The newest deal comes from ReSpo.Vision based in Warsaw, Poland.

Founder(s): Paweł Ostreicher (CEO & Co-founder), Mateusz Szala (COO), Łukasz Grad (Chief Data Scientist)

Founding year: 2020

Industry: Sports tech

Problem: Watching football hasn’t fundamentally evolved in decades, and high-quality tracking data is costly to capture, limiting advanced analysis to only top-tier clubs.

Solution: ReSpo.Vision uses single-camera computer-vision and deep-learning to extract centimetre-accurate 3D tracking data and turn it into immersive “Digital Twin” replays and tactical analytics.

Customers: Broadcasters, rights-holders, football leagues & federations, individual clubs, sports-analytics platforms

Business model: B2B SaaS/licensing—selling tracking data streams, analytics services, overlays and immersive tools to broadcasters, federations, and clubs.

Team size: 15 full-time

Stage: Seed

Investment amount: €4.2 million

It will be spent on… Expanding products for broadcasters, rights-holders and digital platforms, scaling Digital Twin Technology, and broadening market reach.

In their own words: “The way we watch football hasn’t fundamentally changed since the 1960s,” said Paweł Osterreicher, CEO and Co-founder of ReSpo.Vision. “We’re using AI to break that barrier – putting fans on the pitch, giving broadcasters next-gen storytelling tools, while providing clubs and federations with elite tactical insight.”

Funded by: Vinci VC (Poland); Smartlink VC (Poland); Jan Bednarek (Poland); Marcin Zukowski (Poland); Amar Shah (UK)

‍ Investor’s perspective: Investors highlight ReSpo.Vision’s ability to bring elite-level data and immersive fan experiences to every tier of football, with potential to extend the tech beyond sport into sectors like defence and medicine.

“ReSpo.Vision confirms that technologies with global potential can be created in Poland,” says Bartosz Drabikowski, President of the Management Board of Vinci S.A.

“Our investment in ReSpo.Vision is in line with BGK’s strategic goals of supporting innovative, scalable Polish technologies and building a strong knowledge-based economy. We are pleased that through the Vinci Fund, we can support the development of a company that has the potential to become a global ambassador of Polish technological thought and, at the same time, support key areas for public security,” stressed Miroslaw Czekaj, President of the Management Board of Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego.”

Funding so far: €5.4M

Their specialty… Proprietary computer-vision system tracks 50+ body points per player in 3D from standard TV feeds, and renders hyper-realistic first-person match replays.

Traction: FIFA data-quality certification; clients include CONMEBOL Copa America 2024, Polish & Danish FAs, UEFA Champions League clubs

Here’s what today’s gym-goers are telling us through their foot traffic, according to new Placer.ai data that could influence pricing, programming and beyond

If it feels like fitness and wellness are having a moment, it’s not just hype.

A new report from Placer.ai, a firm specializing in consumer location analytics, reveals the impressive performance of the gym and health club sector as we hit the mid-point of the year. From evolving member habits to unexpected income patterns, Placer.ai’s insights reveal shifts that could impact everything from membership pricing, peak-hour programming and even floorplan and equipment decisions.

Here’s what the latest data tells us about the state of gyms in 2025:

The Gym Comeback Is in Full Swing

Gym-based fitness is thriving. Visits to fitness chains in Q1 2025 were 15.5% higher than Q1 2019 levels, marking a full rebound from the pandemic slump and then some.

Placer.ai attributes the uptick to several factors, including a desire for social connection, access to professional-grade facilities and a push for greater value as consumers cut back on discretionary spending and lean into their existing gym memberships.

Planet Fitness, a fan-favorite of Gen Z fitness consumers, ended Q1 with approximately 20.6 million members, an increase of about 900,000 from the end of 2024. The fitness giant has been promoting several seasonal deals this year and even opened its doors to non-members to kick back and relax with its HydroMassage chairs to beat tax season stress.

