Aviron announced today it has raised $18.5 million in its latest round of funding. It plans to bring more entertainment options, including Netflix, to its line of smart rowing machines, to augment the gamified experience for users.
Stripes led the round, with participation from Global Founders Capital, Formic Ventures, and 24-Hour Fitness founder Mark Mastrov. According to Aviron, it plans to use this funding to increase its team and expand its content library. In addition to the funding, Aviron added Amy Curry-Staschke as COO.
Aviron’s connected smart rowers have built-in touchscreens that feature a number of games meant to be played while exercising. Andy Hoang, Aviron’s founder and CEO, said in a statement, “From the ground up, we purposely created the rower to work as one with our ever-growing library of content (video games, streaming entertainment, live races, virtual destinations, etc.) … Our unique integration of video game elements and the comradery of competition makes the workout experience far more enjoyable. Let’s face it, you’ll work out longer and harder when it’s fun.”
With regards to its entertainment content, Aviron says, “We have a ton of new content and feature releases in the works including the addition of popular streaming entertainment platforms like Netflix coming this quarter.”