Nike Isn't Afraid of Competition in the Sneaker Wars
Nike hopes its newest running shoe will help athletes improve their performance, and the company’s vice president of running footwear credits the way the sneaker is manufactured with helping achieve that goal.
“We use computational design, which is informing this pattern that you see on the midsole and outsole, so that’s called our fluid geometry” said Brett Holts in an interview with Cheddar. “What this allows us to do is iterate much quicker.”
“We can take thousands of data inputs from elite athletes, every day runners, our research lab. We can put all those inputs into a computer program, and it spits out an algorithm that gives us this fluid geometry.”
But the competition is heating up. Last year Adidas, which touts its own BOOST technology, overtook Nike’s Michael Jordan-fronted line as the #2 brand in U.S. sports footwear.
Holts, though, isn’t intimidated.
“We feel like [competition] continues to push us, continues to keep us sharp,” he said.
The Nike Epic React Flyknit will be available on February 22 and cost $150.
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/inside-nikes-newest-innovation).
Kristian Kerr, Head of Macro Strategy at LPL Financial, breaks down the firm's 2026 Mid-Year Outlook, recession risks, AI, the Fed, and what's next for markets.
Jess Inskip, Director of Investor Research at StockBrokers.com, breaks down Q2, the AI trade, Fed policy, earnings, and where investors should look next.
Quantum computing is moving from science fiction to national strategy. Infleqtion CEO Matt Kinsella explains Trump's new executive order and what it means.
Americans traveled in record numbers over July 4th despite rising costs. Skift's Sarah Kopit explains what it says about consumers, airfares, and summer travel.
The U.S. economy is being held up in part by the AI boom, but that boom could still lead to broader prosperity or inequality, says a Nobel Prize winner.
Foundation Robotics co-founder Michael LeBlanc explains how humanoid robots are moving from the lab to military and industrial missions and what comes next.
Jeff Burnstein, President of the Association for Advancing Automation (A3), discusses humanoid robots, AI, smart manufacturing, and the future of U.S. industry.