Over the past year, Peloton — the connected fitness firm and everyone’s favorite way to get yelled at by bike instructors — has seen its valuation explode nearly 4x to $31B.
To paraphrase Spideman, with great expectations come great responsibilities.
And Peloton is trying to meet those expectations by acquiring startups…
… in the hardware, AI, and wearables spaces
According to Bloomberg, Peloton quietly dropped ~$78m at the end of 2020 and earlier this year on:
- Aiqudo: AI-powered voice assistant technology.
- Atlas Wearables: Smartwatch maker that provides workout instruction and tracks fitness levels.
- Otari: A maker of interactive workout mats.
The tech and engineering talent gives Peloton options in the types of fitness-y services it can upsell from its core bike and treadmill products.
Peloton is spreading its wings
According to Pymnts, the company recently launched:
- A partnership with Adidas on a performance line of apparel
- On-demand fitness classes for its bike and the Peloton app
While Peloton just posted its first $1B+ quarter, it is seeing significant shipping delays on its bikes. The company’s December acquisition of fitness equipment maker Precor for $420m is meant to help meet the demand.
At the end of the day, if people can’t get yelled at by the bike instructors, these other acquisitions will be moot.
