IPVM also points out that it's unusual for a surveillance tech company to be selling high-end thermal cameras and software via an e-commerce site with a "shopping cart," which Athena continues to do. Athena CEO Lisa Falzone told Fast Company they took that approach so that customers wouldn't have to wait for weeks to get the technology. IPVM demonstrated that the price of Athena's "Coronavirus Detection System" shown on the website has risen from $3,900 as of March 17 to $8,900 on March 23. Athena CTO Chris Ciabarra says the price of the software-hardware solution can fluctuate with the prices and availability of the thermal cameras used. With the U.S. lagging other countries in the distribution of coronavirus testing kits, health authorities have had to look to other means of detection, like the infrared ear thermometers used in some countries.

Unlike the thermometers, which work one person at a time and at close range, Athena Security's security camera detection system may be far better for scanning larger numbers of people in places like airports, grocery stores, hospitals, and voting locations. The company's thermal cameras are already in use at a coworking space in Austin, and will be deployed in some "large Fortune 500 companies" and some airports in the coming weeks, but Athena says it can't divulge the names of those customers yet. The cameras can detect the heat of 12 different places on the body with an accuracy of within a ½ degree, says Athena CEO Lisa Falzone. The company's software, which works with high-grade, off-the-shelf security cameras, uses an AI model to zoom in on a subject's inner eye, which is most reflective of the body's actual temperature, she said. The system uses AI to monitor numerous cameras at once, and automatically sends an alert to security personnel if it detects someone with a fever.