Puma turns to robotics to keep runners in top form

Clothing companies are dabbling more in technology these days because of the emergence of the wearables market. Puma’s new tech product, however, has nothing to do with clothing or wearables and is a unique appeal to its more competitive consumers. Puma partnered with J. Walter Thompson New York to create the BeatBot, an autonomous robot on wheels that can follow lines around a track using IR sensors to help runners pace themselves. The logic of JWT and Puma is that competing against a physical object is more motivating than racing against a clock, which is the best solution offered by wrist wearables so far.

The design of the BeatBot itself is relatively simple. It is effectively a box on wheels; nothing fancy. The lack of frills is what professional athletes need. The robot does one thing and it does it well. BeatBot is being advertised as capable of keeping pace with Usain Bolt, the world record holder for the 100m sprint and the fastest human ever recorded at 44kph. Runners need not try to keep up with that pace, though. A smartphone app allows runners to put in the time they want to beat for a given distance and BeatBot will keep that pace.

BeatBot is not yet available to everyone. Only Puma-sponsored athletes and teams can get it, and JWT executive creative director told Fast Company that the current cost of the product makes it prohibitively expensive for the average consumer. China suppliers currently make various service robots, but the racing robot market is not big enough to attract a lot of competition. Now that people are aware such a market exists, it fits in with other technology, helping athletes improve in specific sports such as swing trackers for golf clubs and baseball bats.