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Getting a vision test can take weeks or even months, depending on where you live. Blame it on a simple supply-and-demand problem. More than 40,000 eye doctor positions were open in the U.S. last year, while the number of people needing vision care continues to grow as the population ages and more screen-watching children develop myopia.<\/p>\n
\u201cCustomers can\u2019t get a prescription to buy glasses,\u201d says Matthias Hofmann, co-founder and CEO of Eyebot<\/a>. \u201cThey\u2019re waiting three or six months for an appointment. And retailers can\u2019t sell glasses because people don\u2019t have the prescription.\u201d<\/p>\n To solve this impasse, his startup has developed a self-service kiosk that can generate an eyeglass prescription in about 90 seconds. The Eyebot kiosks are now rolling out at select Walmart and Sam\u2019s Club locations as well as vision care retailers across eight states, giving shoppers a chance to update their prescription while stocking up on dog food and paper towels.<\/p>\n Related: When Fit Becomes the Innovation: How One Ophthalmologist Is Redefining Eyewear<\/a><\/p>\n Hofmann didn\u2019t arrive at Eyebot overnight. He spent more than a decade trying to make vision care more accessible, beginning as an engineer at EyeNetra, one of the first companies to develop smartphone-based vision testing.<\/p>\n On paper, it looked like a billion-dollar idea. In reality, consumers never embraced it. The exams were accurate, but they required too much from users. Download an app. Follow detailed instructions. Hold the phone the right way. Complete the test correctly.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was a UX problem,\u201d Hofmann explains. \u201cPeople don\u2019t have an attention span for more than 10 minutes. You have to make it work for grandmas.\u201d<\/p>\n The experience taught Hofmann a lesson many founders learn the hard way: solving the right problem isn\u2019t enough. You also have to solve it in a way people will actually use. He stopped asking how to build a better vision test and started asking a different question: \u201cWhat if getting a prescription was as easy as another stop on a shopping trip?\u201d<\/p>\n Related: How to Know If You Should Pivot<\/strong><\/p>\n The years spent chasing smartphone vision testing changed the way Hofmann thought about the business. \u201cIt became very clear to me that the prescription is a means to an end,\u201d he says. \u201cPeople are asking for easier exams,\u201d Hofmann says. \u201cThey\u2019re asking for no appointments, no scheduling, no planning \u2014 convenience.\u201d<\/p>\n Retailers, meanwhile, had a problem of their own. \u201cThey have all the equipment there to do eye exams, but they can\u2019t find the doctors,\u201d Hofmann says.\u00a0Eyebot\u2019s solution is to put vision testing inside stores where people are already shopping. At the Eyebot kiosks, people can complete a self-guided vision test in about 90 seconds.<\/p>\n Not everyone in the eye care industry is convinced. Some optometrists worry consumers could confuse a prescription update with a comprehensive eye exam. Hofmann says that\u2019s a misunderstanding of what Eyebot is trying to do. Every prescription is reviewed by a licensed doctor, and patients who need additional care are referred to specialists. \u201cWe\u2019re filling the gaps,\u201d he says, not replacing doctors.<\/p>\n Related: He Got 77 \u2018Nos\u2019 Before a \u2018Yes\u2019. How This Founder Raised $85 Million to Transform Communication for the Deaf.<\/strong><\/p>\n Hofmann sees today\u2019s kiosks as the beginning. Future versions could expand beyond eyeglass prescriptions to include contact lens prescriptions, screening for eye disorders and referrals for patients.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re not in the business of diagnosing eye diseases,\u201d he says. \u201cThat\u2019s something for a doctor to do.\u201d The goal is to catch problems sooner, steer people to the right care and make basic vision services more accessible to people who might otherwise go without.<\/p>\n Too often, Hofmann says, those are lower-income people working two jobs, without vision insurance or the time to schedule an appointment. \u201cWe\u2019re the first point of care for their eyes.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n Getting a vision test can take weeks or even months, depending on where you live. Blame it on a simple supply-and-demand problem. More than 40,000 eye doctor positions were open in the U.S. last year, while the number of people needing vision care continues to grow as the population ages and more screen-watching children develop myopia.<\/p>\n \u201cCustomers can\u2019t get a prescription to buy glasses,\u201d says Matthias Hofmann, co-founder and CEO of Eyebot<\/a>. \u201cThey\u2019re waiting three or six months for an appointment. And retailers can\u2019t sell glasses because people don\u2019t have the prescription.\u201d<\/p>\n To solve this impasse, his startup has developed a self-service kiosk that can generate an eyeglass prescription in about 90 seconds. The Eyebot kiosks are now rolling out at select Walmart and Sam\u2019s Club locations as well as vision care retailers across eight states, giving shoppers a chance to update their prescription while stocking up on dog food and paper towels.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\nRight problem, wrong answer<\/strong><\/h2>\n
From smartphones to kiosks<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Vision quest<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n
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