Sports company Puma has introduced its state-of-the-art technology platform Fit Intelligence (Fi) designed to automate and fine-tune performance fit for Puma footwear.
The first Fi footwear style to be launched is a training shoe made for workouts and light running. It employs a micro-motor to power a configured cable system that “laces” the shoe, either through simply swiping on the Fi module up or down. It comes with a smart sensing capability that learns the shape of the foot of each user and adapts the fit of the shoe to the individual. Athletes can also monitor, adjust and fine-tune fit through a smartphone app. To make things more athlete-friendly, users can make on-the-fly adjustments with their Apple watch. The technology was built to train smart and designed for modern mobility. It can handle the urban landscape and the gym making it right for the daily routine of a connected generation.
“We have created a product that speaks to the future of sport which is life in motion,” said Charles Johnson, Puma’s global director of innovation. “It’s fast and changing all the time.”
Fit Intelligence can be deployed to a range of different sport and lifestyle products. It follows Puma’s vision for performance products that are adaptive, dynamic, and respond to athletes and their environment.
Puma has a 70-year history of being a leader in sports and innovation. In 1968, the brand crafted the first laceless sports shoe with Velcro straps, in 1991 the first cable closure with the Puma Disc and in 2016 the first ever wirelessly connected adaptive fit shoe called AutoDisc. The AutoDisc was the predecessor to Fit Intelligence. Since then, the company has been working tirelessly on improving functionality, user interface and durability.
The result is now a technology that’s smaller, lighter and more commercial with a breathable upper for more comfortable training sessions. It also comes with an industrial grade fiber support system strategically placed for optimal hold and a forefoot lockdown band.
The reveal event took place in Hong Kong, the global hub that connects beta technology with mass production. It is among the most diverse and hyper-connected urban settings on earth, fitting to the active mobile lifestyle, for which Fit Intelligence was designed. Attendees saw a video testimonial of Fi put to the test by global technology investment icon Bay McLaughlin. Technology professionals and fans got a real-world view on how Fi delivers to unmet needs of connected entrepreneurs.
“As a global investor in wearable technologies, I know how hard it is to get a product like Fi right,” McLaughlin said. “After my first week with the shoes, it’s clear that Puma is taking this platform very seriously and I’m impressed.”
The Fi training shoe will be available for consumers in 2020.
