BENGALURU: You want to step out for a meal, but hygiene and safety measures stop you from doing so. While people have always been conscious of hygiene, Covid-19 has probably been the biggest wake-up call, say Niranth Bymana (35) and Samanvi Bhograj. Which is why they have created HYGN, (pronounced as hygiene), an app that allows people to review and search for places and services based on their hygiene ratings. The AI-based app, currently available on Android, provides ratings on customer reviews specific to hygiene and safety.
“Current reviews and ratings are run and managed by businesses or are too broad-based. For example, a person experiences rude staff behaviour and another finds an insect in his food, chances are both of them may rate the respective places low. But finding an insect is a graver issue compared to staff behaviour. This is a serious hygiene issue,” says Bymana who has done an MBA from the IIM-Lucknow. Co-founder Bhograj has an MBA from Marshall University, USA. Currently, both of them are focussing on this new venture.
Three co-founders and a team of developers and designers started working on this app during the lockdown. The map-based application shows the user places around based on their hygiene ratings. “Users can select a place, read reviews and view their past performance. This is in trial phase for Bengaluru,” Bymana says.
HYGN provides business owners with information about how people perceive their safety standards. “It also gives insights on how other similar businesses are doing better. The app can help owners effectively manage businesses. They can now control not just store experience but delivery and last-mile experience too,” Bymana says.