Resolution Season Shows Staying Power

In 2025, the “resolution crowd” is actually sticking around.

Unlike previous years, weekly gym visits in Q1 2025 grew steadily throughout the quarter — suggesting that New Year’s resolution momentum is lasting longer than usual. Despite brief dips during the weeks of January 20 and February 17, likely due to extreme weather, the sector still posted 2.4% year-over-year growth in overall visits.

Chuze Fitness, a high-value, low-price (HVLP) operator with locations in seven states, offers group classes and recovery options depending on location. The chain kicked off the year with a free seven-day pass for prospective new members and a campaign that embraced the common excuses members use to avoid hitting the gym — a unique, ‘keep-it-real’ approach that may have paid off. The fitness operator has also retrofitted several its Lift Lab studios, a key card access room outfitted with squat racks, platforms, glute machines and other equipment not typically seen on the main gym floor.

Gym-Goers Are Getting in Their Reps (and Recovery)

Visitor frequency is rising across leading fitness chains. In Q1 2025, more members worked out four or more times per month compared to the same period last year. Notably, it’s a trend held across both premium and budget gyms.

24 Hour Fitness is giving members a reason to linger, responding to consumer demand for recovery and performance tools with the launch of Recovery24 and Premium Fit24. Available at select clubs nationwide, Recovery24 gives members access to Hyperice Normatec compression therapy and Human Touch massage chairs in a spa-inspired setting, while Premium Fit24 offers members fully connected, intelligent training machines with built-in tutorials, personalized progression programs and workout tracking.

Cost Isn’t Dictating Loyalty

As Placer.ai points out, luxury athletic country club operator Life Time and EōS Fitness, a rapidly growing HVLP chain, recorded the highest shares of frequent visitors between January 2024 and March 2025, signaling that convenience, community and amenities may matter more than price when it comes to member loyalty.

The amenity-rich EoS Fitness, which plans to open 28 gyms by year’s end, is continuing to rollout Refresh, a new wellness-focused zone featuring popular recovery therapies like cold plunges, hot tubs and infrared saunas. For its part, Life Time continues to experience increased member engagement, with visits and revenue per membership at new highs. In addition to adding cold plunges at select Life Time locations, the upscale operator has teamed with luxury skincare brand Kiehl’s to add extra self-care panache inside select New York City clubs.

The New Face of Budget Fitness?

Though value-priced gyms are known for their affordability, Placer.ai data shows they’re increasingly attracting above-average income households. In Q1 2025, the median household income of visitors across all gym tiers exceeded the national median of $79.6K, suggesting that lower-income consumers may be ditching gym memberships altogether.

As Placer.ai suggests, the findings indicate that fitness chains at every price point may want to consider being strategic about the value and amenities they offer to keep budget-conscious members engaged.

See Also

Planet Fitness is expected to make a decision about a potential system-wide Black Card price adjustment following the anniversary of its Classic Card price increase, which took effect last June, bumping the Classic Card cost from $10 to $15 per month for new members.

More Time on the Floor May Mean Rethinking the Flow

The average gym visit length increased across all tiers between Q1 2022 and Q1 2025. Value gyms saw the biggest jump (from 72.4 to 74.0 minutes), possibly because members are trying to get more out of their single membership fee as other costs rise, according to the report.

Mid-range and high-end gyms saw more modest increases in visit length, though the firm notes that their averages were already higher, likely due to a variety of class schedules, spa offerings and other inviting amenities.

Still, as overall gym traffic grows, operators may want to closely monitor how long members are staying. As Placer.ai notes, floorplan and equipment improvements could help ease crowding, while offering trainer support on equipment usage and workout planning may help members make the most of their time and avoid gym floor bottlenecks.

