Strava uses AI to eliminate leaderboard cheating, launches ‘family packs’, dark mode and more

Strava, the famous health and sports activity tracking application, has just announced a series of exciting new features at the annual Camp Strava event. Strava’s goal is to make the app more appealing to both free and paid users, with artificial intelligence (AI) playing a key role.

Fight fraud with artificial intelligence

One of the common complaints of the Strava community is that users cheat to climb the leaderboards on the app. Leaderboard is a core feature of Strava, allowing users to challenge each other on predetermined routes. Cheating could be using a motorbike instead of a bicycle to set a record.

Previously, Strava had several ways for users to manually report suspicious activity on the leaderboard. Now, Strava says it will begin using more advanced machine learning technology to automatically detect and remove “suspicious” activities as they are uploaded to the platform.

Smart analytics for paid users

Strava is also introducing a private beta of its “athlete intelligence” feature. The feature uses AI to analyze user data, generating summaries and guidance about their performance and fitness goals. This feature is only available to paid users.

Dark mode for both free and paid users

Strava finally introduces dark mode, the feature ranked second on users’ wish lists according to a survey on Strava Community Hub. Dark mode will be available “later this summer” for both free and paid users.

Family package (or group package)

Similar to other online subscription services like Spotify, Strava is rolling out a “family plan” to attract more users. This plan allows up to four people to join, including the main subscriber. However, “family” here does not necessarily mean real family members, or even needs to live at the same address. They just need to live in the same country. The package will roll out in select countries this summer, starting with Australia and Canada.

Other features

Strava is also introducing a “night heatmap” feature, which displays popular running, walking and cycling routes between dusk and dawn. This feature is intended to encourage women to participate in safer outdoor sports activities.

Additionally, Strava introduced a “quick edit” feature that allows users to easily hide certain information from their workout metrics, such as activity type, location, etc.

Overall, Strava’s new updates aim to bring added value to users, combining free and paid features. The company is also working to attract new users, especially women, with safety and useful features.