Today NIKE, Inc. announces the 10 companies that are participating in its Nike+ Accelerator program powered by TechStars. The program leverages the success of the Nike+ platform by connecting with viable companies that share a commitment to helping people lead more active lives.
"We are excited by the response to the Nike+ Accelerator and the high caliber of applicants to the program," said Stefan Olander, Nike VP of Digital Sport. "We recently celebrated the first year of NikeFuel and the Accelerator program is a natural next step to broaden and enhance the Nike+ ecosystem – allowing Nike to offer richer experiences to athletes of all levels.”
The Nike+ Accelerator companies begin a three-month immersive journey today in Portland, Ore., and will spend their time in the program developing and evolving products and services that leverage the Nike+ platform and NikeFuel to inspire everyday athletes. The ideas span a broad range of activity and health sectors including training, coaching, gaming, sport, wellness and rewards.
Hundreds of companies applied to participate in the Nike+ Accelerator, and thousands of requests were received to build on the Nike+ ecosystem. The 10 companies selected to participate in the Nike+ Accelerator program are:
  • FitDeck: Digital decks of exercise playing cards that deliver ever-changing workouts for fitness and sports. 
  • GoRecess: Helps users find, book and review fitness activities.
  • Chroma.io: An indie game studio that creates virtual worlds tied to real-world activity.
  • CoachBase: Provides a digital sports coaching platform.
  • GoFitCause: Leverages fitness data as a means of raising money for charities.
  • HighFive: Ad network for health and fitness apps that helps people achieve their goals by rewarding them along their journey.
  • Sprout At Work: Provider of corporate wellness solutions leveraging social and gamification tools to inspire employees and empower employers.
  • GeoPalz: An interactive gaming and rewards platform for kids and families.
  • Incomparable Things: Creates activity-driven fantasy sports leagues.
  • RecBob: Offers a platform that makes recreational sports easy by organizing play.
As part of the Nike+ Accelerator experience, each company will receive $20,000 in funding, plus connections and mentorship by leaders across Nike and the tech industry including: Stefan Olander, Nike’s Vice President of Digital Sport; David Cohen, founder and CEO of TechStars; Naveen Selvadurai, co-founder of Foursquare; Katia Beauchamp, co-founder of Birchbox; Tim Chang, Managing Director of Mayfield Fund; and quantified-self guru Tim Ferriss. Nike+ Accelerator mentors are listed at the Nike+ Accelerator website.

The mentors will engage directly with participating companies throughout the Nike+ Accelerator program. TechStars will facilitate the program, having successfully completed more than 20 accelerator programs using their mentor-driven, deep-immersion, three-month model. TechStars’s mentoring model has attracted more than $275 million worth of venture capital for the companies that have participated in past programs over the last six years of operation.

The Nike+ Accelerator program culminates in mid-June with the opportunity to pitch angel investors, venture capitalists, influential industry leaders and Nike executives during Investor Demo Days, including a day at Nike World Headquarters in Beaverton, Ore., and a day in California's Silicon Valley. More details on the program are available at the Nike+ Accelerator website.  Developers can get more information the Nike+ API at  the Nike+ API Developer portal or follow @nikedeveloper.