Fitness Startup Funding Rebounds as Investors Favor AI, Data and Wearables

Fitness and wellness startup investment totaled more than $3.6 billion in the first half of 2026, putting the year on pace to come in about a third higher than 2025, according to Crunchbase News. The rebound follows a weak 2025, described as the lowest sum for wellness-related startup funding in at least six years. The key shift: capital is concentrating into fewer, larger bets, signaling a more selective market.

H1 2026’s largest rounds included Whoop’s $575 million Series G in March, Devoted Health’s $366 million Series F at the beginning of the year, and Solace’s $130 million Series C in February. Solace connects patients with professional healthcare advocates for complex medical journeys including cancer, rare-disease management and substance abuse treatment. These deals contrast with pandemic-era enthusiasm for connected fitness hardware, with Tonal and Hydrow cited as examples of companies that raised large sums during peak years but have not received new investment in more than three years.

Investors have not abandoned hardware entirely; the more compelling 2026 pitch is hardware that collects continuous health data and uses AI to deliver personalized fitness and wellness guidance. Alongside Whoop, Eight Sleep raised a $50 million Series D, Ultrahuman secured about $44 million in Series C funding, and Temple raised a $54 million seed round. Temple’s wearable focuses on brain-centered health and performance metrics, including cerebral blood flow and a proprietary measure called Entropy.

Crunchbase News expects continued investor interest in AI-powered wellness offerings, including longevity, mental health, sleep and athletic performance. The article also points to funding opportunities for devices that act as data-collection layers for AI-driven health platforms, while cautioning against a broad return to expensive home-gym gadgets without strong software, data or healthcare components. More exits could come through M&A or private equity roll-ups, while likely IPO candidates named by Crunchbase predictive intelligence tools include Whoop, Oura, Spring Health and Fountain Life.