Metagen's Chomusubi turns 'poop' donation into a health app — ADFEST 2026 Gold

Metagen Therapeutics needs a steady supply of high-quality stool from healthy Japanese donors to make fecal-microbiota-transplant drugs, but certification is demanding and most people are repelled by the idea of donating stool.

Reframe stool donation as life-saving medicine: an app that turns screening into a gut-health discovery journey, paired with a calm, private donation room.

The Chomusubi web app guides donors through screening, returns a visual gut-microbiota report, and rewards continued giving with medals and health tips; the Tsuruoka Kemben Room pairs a custom non-flushing toilet, private booths and a direct transfer box to the on-site lab.

Japan's first stool-donation platform drew over 500 applications within two months — exceeding its planned annual intake despite recruitment limited to one region — and in June 2025 Metagen began manufacturing a clinical-trial drug from donor stool. It won ADFEST 2026 Sustainable Lotus Gold and a Red Dot Design Award.

Metagen Therapeutics, a microbiome biotech born out of Juntendo, Keio and Tokyo University of Science, needs large amounts of high-quality stool from healthy donors to produce fecal-microbiota-transplant (FMT) drugs for ulcerative colitis, intestinal cancers and Parkinson's disease. The bottleneck was recruitment: getting certified as a donor requires extensive screening, and most people find donating stool unappealing.

Instead of simply advertising for donors, Metagen and dentsu designed the act itself. Chomusubi, Japan's first stool-donation platform, combines a web app with a dedicated donation facility. The app turns burdensome screening into a journey of self-discovery: after testing, donors receive a visual report on the diversity of their own gut microbiota, plus health tips, milestones and a medal system that reward sustained giving. The Tsuruoka Kemben Room offers private booths, a calm lounge, a custom non-flushing donation toilet and a post box that carries samples straight to the adjacent lab.

Launched in Tsuruoka City, Yamagata in April 2025, the platform collected over 500 applications within two months — more than its planned annual intake, even though recruitment was limited to the local Shonai region. By June 2025 Metagen had begun manufacturing a clinical-trial drug from donated stool. The project won the ADFEST 2026 Sustainable Lotus Gold, a Red Dot Design Award and an ACC TOKYO CREATIVITY AWARDS Bronze.

The insight treats the real barrier — revulsion and bureaucratic burden — as a design problem rather than a marketing one.

Turning screening into a gut-health report gives donors a personal payoff, so altruism and self-interest reinforce each other.

The physical facility removes friction with a non-flushing toilet, private booths and direct transfer to the lab, making the act feel safe and dignified.

Gamification — medals, milestones and health tips — sustains repeat donations instead of chasing one-off volunteers.

Japan's first-mover positioning made the platform newsworthy, drawing media and regional partnerships that amplified recruitment.

To make a repellent ask attractive, redesign the act instead of pushing it harder: turn the most demanding step into self-knowledge and dignity, and supply follows demand.

After the April 2025 launch, applications outpaced the planned annual intake within two months, and in June 2025 production of a clinical-trial drug from donor stool began. The work collected the ADFEST 2026 Sustainable Lotus Gold, a Red Dot Design Award (Design Concept, Ready for Market) and an ACC TOKYO CREATIVITY AWARDS Bronze in Design. Metagen announced plans to open further donation facilities and expand the platform nationwide, starting with Tokyo, in partnership with hospitals and regional companies.