MuteMe on 'Shark Tank': What is the cost, who are the founders and does the device really work?
The Covid-19 pandemic turned the whole world upside down. With social distancing and isolation becoming the need of the hour, offices, educational institutions, workouts, etc, everything went the remote route. While the many video calling and meeting Softwares & apps helped us immensely with carrying out our day-to-day activities, it brought its own fair share of issues with it. Did you ever find yourself on an important call all geared up to share your thoughts and opinions only to hear the other person point out that you're on mute? Or during the middle of your virtual meeting did somebody walk in and say something embarrassing and everybody heard it? Well, you wouldn't be the only one.
After being subject to all of the above issues during their remote working stint during the pandemic, Parm Dhoot and Tye Davis teamed up together and created the perfect solution- MuteMe. The duo are all set to make their big debut on 'Shark Tank', ready to pitch their unique invention to Mark Cuban, Lori Greiner, Daymond John, Kevin O'Leary, and guest Shark Peter Jones. If you're curious to know more about this wonderful invention that promises to increase productivity, boost confidence and decrease interruptions while you're working/ studying remotely, then read on!
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What is MuteMe?
MuteMe is an illuminated mute button for virtual calls that increases productivity, boosts confidence, and decreases interruptions. The patent-pending device is designed to recognize if you're on or off mute by using intelligent software that works with any computer to control your microphone. Not only is it just a button, it's also an app! The app stays synced with the MuteMe illuminated button, so if you mute from the virtual conferencing app, the light on the button and the app change together!
MuteMe addresses the difficulties of remote working and learning by enabling a student or employee to better control their environment at home. It was built to provide an easier way to avoid embarrassment, increase our confidence when multitasking, and communicate with family if we are busy or not. MuteMe allows work to be uninterrupted and boosts your productivity by letting house-mates know you’re busy without having to say a single word. It’s simple, has a clean aesthetic and is purposely easy to install to eliminate any technology adoption difficulties.
With MuteMe you can confidently take virtual calls without second-guessing if you're on mute or not with the MuteMe. With just a simple tap, toggle yourself on and off mute and avoid the dreaded “You’re on Mute!” or “Please Mute Yourself” in virtual calls for good. MuteMe indicates instantaneously whether you’re on mute with red and green visual toggles and takes away the stress that often comes with virtual meetings.
Who are the founders?
Parm Dhoot, Handeep Dhoot, Tye Davis, Brittany Davis and Pavan Pureval are the brains behind MuteMe. They came up with the idea in 2020 during the pandemic. On their IndieGoGo campaign page they explained, "In 2020, in the middle of the pandemic and chaos, we experienced constant disruptions in virtual meetings (kids, lawn mower, door bell, you name it). The current solutions didn’t allow us to mute/unmute quickly enough.This problem brought our team together; compelling us out of necessity to create technology enabling us to be quick, confident, and focused in virtual meetings. In the fall of 2020, in a small garage in El Dorado Hills, California, the first prototype of MuteMe came to life. Ignited by crowdfunding, MuteMe was improved, sculpted, and brought into the homes of 20K+ virtual workers across the globe in less than 1 year. Because it doesn't really matter where you're working from or when. We are in the business to allow you to be heard, when you want to be."
“Virtual meetings and online classes are meant to emulate being physically together but current tools are still in their infancy,” said Parm Dhoot, co-founder and CEO of MuteMe. “With the recent pandemic accelerating the remote model, the adoption of video conferencing tools has presented new challenges, especially for those who were given a shorter runway of time to adopt. We wanted a simple, easy way to enable the flow of meetings and classes to replicate being in-person without the constant delays and pauses that reduce participation and increase frustration.”
Parm serves as the Director of Technology, his wife Handeep is the Director of Strategy, while Tye is the Director of Operations and his wife Brittany handles the brand's marketing and social media.
What is the cost and where to buy MuteMe from?
You can get your very own illuminated mute button from MuteMe for just $39! MuteMe works with Zoom, Webex, Teams, Skype, Google Meet and much much more. You can purchase it from either the brand's website here or any of the Staples stores across the nation.
Despite being a new entrant in the market, MuteMe has quickly managed to amass several glowing reviews from its users. The brand's website has several reviews from its customers praising the nifty device that made their virtual meetings and lessons a hassle-free and smooth experience. A customer named Aimee E, left the following review on the website. "I am a stenographic court reporter working remotely in California. I work on a MacBook Pro and run my court reporting software in a virtual PC environment with Parallels. Zoom is run on the Mac side of my computer and to break onto the record from mute, I have to find my cursor and have it clicked onto Zoom as the active window. When I am taking down the record, my cursor is in my CAT software on the PC side and I can rarely find it in time to navigate over to Zoom to use my voice and resort to waving my hands to get them to stop while I search for my cursor and move it over after taking my hands off the steno machine. No more!!! MuteMe was heaven yesterday on my all-day Zoom deposition. Worked flawlessly no matter window my cursor was in and it was just perfection. Thank you for being the final fix in my remote court reporting set up at home. Fabulous job and fabulous product!"
Where is MuteMe now?
MuteMe launched on December 4 as a Kickstarter campaign raising over $300,000 through Kickstarter and Indiegogo before becoming commercially available on e-commerce and at Staples stores nationwide in just a span of ten months! The MuteMe team is currently designing next-generation technology that empowers users to take control of their virtual meetings. MuteMe has done over $500,000 in sales including shipping over 20,000 devices to-date. The brand also launched MuteMe Mini, a new device on the day of their 'Shark Tank' debut.
Who will steal the deal?
Mark Cuban has always been big on technology, so we wouldn't be surprised if MuteMe piques his interest. The brand's meteoric progress from concept to selling in stores in a span of just ten months might also attract Kevin's interest. While new guest Shark Peter Jones has also dabbled with computers, so don't be surprised if a bidding war breaks out between the sharks provided the brand's numbers and sales too impress the Sharks.
‘Shark Tank’ Season 13 Episode 2 airs on ABC on October 15, 2021, at 8 pm ET. Catch the latest episode featuring products like Proper Good, Songlorious, Long Wharf and MuteMe.
Missed an episode? Been wanting to catch up? Episodes can also be viewed the next day on demand and on Hulu. Not just that, you can also watch old seasons and episodes on Amazon Prime Video and iTunes.