smarter starter
Unlock your starter’s secrets for a better bake every time.
Breadwinner makes it easy.
Breadwinner knows when your starter is bake-ready by learning how it grows.
Raise the perfect starter
Stop guessing when your starter is ready: the single biggest improvement you can make as a sourdough baker is knowing how and when your starter is most active. Breadwinner send you a notification when your starter is ready to bake.
Don’t give your yeast the cold shoulder
Breadwinner will automatically let you know if your starter gets too hot or too cold!
Track your colony’s performance
Get a quick overview of how your starter is feeling and how it’s feeling relative to past feedings.
How it Works
Heads up! This is a prototype. But Fred’s been building it and using it for the last year. Here’s how it’s built:
- • Fits a standard Ball widemouth 16oz mason jar
- • Dual component lid for easy cleaning
- • WiFi 802.11b/g/n connectivity
- • Infrared sensor measures starter height
- • Ambient air temperature readings
- • Robust data logging onto 8gb SD card
- • LED for visual feedback of status
- • Single button interface for marking feedings
- • Standard micro-USB power cable
Once you set up your Breadwinner your starter’s data will automatically appear on your starter's profile page.
Breadwinner knows when your starter is bake-ready by learning how it grows.
Get the data behind your starter’s secret life.
Breadwinner gives you detailed minute-by-minute graphs representing your starter’s height and its temperature. Compare different feedings on the same axes to truly understand how your starter is feeling over time.
Want to see some real data?
Breadwinner has been in a private beta with half-a-dozen devices in the wild. Check out some real live starter data from Tim, Delilah, Lenny, Marvin IV, and Rutherford Air.
This is just the beginning...
Breadwinner was inspired by various DIY starter monitoring projects (see Justin K. Lam’s research and this Reddit post), but this is the first time a device is available for purchase.
We know that each starter has its own character and the type of flour, amount of water, and general conditions it lives in will change it.
Our hope is that with many people uploading their data to Breadwinner, we can learn from thousands of different types of starters.
Eventually, Breadwinner will be manufactured at scale, and we'll be able to bring the price point down.
Begin Learning now
Our public beta has sold out for now.
Thank you for your interest in Breadwinner, but unfortunately due to overwhelming demand, we've had to limit the public beta program for now.
We are doing everything we can to open it up again soon, so make sure you are signed up to Breadwinner (pssst...you look like a new user, sign up here ) and we'll make sure you are the first to know when additional units are available for purchase.
Still curious? Drop us a line directly at [email protected]
WARNING:
This is beta hardware! There’s a good chance you’ll encounter bugs and other issues when operating this device. We recommend you back up your starter before using.