Then, now 
and next.

This is how the team behind VOR have been shaping the future of fitness since 2018.

When Covid forced personal fitness online in 2020 our Founder, Max was already ahead of the game - as a PT he had already been training his clients remotely for years, and saw both the potential and the limitations existing technology had to offer.

Max knew the future of fitness lay in technology, but the existing model of spreadsheets and WhatsApps clearly wasn’t fit for purpose. So he set out to change it.

By 2021 Max’s online training offering became Another Round - an online personal training app designed to bring affordability and accessibility to personal fitness - with emerging AI technology at its core.

Later that year Jesse Shanahan began working as our external AI Architect, bringing with her the belief that Large Language Models would not effectively solve the problem of reliably and consistently creating effective, personalised workouts at scale.

Turned out she was right. By the end of 2021, we had our MVP AI. Although very simple compared to what VOR is now, it gave us our jumping off point to begin testing and iterating.

Alongside this, the Another Round app gave us the opportunity to test and refine our methodologies with real coaches, delivering real virtually. It helped us to always build useful features, and never tech for tech's sake.

After proving the concept with our MVP, it was time to raise serious funds, and begin building our full automation engine.

In Spring 2023, we made the decision to pivot into the B2B market. With significant previous investment from the likes of (VOR board member) Peter Roberts, founder of PureGym, our AI development had already accelerated and we were building, testing and iterating at pace. By the end of 2023 we had a fully functioning prototype combining AI and theoretical physics.

In 2024 we launched VOR, making our newly developed tech available to enhance the way fitness and wellness businesses deliver their offerings online through scale and accessibility.

Our adaptive AI technology (and the human team behind it) is continually advancing - processing millions of data points and improving the service we can deliver to our clients.

We have set out to become the no.1 in workout automation, transforming millions of lives in the process, and becoming a significant force in fitness and healthcare globally. And we're well on our way to achieving this goal.

Our Team

Max cotton
Max Cotton
CEO, Founder
Former professional MMA fighter, ultramarathon runner, and triathlete. He transitioned from sales to PT, to the startup world. Passionate about revolutionising personalised fitness globally.
Jesse Shanahan
Jesse Shanahan
CTO, Lead AI Developer
AI researcher and disability activist, co-founder of the American Astronomical Society's Working Group on Accessibility and Disability, with expertise in AI ethics and bias in natural language processing.
Sam Brown Abreu
Head of Product
Master PT with a deep understanding of body mechanics, anatomy, and what makes people exercise. Sam lives in vast exercise spreadsheets, working round the clock to improve our engine processes and training methodologies.
Tash Curry
Chief of Staff
Specialist in women’s health and pre/post-natal training. Oversees daily operations, implements new processes and supports team goals.
Jason Heightman
Jason Heightman
Marketing & Design Manager
A Swiss army knife creative with 8+ years experience in marketing, content creation, design, digital marketing, copywriting and UX.

Want more from VOR?

Our team are always available to answer any questions you have regarding our game changing tech and how it can help shape the future of your business.
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FAQs

Are you replacing personal trainers with AI?

No. We’ve spent years as trainers ourselves, so we know that AI can never replace them and gyms will only hurt themselves if they try. Instead, we’re empowering trainers to focus on what matters most – motivation, accountability, safeguarding and support – instead of spending all their time and energy on workout planning. We think our technology will do for trainers what the calculator did for accountants.

Do I need expensive new hardware to use VOR?

Nope. We just want to automate the repetitive parts of trainers’ jobs, so our AI for gyms is designed to integrate with your business and offer an experience customised for you. Which means no new hardware, and no new tech stack.

How do I know it’s reliable?

VOR technology has been designed and overseen by our experienced team of AI experts and personal trainers every step of the way. Rooted in exercise science best practices, it uses parameters for injuries, targets, training environments and backgrounds to make sure your trainers are well equipped to help every client smash their fitness goals.

Does VOR use ChatGPT?

Our automation engine is not a plugin to a Large Language Model (LLM) like ChatGPT, which can provide unreliable and unpredictable results that might look good enough to the untrained eye, but aren’t safe or appropriate for the exerciser. Our AI is built from scratch for the specific purpose of creating workouts, drawing on our CTO Jesse Shanahan’s background in astrophysics. This means we have a tool that is fully customisable to any fitness business and its unique training style.

What results will I see?

With the help of our AI workout generator, your trainers can run higher-quality and more consistent workout plans for improved member experience and retention. By empowering trainers to be their best selves on the gym floor, you’ll see a reduction in staff turnover, which supports good gym culture. More engaged members and higher quality training have a bottom-line impact: in the medium and long term, VOR provides a high ROI.