London-based indoor cycling workout startup Zwift has closed a $120M round of funding, and one of the company's top execs said that the money will be "used to expand to more training categories and to add esports tournaments," according to Ingrid Lunden of TECH CRUNCH. Zwift is an "interactive platform for people to turn indoor cycling workouts into massive, multi-participant races, social rides, and immersive explorations." Causeway Media Partners, led by Celtics Managing Partner & CEO Wyc Grousbeck, was one of the participants in the funding round, and the investment "comes on the heels of very rapid growth for Zwift." The startup now has "over 1 million registered accounts, up from a mere 200,000 two years ago." Users range from amateur cycling enthusiasts and "people who cycle as part of fitness regimes," to professional athletes using it to supplement training. Zwift "isn't disclosing its valuation." However, Zwift co-Founder & CEO Eric Min said that the startup is "approaching unicorn status." Min said he believes the "upswing in e-sports could see the format getting ever-more mainstream acceptance." He said, "Our goal is to bring Zwift to the Olympics." Zwift's service "involves you providing your own bike, which you link up with a Zwift trainer (a rack-like piece of equipment that turns a bike into a stationary bike for indoor training), which in turn picks up your stats and adjusts tension and so on based on the course that you are riding." Customers cycle "in front of a TV typically to get the immersive effect, linked up to a Mac, Windows or iOS App (it's also on Apple TV)." There are "no plans at the moment for VR headsets or other head-based wearables." Cycling accounts for 98% of Zwift's "business at the moment, and running is just taking off" (TECHCRUNCH.com, 12/19).
