The Austin-based Sweatpals connects users with in-person fitness classes, events and experiences. It also offers back-end business tools for personal trainers and organizers
As social habits shift away from nightlife toward wellness-oriented experiences, particularly for Gen Z, Sweatpals is betting that movement and connection can coexist at scale. The Austin-based fitness community platform has raised $12 million in seed funding from Patron, a16z speedrun and Kevin Hart’s HartBeat Ventures to accelerate its national expansion and new product development.
Co-founded by Salar Shahini and Mandi Zhou, SweatPals aims to reimagine how people meet and build friendships by positioning wellness as the new social currency. The platform allows users to discover and host in-person fitness classes, events and experiences, transforming gyms and studios into community hubs. It also includes back-end tools for personal trainers and organizers, offering digital ticketing, waiver signing, participant management and group communication.
“We’re building the infrastructure for human connection in an increasingly lonely world,” said Shahini. “Our goal is to make every studio, park and community space a place where people can find belonging through movement.”
According to the company, hosts see an average of 30% more customers through Sweatpals, suggesting the model supports both connection and creator monetization.
Sweatpals reported more than 1 million monthly users across its web and app products, with 170,000 weekly active users and over 20,000 new experiences, ranging from classes to retreats, created last month alone. The average paid host earns $70,000 per year, reflecting how the platform blends entrepreneurship with community-building. Last month, the platform served as the tech and ticketing partner for Strong New York Kenny Santucci’s annual fitness and wellness expo in NYC.
Run clubs have been a particular area of expansion, with attendance growing 216% year-over-year between January and September 2025. In total, more than 237,000 people have joined Sweatpals-affiliated run clubs in the past 22 months, the company says. Top cities for activity include Miami, Austin, Chicago, New York and Los Angeles, while popular categories span mixed social sports, strength and athletic training, Pilates, running and hiking, and adventure sports.
The concept taps into broader lifestyle changes among younger generations. With alcohol consumption at historic lows — only about half of American adults now drink — wellness has emerged as a preferred social outlet. Sweatpals calls this trend the “daylife movement,” where workouts, run clubs and yoga meetups replace the traditional bar scene.
“When I first saw Sweatpals, I immediately recognized it as the future of how we connect,” Hart said. “They’re leading a movement that makes wellness accessible, social and fun.”
Andrew Chen, a general partner at a16z speedrun, added that Sweatpals’ appeal lies in its ability to “drive real-world community formation with built-in monetization.”
With the new capital, Sweatpals, which is currently active in 24 cities, plans to expand to 12 additional markets by early 2026, enhance social and monetization tools for hosts and roll out features for gyms, studios and event organizers. The company’s investor lineup also includes Max Mullen (Instacart co-founder), Jeffrey Katzenberg (WndrCo) and Deb Liu (Ancestry CEO).
