When Zomato founder and CEO Deepinder Goyal appeared on Raj Shamani’s popular podcast Figuring Out, viewers noticed something unusual. A small metallic device was stuck near his temple, and it quickly became a talking point on social media. Many people were curious and confused. Some joked that it looked like chewing gum, while others compared it to an “external SSD”, a patch, or even a small charging device.

Soon, the truth behind the mysterious gadget came out. The device is called Temple, an experimental wearable designed to track blood flow to the brain in real time. Unlike fitness bands or smartwatches, Temple focuses on what is happening inside the brain rather than tracking steps or heart rate.

The idea behind Temple is simple but ambitious. It aims to continuously monitor how blood circulates through the brain. Scientists believe that blood flow to the brain plays an important role in brain health and ageing. By studying this data over long periods, researchers hope to understand how the brain changes as people grow older and why certain age-related problems occur.

Deepinder Goyal’s interest in Temple is not just for show. He has reportedly been testing the device himself for about a year. According to his interviews and social media posts, the device was developed as part of research into what he calls the Gravity Ageing Hypothesis. This theory suggests that gravity, over many decades, may slowly affect blood circulation in the body, including blood flow to the brain, which could influence ageing.

The Temple device is part of Goyal’s personal research initiative called Continue Research, which is funded entirely by him. Reports say he has invested around $25 million (approximately Rs 225 crore) into this research.

It is important to note that Temple is not a Zomato product. It is still in the experimental stage and is not available to the public. It is also not being sold as a consumer health device.

Despite this, the device’s appearance on the podcast led to a flood of memes, jokes and discussions online. Many experts say that wearable technology for monitoring brain health is an active area of research, but such devices are usually tested in laboratories or clinical settings. Using them openly in daily life is still uncommon.

For now, Temple remains more of a research tool than a commercial gadget. Whether it will one day become a widely used health device or remain a niche scientific experiment is yet to be seen. Still, its brief viral moment has sparked fresh interest in brain health and ageing research.