Gym at home: Hyderabad fitness tech startup Portl launches strength training device

New Year is just around the corner and with it, resolutions to get fit. However, as many would attest, staying consistent with workouts—especially if they involve hitting the gym to lift weights—is tough. 

Hyderabad-based fitness and wellness startup Portl leverages AI to help users stay on track of their fitness goals. On December 19, the company launched Portl UltraGym—which it says, is an all-in-one portable training system designed to make strength training more accessible at home.

The machine, priced at Rs 59,990, uses digital weights technology and provides the same effect as a professional grade gear, in a compact design of 2.4 square feet.

The product operates on Hydraulic and Electromagnetic Resistance (H.E.R.S) Technology, and the adjustable digital weights start from 0.5 kg and go up to 70 kg, customisable per user’s requirement. 

While the plug-and-play device does not require an application to function, there is an additional companion app which allows people watch demo videos and walkthroughs for over 150 exercises to help them understand form, technique, and accessories. 

The package also includes a sleek barbell, hand straps, ankle straps, and a hip belt.

The device comes with a safety feature to prevent injuries.

“There is an automatic inbuilt safety feature that relies on a lot of machine learning to determine the difference between, struggling to complete a rep and, inability to complete that rep,” Co-founder Indraneel Gupta says.

UltraGym can also be integrated and used with Portl Studio, the company’s flagship smart mirror. The company sees its product entering the gyms and hotels as part of their premium service.

Discussing the challenges faced while building UltraGym, Gupta says, “Solving for the portability and compact form factor while facilitating full-body strength training and range of motion was one of the main focus areas in the design phase. This ultimately dictated the overall internal architecture and mechanisms that are currently used within the UltraGym.”

Portl says it has collectively completed over 20,000 hours of workouts from users across the globe and plans to double its user base in a year.

The first steps

Portl was founded in 2021 by Gupta, Vishal Chandapeta, and Armaan Kandhari.

With the startup, the founders wanted to solve key challenges that fitness enthusiasts face: finding the right trainer as well as space and time to exercise. 

“We wanted to bring all these solutions packaged into something that is extremely interactive in nature, to people's homes, and that's where the Genesis of Portl began,” Gupta tells YourStory.

Priced at Rs 1.25 Lakh, Portl Studio, is a smart mirror with a 43-inch 4K screen, HD cameras, embedded bio-sensors, edge-AI processing, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity. The product also offers users real-time posture analysis and feedback, and health monitoring.

Catering to both B2B and B2C segments, the company’s revenue comes from direct customers, the additional services with subscription plans, and gyms and luxury hotels.

The journey of building a fitness tech startup, however, was not without challenges. From sourcing components and creating early prototypes to finalising hardware design and refining UI/UX and the Software platforms for seamless integration the company encountered various obstacles. 

With a product that uses hardware, software and content, operating with limited resources was challenging in the initial phase, says Gupta.

How does the smart mirror work?

After the smart mirror is installed, the user enters their data such as height, weight, age, existing health issues if any and other fitness requirements which is then used to recommend potential fitness routines. 

“It (the data) also informs our systems what not to prescribe to an individual so that we do not aggravate underlying conditions,” says Gupta.

The sessions include HIIT, self-defence, yoga, dance fitness, cardio, meditation and pain management among others. And with AI-form feedback, the sensors track the user’s movements and provide step-by-step guidance.

He adds that while direct customers get personalised recommendations, hotels can avail customisations based on requirements of the services they offer to their clients such as spa services.

Blueprint for expansion

In May this year, the company had secured $3 million in a funding round led by Bharat Innovation Fund, and saw participation from existing investor Kalaari Capital, and new investor T-Hub Foundation.

The team currently has 35 members on board. It began selling Portl Studio in July 2022. 

Its latest launch UltraGym will also be available soon on Amazon and few other ecommerce channels, the co-founder says.

The company says it is seeing traction for its smart mirror from Tier I cities like Mumbai, Hyderabad, Delhi and Bangalore, and some Tier II cities. 

“We've designed the UltraGym with a keen eye on the Indian market. However, we have also witnessed substantial interest for this from UAE and surrounding regions in the Middle East,” says Gupta.

The company plans a further expansion in the Middle East, targeting markets such as Qatar, UAE, and Saudi Arabia over the next 12 to 18 months. It is also collaborating with hospitality brands, including the Taj Group of Hotels (IHCL), Accor Group, aiming to provide on-demand wellness solutions for premium travelers.

Hyper-personalisation as the way ahead

For home users, each device can be used by six members, with six unique profiles. 

“The profiles are enabled by the primary user and this primary user essentially invites these unique members to their account. These are accessed via 2-FA (Two-factor authentication) authentication of each user using their mobile for OTP verification, and the registered email,” says Gupta.

Portl also has subscription plans of Rs 750 per month per device with which users can avail live and group sessions. They also have additional services such as nutrition, mental health, and wellbeing packages based on customer requirements, which they can choose to purchase.

Speaking about data storage and safety, Gupta says, “We employ multilayered approaches to safeguard all user information, with state-of-the-art encryptions security protocols that protect data at both transit and storage level… the AI systems are built with privacy at their core and it anonymises the data.”

Users can request the deletion of their data at any given time on the system, he adds.

Manufacturing, sales and the market

While the first few batches of Portl Studio were manufactured in-house based on pre-orders, the company expanded by hiring contractors which allowed it to focus more on the tech aspects. However, the core components and assembly of most crucial parts still happens in-house, says Gupta.

“The UltraGym has been conceptualised, designed and developed in-house. The manufacturing is being performed by our vendors in India and overseas,” he adds.

According to market research firm Fortune Business Insights, the global home fitness equipment market size was valued at $11.60 billion in 2023. It is projected to grow from $12.10 billion in 2024 to 18.94 billion by 2032 with a CAGR of 5.8%.

While the company refused to disclose its revenue and the number of units sold, it has a total of approximately 800-900 manufactured products. It now looks to scale capacity to 1,000 per quarter to meet growing demand, he adds.

According to data company Tracxn, Portl competes with New York City-based Peloton, and San Francisco-based Tonal and Tempo.