FitFu
The business, the turning points, and the decisions behind them.
Some sections are still being researched1 / 4
Sections to complete：05
01 / WHAT IT BUILT
What the company did
FitFu was a Y Combinator (Winter 2010) iPhone app for casual desk exercise. Founded by Jof Arnold and Benjie Gillam, the London-based startup used animations and voice prompts to nudge desk workers into short bursts of movement, using the phone's accelerometer to count reps across 8 exercises, with a social layer to compete with friends. It had raised £120K in UK seed funding at launch.
02 / FitFu FAILURE REASONS
Failure factors
App Store monetization was insufficient even near the top of Health & Fitness, and the company ran out of money—leaving shutdown as the only option.
App Store income inadequate even at top of Health & Fitness.
money ran dry; only option was to shut down.
03 / EVENT HISTORY
Events in the structured record
- Product or service closed
FitFu removed from sale on 18 Sep 2012 with no further updates; social network kept until 31 Oct 2012 then shut. YC company page later states FitFu is closed.
04 / CONTEMPORARY REBUILD ASSESSMENT
Difficulty of rebuilding this project today
Material for this section is being gathered and checked. It will appear here once ready.
Overall assessment: Not completed
05 / CAUSAL CHAIN / AFTERMATH
Material for this section is being gathered and checked. It will appear here once ready.