Kai Kloepfer was in high school student in 2012 when 24-year-old James Holmes walked into an Aurora movie theater in, a half-hour drive from where Kloepfer lived. Holmes shot and killed 12 and injured 70 more. The incident caused Kloepfer to want to stop accidental shootings and suicides. Now 26, he is about to ship the world's first smart gun. PayPal cofounder Peter Thiel's fellowship program awarded Kloepfer $100,000 for dropping out of school to start his company.

Americans can now pre-order a'Smart Glock' that requires facial recognition and fingerprint technology to fire. Start-up firearms manufacturer Biofire is selling the futuristic-looking 9mm handgun for $1,500 with orders due to ship in 2024. The smart gun scans two forms of biometric ID, an optical fingerprint sensor and 3D infrared facial recognition, to ensure that only the gun's true owner can activate the firearm – cutting down on accidents and misused stolen weapons. The Broomfield, Colorado-based company hopes its pistol will put a dent in America's cycle of gun violence. More than 13,900 people have already been killed by guns in the U.S. in the first four months of 2023 alone, according to the nonprofit Gun Violence Archive.