Garmin announces opening of Firstbeat Analytics Lab

OLATHE, Kan./July 26, 2023/PR Newswire – Garmin (NYSE: GRMN) is pleased to announce the opening of the Firstbeat Analytics Lab in Jyväskylä, Finland — a new, state-of-the-art research and testing facility packed with custom-designed fitness equipment, instrumentation systems and proprietary monitoring technology that will be leveraged by Garmin physiologists and data scientists to create even more innovative features for Garmin smartwatches, cycling computers and advanced wellness products. Acquired by Garmin in 2020, Firstbeat Analytics^™ transforms heartbeat data from consumer devices into meaningful information and suggestions to enhance the performance and wellbeing of athletes everywhere.

“We are thrilled to have the new Firstbeat Analytics Lab here in Finland. Since its beginnings 20 years ago, Firstbeat Analytics has employed some of the best physiologists and scientists in the world and now, combining that talent with the revolutionary equipment and technology in the new lab, we’re confident that it will foster innovation and help create cutting-edge features for future Garmin products.” – Aki Pulkkinen, Firstbeat Analytics Managing Director

As one of the most prominent physiological analytics companies in the world, Firstbeat Analytics helps power many of the features that are popular with Garmin users, including:

• Body Battery^™: View current estimated energy levels to help find the best times for activity and rest.
• Daily suggested workouts: Personalized workouts adapt after every run to help match performance and recovery while accounting for upcoming races that users can add to their Garmin Connect^™ calendar.
• Endurance score: Measure how easy it is to sustain prolonged efforts while also accounting for training data like VO2 max, short and long-term training loads and more from any type of activity.
• Heat and altitude acclimation: See how the body is adapting to different environments.
• Hill score: Gauge how easy it is to run uphill by measuring running strength on steep climbs and running endurance on long ascents while also estimating progress over time based on VO2 max and training history. 
• HRV Status: Track heart rate variability while sleeping to gain a better understanding of overall health, recovery and training performance.
• Real-time stamina: Track estimated remaining performance capacity in real-time during a run or ride.
• Recovery time: Learn how long to recover before a hard training session based on the difficulty of previous workouts.
• Sleep tracking: Gain a better understanding of how the body is recovering with a personalized sleep score as well as a breakdown of different sleep stages, Pulse Ox¹ and respiration data.
• VO2 max: Track overall cardiovascular fitness and aerobic performance capacity to see how fitness levels change over time.

The Firstbeat Analytics Lab launched in 2022 with a soft opening and reached its full operational capabilities in 2023. Learn more about how Garmin technology is helping athletes train here.

Engineered on the inside for life on the outside, Garmin products have revolutionized life for runners, cyclists, swimmers and athletes of all levels and abilities. Committed to developing technology that helps people stay active and elevate performance, Garmin believes every day is an opportunity to innovate and a chance to beat yesterday. Visit the Garmin Newsroom, email our media team, connect with @garmin on social, or follow our blog.

¹ This is not a medical device and is not intended for use in the diagnosis or monitoring of any medical condition; see Garmin.com/ataccuracy. Pulse Ox is not available in all countries.