Former Twitter chief executive Dick Costolo announced plans to launch a new personal fitness platform and join a venture capital firm. On Tuesday, Costolo took to Twitter to announce his new fitness company with cofounder Bryan Oki. Last summer, Costolo was forced to resign from Twitter due to rising concerns about its growth.
Costolo joins venture capital firm
Oki is the cofounder and CEO of health and wellness firm Fitify Inc. and, as stated on Oki’s LinkedIn page, this firm designs fitness programs for corporate clients.
Talking about his new venture, Costolo said, “It will be the easiest and most flexible way to extend expertise and guidance in an industry that is transitioning to a world of specialized studios and programs with a multitude of connected devices and software trackers.”
Costolo also plans to join venture capital firm Index Ventures as a partner. This firm is based in San Francisco and London and has funded companies such as Dropbox, Etsy and SoundCloud. Costolo learned about this firm from a friend: partner Danny Rimer.
Costolo made a series of tweets to inform users about his new venture, saying he will invest in entrepreneurs and work with existing portfolio companies, but he gave no details on what type of companies he will be focusing on at Index Ventures.
Twitter helped Costolo fund his interest in fitness
On Tuesday, Costolo sent an email to CNBC, saying that during all the years he spent at Twitter, running it through its IPO, he realized that he had an interest in fitness.
“Over the course of the last couple of years working with Bryan (cofounder) in various group settings, I observed both my personal development and increased physical energy as a leader,” Costolo said.
He also said that both are planning to bring this capability and process to a much larger audience, adding that it improves productivity, increases energy levels and builds camaraderie among teams — “all things I’ve lived through personally.” Costolo did not give any details of what the fitness platform will be like, but he did confirm it is not about creating software for one fitness community such as Crossfit or yoga or Soulcycle. Rather, it is a platform meant for everyone.
