FitBit is a pioneer in wearable technology. But the company has recently shifted its strategy amid competition from the Apple Watch, and as the wearable market has failed to really see mass adoption. Cheddar's Hope King and Brad Smith explore the company's performance using E*Trade's innovative platform.
Adult wearable technology users in the U.S. is expected to grow nearly 12 percent this year, according to eMarketer. In a survey conducted by Cheddar, 18 percent said they own a FitBit compared to 27 percent who've said they own an Apple Watch. 47 percent of those surveyed by Cheddar say they don't wear any wearable technology.
FitBit has had an up and down year, with shares ranging between $5 and $7 a share. Overall, shares are down 17 percent over the course of the past year. The company did introduce its first smartwatch in 2017, and is looking to directly compete against the Apple Watch at a similar price point. Shares also hit a 52-week high in December during the holiday shopping season.
FitBit reports fourth quarter earnings after the Closing Bell Monday. Analysts expect revenue of nearly $590 Million, and to break even in profit.
The on-demand app that connects patients with doctors has seen rapid growth in the past few years, particularly in mental health services, and recently raised an additional $74 million in funding. "Not only does it make access to a doctor much, much easier, it also addresses a lot of the stigma associated with mental health," says CEO Hill Ferguson.
Ujo Music's co-founder Jesse Grushack says the music industry is broken, because artists can't get paid fairly or accurately for the music they create on all the platforms where it might appear. He says blockchain technology can help fix this going forward.
Glamour magazine's Morgen Peck, who recently wrote a story about the leading women in cryptocurrency, says their increasingly visible role may change the so-called bro culture of the industry.
Musk's behavior during his earnings conference call Wednesday surprised reporters and rattled some investors: Tesla's stock opened down more than 6 percent Thursday.
But Galileo Russell, the founder of the YouTube channel HyperChange TV, said retail investors found it “the most informative conference call they’ve ever heard from Tesla.”
The guided meditation app wants to make the ancient practice of mindfulness easier for people. You don't need "to sit down on the floor, cross-legged, light some incense," says the Headspace co-founder Andy Puddicombe, a trained Buddhist monk.
Soothe's new CEO Simon Heyrick says the company is working on new tools to increase its clients' safety after an assault accusation by a Kentucky woman. The massage on-demand app recently raised $31 million in a new round of funding.
Rachio is a smart sprinkler that can schedule waterings and also help homeowners control how much water is used, says Chris Klein, the company's co-founder and CEO. That functionality has helped conserve about 28 billion gallons of water to date.
For the first time in eight years, the social site is rolling out a redesign that reduces white space and increases flexibility in how users view content. Many of the changes were careful and based on user feedback, says Chris Slowe, the site's chief technology officer, because "Reddit exists as a platform to criticize Reddit."
The live streaming platform, primarily used for video game streaming, has 15 million daily users who spend an average of two hours a day watching content there. That's because Twitch has turned the traditionally "solitary exercise" of gaming into a more social experience, says co-founder Kevin Lin.
The humanoid robot was designed with an eye toward businesses before homes, says Steve Carlin, Softbank Robotics chief strategy officer. That way American users can interact and "get used to" the four-foot-tall robots before letting them into their personal spaces.
