just need to place their phone by their bed, and the app will record and analyze their sleep sounds throughout the night. Through testing, we found the app to be highly accurate in evaluating the risk of moderate to severe sleep apnea, offering a starting point for further medical diagnosis with a healthcare professional.
MCA: Can you tell us some of the benefits of getting proper sleep?
Frank: Absolutely, there are so many benefits to getting proper sleep. To begin with, sleep allows both your brain and your body time to rest and recharge, especially after long, tiresome days. Further, sleep can help you stay alert and concentrate throughout the day as well as boost your mental health, whereas a lack of sleep can potentially lead to brain fog and a feeling of fatigue, among other things.
When it comes to your overall health, good sleep even helps to lower your risks of certain medical conditions like heart disease and high blood pressure, even potentially cancer.
MCA: What kind of feedback have you received about Mintal Tracker?
The different features offered by the Mintal Tracker app!
Frank: Since launch, we’ve received so much positive feedback from our users! Some have deemed our app lifesaving and mentioned that it’s revealed to them issues they didn’t realize they had. It brings me so much joy to know that I’m helping people both improve and understand their sleep quality.
Some words from the Mintal Tracker community:
“An excellent app. Did not expect the level of diagnosis provided. I was really impressed. I will be recommending this app to family and friends. I will also make sure my PCP is aware this app exists. Thank you for a very useful and possibly lifesaving app.” – Phillip M.
“This app helps me to see that I have issues when I sleep especially with snoring, that I may have sleep apnea. This is a great app to have if you worry about why, you are still tired when you wake up, you may not be getting a good quality of sleep.” – Nay N.
“I love this because it is the alarm that has worked for me. It really knows when to wake me so I’m less moody. My sleep has only improved in all this time.”- Foran E.
MCA: What is next for Mintal?
Frank: Currently, Mintal Tracker helps people understand their sleep quality through its sleep report feature, as well as offers in-app content that includes soothing sounds, music, and podcasts.
For our users who face more severe sleep issues, such as chronic snoring or sleep apnea, we’re developing hardware products that will complement Mintal Tracker by integrating with the app’s functionalities and work to improve our users’ overall sleep. There’s much more to come from Mintal, and my team and I can’t wait to help even more people achieve better sleep.
MCA: That’s so exciting, please be sure to keep MCA posted on all that’s to come for Mintal!
You can learn more about Frank Jiang and his award-winning app, Mintal Tracker by visiting his MCA Shop page.
