Basis nets $12M, hires VP with gaming background

By Jonah Comstock
05:29 am
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Basis 2Basis Science, maker of the wristworn tracker Basis Band, has raised $12 million, an extension of the company's $11.5 million round earlier this year, according to the company. New investors to the company this round were Intel Capital, iNovia Capital, Dolby Family Trust, Stanford University and Peninsula-KCG. Existing investors Mayfield Fund, DCM and Norwest Venture Partners, also contributed to the round.

“We now capture billions of heart beats each week and our users remain more engaged with our system versus other options in the category,” Jef Holove, CEO of Basis, said in a statement. “With this new support, we’ll be able to continue to build on our strong foundation and offer a great experience for many more people looking to build healthy habits.”

Basis also hired a new vice president of product, Ethan Fasset, who comes from Trinity Ventures and previously worked at mobile social gaming companies GREE International and Playdom. According to Basis, Fasset will further develop the Basis Band "with a focus on the convergence of contextual data and wearable technology" and will "continue to make the Basis system more intelligent through an enhanced understanding of user behavior patterns and intention, sensor-captured information and other data-based insights."

When Basis raised $11.5 million in March, the company also brought on high-profile advisors Deepak Chopra and Esther Dyson.

Basis makes a heart-rate and activity-tracking watch that sells on the company's website for $199. It aims to distinguish itself as the high-end offering in the activity tracker market. The company bucked activity tracker tradition in June by launching its long-delayed companion app for Android first. The company followed up in July with a stripped-down version of the software for iOS, as well as support for additional Android devices.

When MobiHealthNews spoke to Holove in April, he said the company had just caught up on shipping all of its initial orders from its December 2012 launch and was taking new orders on a "first come, first serve basis."

"We're doing everything we can to scale up so we can save more and make more customers happy," he said at the time. "At the same time we are learning a lot about the people who are using the Basis Band and what their engagement levels are. It's been rewarding so far but it also teaches us a lot about what to do next."

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