Every athlete seeks a competitive edge. As athletic training and equipment becomes fully optimized, Gatorade recognized nutrition and hydration as the next frontiers to performing at the ultimate level. This insight grew into a hypothesis: "Can we develop specific sports fuel formulas for each unique athlete and game to drive superior performance?"

The innovation method Gatorade applied to this challenge was in-market piloting – testing different prototype solutions with elite athletes across different use cases and sports levels. This allowed us to build confidence in our proposed solution, truly understand the impact on athletes such as the Brazilian National Team, and pivot our approach as necessary in these real, live environments.

New technologies enabled us to test for unique characteristics, such as sweat loss, and subsequently use this real-time athlete data to deliver a sports fuel solution that is founded on deep research by the Gatorade Sports Science Institute.

A cloud-based digital platform and pod-based sports fuel system unlocking individual recommendations to help optimize athlete performance

o Connected Sweat Patch identifies each athlete’s unique sweat rate and composition (sweat profile)

o Recommendation Engine generates individual athlete sports fuel recommendations based on their sweat profile, activity conditions and objectives

o Personalized Sports Fuel Bottle & Formula Pods make individual recommendations

o Connected Smart Cap provides real-time sports fuel intake tracking and recommendation guidance to the athlete

o Weigh In Station provides fluid balance tracking and athlete weight for recommendation engine

o Digital Tools provide platform management and real-time access to performance and sports fuel analytics to enable behavior change and elevate performance

o Secure Cloud Infrastructure Modular Component Integration and Third Party Connectivity

Some of the world’s top teams are using the Gx prototype platform: The Boston Celtics, Kansas City Chiefs, University of Florida Gators and the Brazilian National team.

By piloting a progressive digital service platform complementing the existing offering, Gatorade unlocks new commercial models related to its base business.

2016 sees the platform deployed to more top professional teams globally, increasing Gatorade’s value as a strategic partner. An innovation pipeline leveraging this technology will expand over time – providing value to each individual athlete as sport evolves. Gatorade continues to form first-hand athlete insights to drive this ongoing product and service innovation.

Gatorade has seen a preliminary rise in brand equity as this innovation news reached the market:

• $16,664,004 in earned media value from 589 TV, radio and online placements with 778,981,458 impressions (primarily from Super Bowl and SXSW efforts)

• “Gatorade is going high tech.” WALL STREET JOURNAL

• “This is the future of athletic hydration. It’s also the future of Gatorade.” FAST COMPANY

• “Gatorade isn’t just a sports drink anymore.” FOX BUSINESS

• “The ultimate ‘sports fuel’ company.” TECH RADAR