Gaming dental hygiene is now a thing.

The Internet of Things leverages chip technology, data analytics, and the cloud to make machines that not only work for us, but know us. A toothbrush called Grush extends the inroads of IoT technology into our daily lives.

Grush makes a children’s toothbrush that connects to both a mobile game for kids and a dashboard for parents, in a bid to ensure youngsters learn the proper way to clean their teeth.

An embedded Intel chip in the toothbrush collects dates, times, accuracy, duration and other usage data. That information is relayed to IBM Bluemix via a JavaScript runtime, allowing the toothbrush, the mobile game app and the parental dashboard to work together in real time.

The Watson Analytics platform interprets the data and determines whether the user is about to stop brushing before all the teeth have been properly cleaned. If that’s the case, Grush will alert the kid (and his or her parents) that there’s more work to do.

Grush and IBM first connected in 2014 at Smart Camp, where the fledgling IoT startup impressed judges. Grush later joined IBM’s Global Entrepreneur program, where the startup has used Bluemix to develop and scale its cloud-based smart toothbrush and smartphone app.

Using the IBM Cloud Architecture Center allowed Grush to refer to IoT, data analytics and mobile material and expertise as it worked, skipping some of the trial-and-error process in developing its interactive device.

For a free trial of IBM Bluemix, click here.

For a free trial of IBM Watson Analytics, click here.

To apply to IBM’s Global Entrepreneur program, click here.