Planet Fitness, which is again offering teens free club access this summer and bulked up its strength training offerings, recently revealed it’s currently experimenting with changes to club layouts. Crunch Fitness, meanwhile, has embarked on a new design template dubbed “Crunch 3.0,” which offers redesigned reception and lobby areas, improved group fitness studios, additional functional training areas with turf, more strength training equipment, a dedicated recovery studio and better personal training space.

Early Risers, Evening Warriors

High-end gyms dominate the 6 to 9 a.m. morning crowd, drawing nearly 20% of their visits during the early window. In contrast, value and mid-range gyms see peak traffic in the 6 to 9 p.m. evening slot, according to the report. For operators, the data offers several opportunities to adjust schedules, add classes, or roll out off-peak perks to spread out the crowd and improve the member experience.

Vasa Fitness, a Colorado-based HVLP gym chain, recently launched Studio, which offers boutique fitness-style group fitness classes. Earlier this year, Vasa added a strength training class, Studio LFT, to its lineup. According to the chain, the investment in a variety of group fitness offerings is meant to deliver a boutique-style experience without the boutique price tag.

Gaming and esports data company GRID Esports has introduced GRID Insights, an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered analytics product designed to enhance the viewing experience for esports broadcasts and betting applications.

This development signifies a notable advancement in leveraging AI for data-driven insights within the rapidly evolving esports commercial ecosystem.

The tool debuted during Season 3 of the Champion of Champions Tour (CCT) for Counter-Strike 2, where it provides real-time insights as matches progress.

Beyond Counter-Strike, GRID Insights is compatible with other prominent esports titles, including Dota 2, VALORANT, and League of Legends.

Its capability to deliver granular data not only enriches live broadcasts but also equips bookmakers with comprehensive information, facilitating informed betting for punters.

Commenting on the launch, CEO of GRID, Moritz Maurer, said: “With GRID Insights, we’re building the storytelling engine of live esports, powered entirely by official data.”

This approach highlights GRID’s commitment to utilising verified in-game data and real-time data pipelines to generate predictions, contextual statistics, and behavioural patterns, thereby automating processes that traditionally required dedicated human analyst teams.

This efficiency can have direct implications for operational costs and speed of content delivery for media partners and betting operators.

The introduction of GRID Insights marks GRID Esports’ second major product launch in 2025, following the earlier release of GRID Stream, a video solution for real-time video feeds for bookmakers.

The broader esports industry has shown an increasing integration of AI technology, with teams like Cloud9 and NRG adopting AI-driven chatbots for fan engagement.

Concurrently, advancements by researchers in South Korea have demonstrated an AI-powered in-game observer model to identify compelling match segments for viewers.

These parallel developments underscore a wider industry trend towards technological augmentation for both content delivery and fan interaction.

Don’t miss out on the latest in sports business – Subscribe today to the free Ministry of Sport newsletter and stay ahead of the game. For even more exclusive insights, event tickets, professional development and networking events, become a MoS Member today!.

As fan attendance rebounds and digital engagement surges, sports organisations face a pivotal moment: how to harness technology to elevate the fan experience, without compromising the authenticity of the game.

The latest report from the Capgemini Research Institute, Beyond the game: The new era of AI sports engagement, explores how AI, Gen AI, and data-driven innovation are reshaping the way fans connect with sports – both in the stadium and on the screen. The report findings are based on a global survey of over 12,000 fans in 11 countries across North and South America, Europe, and APAC, with additional insights from sports, media, and tech executives. Subscribe below to receive an advance copy straight to your inbox.

As fan attendance rebounds and digital engagement surges, sports organizations face a pivotal moment: how to harness technology to elevate the fan experience, without compromising the authenticity of the game.

The latest report from the Capgemini Research Institute, Beyond the game: The new era of AI sports engagement, explores how AI, Gen AI, and data-driven innovation are reshaping the way fans connect with sports – both in the stadium and on the screen. The report findings are based on a global survey of over 12,000 fans in 11 countries across North and South America, Europe, and APAC, with additional insights from sports, media, and tech executives. Subscribe below to receive an advance copy straight to your inbox.

