Fitness technology startup and TechCrunch 50 finalist FitBit is announcing the availability of its beta API today, and is revealing a number of partners that have integrated its health platform. The company offers a device called the Fitbit Tracker and a companion web-based fitness data aggregation technology that tracks weight, nutrition, exercise, sleeping schedules and other health related data for users. You can read more about how FitBit works here.
The Fitbit Tracker is an compact wearable device that clips onto clothing or slips into a pocket and captures, through accelerometer technology, information about daily health activities, such as steps taken, distance traveled, calories burned, exercise intensity levels and sleep quality. The activity data collected by the Fitbit Tracker can then be wirelessly uploaded to the Fitbit website where users access all of the data and track progress toward personal and group goals. Users can also log nutrition, weight and other health information on the site in order to gain a complete picture of their health.
The Fitbit API allows third-party developers to integrate Fitbit data in their own applications, products and services and also to read and write data for users’ Fitbit activities, food logs and other data in real time. For example, fitness and weight loss apps RunKeeper and Lose It allow users to import and publish data into into their apps. About.me users will be able to display real Fitbit stats on their profile through use of the API and Microsoft HealthVault allows users to upload daily activities and sleep sessions into HealthVault. And Last Fall, FitBit announced an integration with Google Health.
The use cases of data from API itself is flexible, says Tim Roberts, VP of Interactive of Fitbit. Roberts says other uses of Fitbit data include data mash-ups with other personal health monitoring tools, and deep integration with Twitter, Facebook, tablets, smart phones and more.
Fitbit is also announcing that it recently raised $9 million in new funding led by The Foundry Group with existing investors True Ventures and SoftTech VC participating in the round. This brings Fitbit’s total funding to $11 million.
This funding, says CEO James park, will be used for new product development and for future expansion of sales channels. Already, Fitbit has expanded its footprint in retail channels and is currently available for sale at BestBuy, REI and 24HourFitness retail operations. The startup is also rolling out an affiliate program for partners, allowing app promoters to earn revenue from sales of Fitbit Trackers.
Also, Fitbit would love to hear from TechCrunch readers on innovative things to do with the startup’s API. Leave your ideas in comments and Fitbit will pick the 10 best ideas, and will give those readers free Fitbit Trackers.
Fitbit inspires people to exercise more, eat better and live healthier lifestyles. The company is developing an ultra-compact wireless wearable sensor, called the Fitbit Tracker, that automatically tracks data about a person’s activities, such as calories burned, sleep quality, steps and distance. The Fitbit Tracker collects activity data automatically while it is worn by the user all day. The collected data is wirelessly uploaded to a website where the wearer can see their data and track their progress toward personal goals. The website...
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