Reebok International Ltd. and Cambridge, MA-based MC10, Inc. announced an R&D collaboration to create a new class of athletic apparel and equipment, combining market leading sport design with advanced electronics.
Reebok said the collaboration will use MC10's conformal electronics platform and Reebok's design capability to bring new products to the athletics market. When combined with Reebok's heritage of innovation for the athlete, MC10's proprietary approach to making high performance electronics “skin like” and invisible to the wearer will enable entirely new classes of intelligent sports equipment and apparel.
Reebok also noted that it has a strong history of innovation with iconic products in the sporting goods industry like The Pump, and more recently EasyTone, and ZigTech.
“We are excited to begin a new chapter of sport innovation at Reebok. The marriage of our expertise in performance athletics and MC10's leading edge electronics capability will help shape a broad range of exciting product possibilities,” said Paul Litchfield, Vice President of Reebok Advanced Concepts.
MC10's conformal electronics platform makes high performance chips and sensors thin and bendable, transforming once rigid devices into truly wearable products. This capability allows the seamless integration of electronics into athletic goods, catalyzing new levels of performance and intelligence.
“We are delighted to bring the unique advantages of our technology platform to the world of athletics with Reebok,” said Ben Schlatka, Vice President of Business Development and Co-Founder of MC10.
