Juul gets OK to sell updated vaping device with age-gating technology

Juul Labs received federal permission from the FDA on Friday to sell an updated version of its e-cigarette, the first new version of its top-selling device since it launched more than a decade ago. The company has faced intense scrutiny over teen use, laying off hundreds of employees and paying roughly $3 billion to settle government and private lawsuits. In 2019, Juul discontinued several popular flavors, including mango, mint and creme, that were favored by teens.

The new device, to be marketed under the brand name Juul2, includes an optional age-verification system that requires users to unlock the e-cigarette via an online app, preventing underage use. The company also plans to offer updated versions of its tobacco- and menthol-flavored cartridges, and CEO K.C. Croswaite said Juul will market the system with a portfolio of flavors beyond tobacco and menthol targeted to adult nicotine consumers.

The FDA determination indicates that smokers who switch completely to Juul can reduce their exposure to deadly carcinogens and other chemicals found in traditional cigarettes. According to company studies reviewed by the FDA, between 20% and 50% of smokers who used Juul products were able to stop smoking at the end of six weeks, with quitting rates varying based on flavors and nicotine strengths. The FDA has authorized a handful of e-cigarettes to help adult smokers quit, including the first fruit-flavored e-cigarettes OK'd in May.

Regulators emphasized that the announcement is not an approval or endorsement, and that people who do not smoke should not use Juul or any other e-cigarettes. Juul is no longer the top-selling e-cigarette brand in the U.S., trailing Vuse, sold by Reynolds American. Teens have shifted away from Juul as part of a wider drop in vaping, with those who continue mostly using unauthorized disposable e-cigarettes imported from China.