When it comes to understanding how our own bodies are performing, we have very little information. You could feel great Monday and get a cold Tuesday; sleep eight hours Wednesday and still feel tired Thursday. While this lack of information might not affect the average person on a day-to-day basis, for elite athletes, body knowledge is crucial.
That’s where WHOOP comes in.
The Boston-based startup, which raised a $25 million Series C round today, creates lightweight, waterproof bands that can track an athlete’s sleep, recovery and strain, providing a continuous understanding of their body to help reduce injuries and predict performance.
Whether you’re training for a triathlon or an Olympic gold medal in swimming, WHOOP provides data on everything from how much you exerted yourself during your workout to how much sleep you need to recover. It even calculates a breakdown of how much time you spent in each wave of sleep.
“We are at a unique moment in time in that humans are just now discovering what allows them to perform at the highest level,” Will Ahmed, founder and CEO, said in a press release. “Our mission at WHOOP remains focused on unlocking human performance.”
The funding was led by UAE71 Capital with participation from the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA), Durant Company, Thursday Ventures and existing investors. According to a press release, the financing will go toward accelerating WHOOP’s international expansion and growing its elite and consumer markets.
The funding comes on the heels of a major year for WHOOP. In 2017, the startup was approved for in-game use by Major League Baseball, landed a partnership as the official recovery wearable of the NFLPA and was used by a handful of National Basketball Association stars as well as the Duke University men’s basketball team.
WHOOP is currently growing its Boston-based team. If you’re a talented developer or have major marketing chops, they just might want to see your resume.
