Fitness startup Ladder accuses Peloton of copying their app in the wake of Peloton’s launch of its new Strength+ app. Ladder claims that after receiving feedback from Peloton’s beta testers, it found Peloton’s app to be strikingly similar to its own. Ladder’s investigation revealed that 15 members of Peloton’s product, engineering, and design teams had been using Ladder’s app since January 2024.
While having employees of a rival company use a successful app is not inherently incriminating, Ladder found the frequency of the usage notable. In a public post, Ladder expressed a backhanded compliment, stating it was “quite flattered” by Peloton’s apparent interest and referenced how regularly Peloton staff used the app, even sharing a chart illustrating this usage. Ladder’s public response cleverly implied misuse without categorically stating so.
As of now, Peloton has not responded to requests for comment. Peloton, once a pandemic-era success story, has since faced challenges as consumers returned to gyms.
Peloton accused of copying Ladder app
The company laid off 400 workers in May, following the 2022 replacement of CEO John Foley and the layoffs of 2,800 employees. Conversely, Ladder is currently on an upward trajectory. In November, it announced a significant investment of $90 million from General Catalyst to boost market efforts.
The company claims users have logged 90 million entries and completed over 15 million workouts on its app. Ladder, which charges $29.99 per month for its subscription on iOS, saw a 69% increase in downloads from January to November 2024 compared to the same period in 2023, while Peloton experienced a 33% decline. Ladder seems to be leveraging the controversy for marketing purposes, drawing inspiration from a well-known early 2000s ad that compared Mac and PC.
Their new ad campaign humorously contrasts Peloton’s app as a “gym bro” against Ladder’s diverse and “cooler” trainers. Asked if Ladder planned any legal action against Peloton, a spokesperson for Ladder emphasized their mission: “At Ladder, our mission has always been to make strength training accessible for everyone. While we’ve had a lot of fun with this campaign and appreciate the positive response from our community, we continue to focus on what matters most — our members.”
This incident not only highlights the competitive nature of the fitness app market but also the creative ways companies like Ladder can leverage such disputes to their advantage.
