Homegrown data solutions firm DatsPro Technologies has introduced MyCelcius, a free contactless temperature tracking bot via the instant messaging platform Telegram. According to DatsPro’s cofounder and CEO Teh Khoon Kheng, MyCelcius was developed to help business owners systematically record the body temperature of visitors for reporting purposes and future reference. 

“During the Conditional Movement Control Order (CMCO), business owners are required to follow new standard operating procedures which include making sure staff members and customers have undergone temperature checks. They are also required to record these temperature readings, as well as their name, IC number, phone number and time of visit to help with contact tracing.

“Many of the business owners do not have a systematic way of recording this data. When we saw this problem, we decided to step in and offer them something that is user-friendly and requires no new technologies. That is why we decided to introduce this feature on Telegram. Many are already familiar with the app, so it is not difficult for them to familiarise themselves with how it works,” says Teh. 

To start, business owners can search for MyCelcius on the Telegram app. After a brief registration process, users can begin logging in the data such as IC numbers, mobile numbers, temperature readings and check-in locations of the business owners, staff members and visitors.

The Excel report of the data recorded can be generated and sent to the business owners immediately. All data is stored privately and securely by Amazon Web Services.

“Visitors can choose to do a self check-in if they are uncomfortable with saying their personal information out loud at the premises. If they don’t have the Telegram app installed on their phones, they can provide their information manually and business owners can help them to check-in,” says DatsPro chief technology officer Liew Zi Qing.

Although Telegram is not the most popular instant messaging platform in Malaysia, it is becoming increasingly well-known. In fact, even Malaysian governmental bodies such as the National Security Council and the Ministry of Health are using it to spread up-to-date information to the masses. It is also a popular platform for developers to provide bots like MyCelcius.

“After we rolled out MyCelcius, we realised that a lot of business owners are using Telegram, but are not aware of the functions they can use to improve their businesses. Many of them came to us to ask for other features that they can leverage on. We are happy to help them realise that digital solutions do not necessarily mean expensive, cutting-edge software,” says DatsPro chief marketing officer Kelvin Tian.   

DatsPro is not looking to monetise MyCelcius. It is, however, looking at other ways to provide value to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Malaysia. Teh says DasPro was founded to help local SMEs realise the importance of collecting data to improve and harness the full potential of their businesses.

“We are constantly reaching out to SMEs to understand how we can help them to transform into data-driven businesses. That is our founding spirit. 

“We find that a lot of Malaysian SMEs are facing common problems such as difficulties in recording data that can be used to increase their operational efficiency. Going forward, we will be focusing on providing solutions to these businesses to help them carry out their digital transformation journey without breaking the bank,” says Teh.