FDA Authorizes Age-Gated Glas Vape Device

Last week the FDA authorized the sale of the pod-based Glas G2 vape device, making it the 10th currently available e-liquid-based vape device with a marketing granted order (MGO). The agency also authorized the Blonde Tobacco-flavored pod (in 50 mg/mL nicotine strength) for the device.  

The G2 is the first vape product authorized by the FDA that employs built-in age-gating technology, which must be activated before the device can be used. 

Glas Inc., an independent vape business located in Los Angeles, is the only vape company with an authorized product that isn't either currently owned by or had a previous affiliation with the tobacco industry. Logic, NJOY and Vuse are all owned by major tobacco companies, and Juul Labs was partially owned by Altria Group between 2018 and 2023.

No FDA announcement or press release

The authorization was not announced with an FDA press release. The Glas device was added to the agency’s list of authorized e-cigarettes without fanfare. This is the first instance of a vape product earning marketing authorization without an announcement by the FDA.

On Dec. 20, 2025, a PDF appeared in Google alerts showing the FDA had added the Glas device and multiple Glas pods to its authorized list, but the list itself was never actually updated. According to industry advocate Gregory Conley, who discovered the PDF, two of the flavors listed were neither tobacco nor menthol. The FDA attributed the error to a technical glitch.

All Glas pod flavors aside from the authorized Blonde Tobacco remain under FDA review. Glas submitted premarket tobacco product applications (PMTAs) for the product in July 2021.

In December 2025, Juul Labs and its affiliate VMR Products filed a complaint with the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), alleging that some Glas products infringe Juul patents. An ITC investigation is underway.

Will age-gating tech change the flavor game?

In a statement posted on LinkedIn, Glas Chief Operating and Financial Officer Kevin Higgins said he remained “optimistic about the imminent path to authorization for the full suite of Glas G2 products, including our menthol and flavored pods.”

Many in the vape industry see age-gating technologies as the magical key to a future in which non-tobacco/non-menthol flavors can be sold with FDA permission. Many manufacturers—including Juul Labs and major tobacco companies—have submitted PMTAs for next-generation products using various age-gating technologies.

However, in its recently proposed industry guidance update, the FDA says that age-gating technologies alone would probably not be sufficient “to overcome the heightened concerns associated" with what it calls “youth-appealing flavors.” In other words, manufacturers will still be required to conduct randomized controlled trials or longitudinal cohort studies to prove non-tobacco flavors work better than tobacco flavors to aid in smoking cessation—even if they install expensive age-gating tech to prevent teenagers from using them. (Glas has done those studies, by the way.)

The Glas G2 device, according to Glas CEO Sean Greenbaum, requires users to pair it with a Bluetooth-enabled smartphone, download an app, upload a selfie and images of their drivers license, and then use the device while in proximity to the phone.

Without the ability to legally sell non-tobacco/non-menthol flavors, age-gating tech appears more like a burden than a benefit to a manufacturer. Consumers are unlikely to choose a product that requires them to jump through hoops to activate when they can simply choose one of the other authorized tobacco- or menthol-flavored products that works right out of the package.

And even if the FDA does authorize age-gated products in fruit or candy flavors, consumers already have access to thousands of unauthorized disposable vapes in every flavor imaginable.