Why it matters to you
Looking for a way to run faster and longer? SHFT IQ, a new virtual reality coach, may be able to help.
Being a better runner starts from the ground up, literally, with your shoe choice being of paramount importance. But now, there’s another device that goes on your shoe that could also be an integral part of improving your form. Meet SHFT IQ, a little clip-on that calls itself “the world’s first virtual running coach with artificial intelligence.”
Thanks to this small piece of a hardware, a triangular piece that can be clipped onto your shoe or worn around your waist like a belt, you’ll be able to have an AI-based coach track and analyze your full-body running style and statistics. But this isn’t just some fitness tracker that gives you stats at the end of your run — rather, SHFT IQ promises to translate your running data into simple, actionable, and real-time coaching. That means that you’ll always have a voice in your ear telling you exactly how to improve your performance with every step and every run.
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Hoping to help you achieve longer and faster runs, SHFT IQ claims to be based on extensive research on running, running technique, and metabolic costs of running movement. With years of combined experience and hundreds of hours of video analysis, the SHFT IQ team believes it has produced a reliable virtual coach.
When you place the pod on either your foot or your chest, SHFT IQ claims to measure your body movements using Intel’s Curie module. This data is then sent to the companion app via Bluetooth, and runners will receive verbal, real-time instructions on their form. Every new user begins with a screening run, which allows SHFT IQ to establish his or her baseline running technique. From this initial session, the virtual coach chooses the initial training focus based on which metric has the biggest opportunity for improvement.
With just under two weeks left in its campaign, SHFT IQ has about $20,000 left to raise to bring this virtual coach into reality. You can grab one of these wearables yourself for the early bird price of $69, with an estimated delivery date of September 2017.