Strava, the activity tracking and social community platform used by over 100 million people worldwide, has acquired Fatmap, a European company building a high-definition 3D global map platform for the outdoors. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Founded in 2009, Strava has emerged as one of the standout activity tracking services. It has proven particularly popular with cycling and running fraternities who use the Strava app to plan routes, converse with fellow athletes, and record every move for posterity via GPS. The company is increasingly targeting hikers, and last year it launched new trail sports and route options aimed at walkers, mountain bikers and trail runners.
Fatmap was founded ten years ago with an initial focus on providing high-definition digital maps for ski resorts. In the meantime, the company has worked with various satellite and aerospace companies to enhance the platform with detailed maps that incorporate peaks, rivers, passes, trails, huts, etc., to show exactly what a person stepping into a mountainous area does. We’ve provided the information you need to know. Encounter them before they arrive.
Fatmap behavior image credit: Fat Map / Strava
With 1.6 million registered users, Fatmap’s mission is to ultimately become the Google Map of the outdoors. A premium subscription ($30/year) gives access to additional features such as downloadable maps and route planning in the mobile app.
integration
Strava’s ultimate long-term goal is to integrate Fatmap’s core platform into Strava itself, but that’s a resource-intensive task that won’t happen overnight. So Strava is working on creating a single sign-on (SSO) integration soon. This means the subscriber will be able to access Fatmap’s full feature set by logging into her Fatmap app using her Strava credentials.
Strava and Fatmap remain separate products for now, but Strava said it will decide in the future whether Fatmap will continue as a standalone product after technical integration takes place.
CEO and co-founder Michael Horvath, who stepped down in 2013, said the Fatmap acquisition was part of Strava’s “continued investment in delivering best-in-class digital experiences” for active lifestyles. says there is.
“In contrast to other map platforms designed for navigating roads and cities, Fatmap created maps specifically designed to help people explore the outdoors,” Horvath told TechCrunch. said in a Q&A. We enable Fatmap technology across all Strava services, empowering everyone to discover and plan outdoor experiences with curated local guides, points of interest and safety information. “
As for the timescale, Strava says it has set up a dedicated team to handle the Fatmap integration, which it expects to start appearing within Strava from around mid-2023. The company also stressed that Fatmap’s technology will be available to both free and paid Strava members, but certain features related to maps, discovery and route planning will be reserved for paying subscribers.
Strava provided TechCrunch with the following mockup to show what Fatmap might look like within Strava’s future incarnations.
Strava/Fatmap Integration Mockup
Since its inception, Strava has raised more than $150 million in funding from high-profile backers, including respected Silicon Valley investor Sequoia Capital, but the company has undergone many acquisitions in its 14-year history. not involved in Strava acquired injury prevention app Recover Athletics last May for an undisclosed sum, and today we learn that Strava has also acquired his 2021 online athlete community, Prokit.
Clearly, it would have taken too much time and resources for Strava to replicate the proprietary 3D mapping technology developed by Fatmap from scratch.
“Strava’s primary goal is to bring digital experiences to the center of active people’s lives. It involves giving people a complete picture of their lifestyle,” said Horvath. “This concept drives a lot of our strategic thinking and product roadmap. We are looking for something that can accelerate our strategic vision to create.”
Fatmap is incorporated in the UK and some of its employees are based there, but most of its 50 employees are spread across offices in France, Germany and Lithuania. According to Strava, the Fatmap team is working closely together and each will continue to report to Fatmap founder and CEO Misha Gopaul, who will serve as his VP of Products for Strava, giving him access to Strava’s best products and Report to Steve Lloyd, Technical Director.
Strava hasn’t disclosed how much it paid Fatmap, but the startup has only raised about $8 million, so the deal is unlikely to break Strava’s bank. Together with the acquisition, we aim to make Strava more appealing to more people than just cycling and running.