Remember 23andMe? The company that gave customers saliva-based DNA testing kits to learn about their ancestry?

Founded in 2006, the company also conducted health research and drug development. But it struggled to find a profitable business model and eventually filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection back in March, raising concerns about the safety of customer data.

Well, 27 states and the District of Columbia on Monday filed a lawsuit in bankruptcy court seeking to block the sale of the company’s archive of genetic data without customer consent. The lawsuit comes as a biotechnology company seeks court’s approval to buy the struggling firm.

If you were a customer of 23andMe, you’re probably wondering what is going on with your data. It turns out you do have options if you want to protect your genetic self.

What happened to 23andMe?

23andMe filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection back in March. Anne Wojcicki, who co-founded the company nearly two decades ago and served as its CEO stepped down. The San Francisco-based company said that it would look to sell “substantially all of its assets” through a court-approved reorganization plan.

Wojcicki intends to bid on 23andMe as the company pursues a sale through the bankruptcy process. In a statement on social media, Wojcicki said that she resigned as CEO to be “in the best position” as an independent bidder.

23andMe said that filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection helps facilitate a sale of the company, meaning that it’s seeking new ownership. The company said it wants to pull back on its real estate footprint and has asked the court to reject lease contracts in San Francisco and Sunnyvale, California, and elsewhere to help cut costs. But the company plans to keep operating during the process.

I used the service, is my DNA data safe?

In a post about the Chapter 11 process, 23andMe said its users’ privacy and data are important considerations in any transaction and that any buyer will be required to comply with applicable laws when it comes to how it treats customer data.

But experts note that laws have limits. For one, the U.S. has no federal privacy law and only about 20 states do.

There are also security concerns. For instance, the turmoil of bankruptcy and related job cuts could leave fewer employees to protect customers’ data against hackers. It wouldn’t be the first time — a 2023 data breach exposed the genetic data of nearly 7 million customers at 23andMe, which later agreed to pay $30 million in cash to settle a class-action lawsuit accusing the company of failing to protect customers whose personal information was exposed.

Experts note that DNA data is particularly sensitive — and thus valuable.

“At a fundamental biological level, this is you and only you,” said David Choffnes, a computer science professor at Northeastern University and executive director of its Cybersecurity and Privacy Institute. “If you have an email address that gets compromised, you can find another email provider and start using a new email address. And you’re pretty much able to move on with your life without problem. And you just can’t do that with your genetic code.”

23andMe says it does not share information with health insurance companies, employers or public databases without users’ consent and with law enforcement only if required by a valid legal process, such as a subpoena. Choffnes said while that’s good, it’s a fairly narrow set of categories.

“There’s still other things that they are allowed to do with that data, including, as they mentioned, provide cross context, behavioral or targeted advertising,” he said. “So, you know, in a sense, even if they aren’t sending your personal data to an advertiser, there’s a long line of research that identifies how third parties can re-identify you from de-identified data by looking for patterns in it. And so if they’re targeting you with advertisements, for example, based on some information that they have about your genetic data, there’s probably a way that other parties could piece together other information they have access to.”

How can I delete my data from 23andMe?

California Attorney General Rob Bonta issued an urgent consumer alert before 23andMe filed for bankruptcy — noting the company’s financial distress and reminding people they have the right to have their data deleted.

If you have a 23andMe account, you can delete your data by logging in and going to “settings” and scrolling to a section called “23andMe Data” at the bottom of the page. Then, click “View,” download it if you want a copy then go to the “Delete Data” section and click “Permanently Delete Data.” 23andMe will email you to confirm and you will need to follow the link in the email to confirm your deletion request.

If you previously asked 23andMe to store your saliva sample and DNA, you can also ask that it be destroyed by going to your account settings and clicking on “Preferences.” And you can withdraw consent from third-party researchers to use your genetic data and sample under “Research and Product Consents.”

Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.