Glow, the app founded by Max Levchin that helps women trying to conceive, announced a partnership with popular app MyFitnessPal to try to increase the odds of conception. October 17, 2013 7:02 AM PDT Glow's Max Levchin with Kara Swisher and Walt Mossberg, when the company launched in May. (Credit: Dan Farber) Glow is in the data business. But unlike many companies in the data science field -- a hot sector in Silicon Valley right now -- Glow's data sets can be intensely personal. That's because the app helps couples trying to have babies. To do that, the app, co-founded by PayPal co-founder Max Levchin, asks a number of things you might only deem privy to, well, a fertility doctor: ovulation patterns, emotional distress levels, your morning temperature. The app takes that info, then each day gives you a percentage score, telling you how fertile you are on that certain day. The company is adding one more (less intrusive) data set to the mix: fitness. On Thursday, Glow announced a partnership with the popular health and fitness tracking app MyFitnessPal. That app lets users keep a diary of their daily diet and search through a database of over 3 million foods to find information on each item. The idea is that having the right body mass index -- a measurement based on a person's height and weight -- will increase fertility. "When it's too high or too low, it causes irregularities in menstrual cycles or ovulation," said Mike Huang, Glow's co-founder. According to the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, a BMI of between 19 and 24 is considered normal. Related posts PayPal co-founder Max Levchin on harnessing hurricanes and using data to get pregnant PayPal founder takes on the fertility industry with Glow PayPal co-founder Levchin launches e-commerce startup Levchin: I joined Yahoo board after Mayer's 'very ballsy move' Yahoo shakes up board, adds PayPal cofounder Max Levchin Glow users who already use MyFitnessPal can sync their two accounts, so Glow can cull data from the fitness app. Huang said that the app can also flag individual foods that have been logged into MyFitnessPal's food diary that have been deemed bad for women trying to get pregnant. (For example, skim milk, Huang said, is a no-no.) The company was unveiled in May at the AllThingsD conference, but hasn't shared any metrics since then. The company is also trying to help women dealing with fertility issues in another way. With the Glow First program, users contribute $50 to a pool, and if, after 10 months, couples doesn't get pregnant, the pool money goes to them to seek a fertility specialist. Levchin contributed $1 million of his own money to kick-start the fund. For Huang, the company's mission hits home. He said he was compelled to look at solving the problem of infertility after he and his wife tried unsuccessfully for a year to have a child. The fitness deal is the company's first official partnership, but Huang said he'd like to explore other areas that may help fertility as well, such as genetics.
Glow, the app founded by Max Levchin that helps women trying to conceive, announced a partnership with popular app MyFitnessPal to try to increase the odds of conception.
Glow's Max Levchin with Kara Swisher and Walt Mossberg, when the company launched in May.
(Credit: Dan Farber)
Glow is in the data business. But unlike many companies in the data science field -- a hot sector in Silicon Valley right now -- Glow's data sets can be intensely personal.
That's because the app helps couples trying to have babies.
To do that, the app, co-founded by PayPal co-founder Max Levchin, asks a number of things you might only deem privy to, well, a fertility doctor: ovulation patterns, emotional distress levels, your morning temperature. The app takes that info, then each day gives you a percentage score, telling you how fertile you are on that certain day.
The company is adding one more (less intrusive) data set to the mix: fitness. On Thursday, Glow announced a partnership with the popular health and fitness tracking app MyFitnessPal. That app lets users keep a diary of their daily diet and search through a database of over 3 million foods to find information on each item.
The idea is that having the right body mass index -- a measurement based on a person's height and weight -- will increase fertility. "When it's too high or too low, it causes irregularities in menstrual cycles or ovulation," said Mike Huang, Glow's co-founder. According to the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, a BMI of between 19 and 24 is considered normal.
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Glow users who already use MyFitnessPal can sync their two accounts, so Glow can cull data from the fitness app. Huang said that the app can also flag individual foods that have been logged into MyFitnessPal's food diary that have been deemed bad for women trying to get pregnant. (For example, skim milk, Huang said, is a no-no.) The company was unveiled in May at the AllThingsD conference, but hasn't shared any metrics since then.
The company is also trying to help women dealing with fertility issues in another way. With the Glow First program, users contribute $50 to a pool, and if, after 10 months, couples doesn't get pregnant, the pool money goes to them to seek a fertility specialist. Levchin contributed $1 million of his own money to kick-start the fund.
For Huang, the company's mission hits home. He said he was compelled to look at solving the problem of infertility after he and his wife tried unsuccessfully for a year to have a child.
The fitness deal is the company's first official partnership, but Huang said he'd like to explore other areas that may help fertility as well, such as genetics.
