Whoop portable fitness.
Courtesy: Oops
Wearable fitness tracker Whoop announced Friday that it will introduce in-app access to licensed clinicians on-demand for users in the United States.
The new feature comes with a suite of health and AI-powered features launching globally that will allow users to connect their continuous biometric data with real-time medical advice.
Most of the new features are included in the membership price, although live video consultation for US users will incur an additional cost. Pricing and details will be available when this option launches this summer, according to the company.
“Whoop is membership, and we take that seriously,” Ed Baker, Whoop’s chief product officer, said in the press release. “We’re always asking ourselves how we can deliver more value to our members, and these upcoming features are some of the most meaningful we’ve ever created.”
Whoop, which has more than 2.5 million users worldwide, closed a $575 million funding round in March that raised the company’s valuation to $10.1 billion, it said.
Medical consultations will begin with a comprehensive evaluation of the data collected by the device and, when available, blood tests and medical history, the company said in its statement.
A spokesperson told CNBC that the video consultation feature is designed to supplement a user’s existing care, not to replace a primary care physician or emergency department. The company declined to say whether the service would be able to provide prescriptions to users.
“As our coaching data and insights have become more advanced and personalized, the next step is to give members access to a holistic understanding of their overall health,” Will Ahmed, CEO of Whoop, told CNBC.
The update also includes a partnership with medical records manager HealthEx. Users will be able to track diagnoses, medications and procedures directly in the Whoop app and receive personalized AI-powered coaching and proactive check-in reminders.
This comes less than a year after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration sent Whoop a warning letter regarding its Blood Pressure Insights feature. The FDA said Whoop was marketing an unauthorized medical device intended to diagnose, cure, treat or prevent disease.
However, new FDA guidance released in January allows optical sensing blood pressure measurements in wellness devices, as long as they make no “medical grade” diagnostic claims.