Los Gatos, California-based Zepp Labs Inc secured $15 million in Series B funding to help sports enthusiasts track their performance, The Wall Street Journal blog Venture Capital Dispatch reported. Using wearable technology developed by the startup, amateur golfers, baseball players and tennis players will be able to monitor their game and enable them to pinpoint areas where they can improve on.
The round, which was led by GGV Capital, was also participated in by Legend Capital, Bertelsman and Cherubic Ventures. The financing closed in December last year and marked the second round which Zepp Labs closed within a year. The latest proceeds brought to $20 million the total venture capital raised by the firm so far, the report said.
Zepp Labs Chief Executive Jason Fass said the proceeds will be utilized to popularize the firm's products through a worldwide sales, marketing and brand campaign. It will also be used to fund the research and development of new products, make new apps and services and add more people to its workforce, the report said.
These wearable athletic apps and sensors are bright yellow squares which can be placed inside golfer's glove or at the grip end of a bat or racket. The purpose of these products is to store and send information about the athlete's performance, such as golfer's swing, to an application that can be accessed through a smartphone or tablet. Rechargeable through USB, these devices are compatible with iOS or Android, the report said.
Fass said that what coaches love about their sensors and the Zepp Motion Engine is the fact that there is immediate reporting, something that video replay cannot give. The sensors provide data regarding an athlete's speed, power, line of sight, acceleration and others, depending on the sport he or she is engaged in. In doing so, they will be able to leverage on their strengths during competitions and work on their weak spots, the report said.
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