Former White House Chef Sam Kass Joins Food Tech Startup

A veteran of the White House's kitchen has joined a California-based startup, according to BusinessWire. Sam Kass, who became the country's first Senior White House Food Policy Adviser while serving as the Obamas' chef, will bring his culinary expertise to Innit, a company that wants to use technology to change the way people eat and "to help people manage and prepare their food with ease." Kass will function as Innit's chief consumer experience officer.

During his time in the White House, Kass also served as executive director of Michelle Obama's Let's Move! campaign and became a noted advocate for families cooking at home and a staunch believer in organic gardening. Kass stepped down from his White House role in 2014. Now, he will bring his expertise to Innit as the company prepares for a public demonstration of its technology in New York City in May.

Innit was founded in 2013 according to its website. In 2015 the company raised $25 million from investors. Though the company's products sound mysterious, Innit's technology uses sensors to measure a food's weight, temperature, portion size, and other variables, and then uses that data to calculate the ideal times and temperatures needed to cook those foods, according to Inc. The company — run by an all-male team of chief officers, professors, educators, scientists, data engineers, biotechnicians, and policy wonks — wants to see this technology built into appliances, like refrigerators, to change the way people approach cooking.

"By bringing the right technology into the equation, we can unlock information within food to help people with food management, preparation and cooking. We can tackle some of the toughest food challenges for consumers and get people cooking more often at home, which is the foundation of a healthier lifestyle," Kass said in a release.