About the speaker
Whoop, the US company behind the fitness tracker of the same name, which tracks various bodily functions such as heart rate, is one of the biggest players in the health tech and wearables sector. To date, the company has raised several hundred million US dollars from well-known venture capitalists like Softbank and IVP. But some of the world's most famous "high performers" are also convinced by the performance tracker. Football superstar Cristiano Ronaldo, tennis pro Aryna Sabalenka, and singer Niall Horan (One Direction) are just a few names on the long list of those who use Whoop or have even invested in the company.
However, the special role that the city of Hamburg in Germany has played in this global success story from the very beginning is significantly less well-known than its numerous celebrity fans and users. Because in Martin Oberhäuser, the founder of the Hamburg design studio "Bureau Oberhaeuser," the American tech company has a German Head of Design – who has worked closely with founder and CEO Will Ahmed for over a decade and has significantly shaped Whoop's product design and visual identity.
Martin Oberhäuser at OMR
Back in 2012, while still student at Harvard, Will Ahmed—then captain of the varsity squash team—developed a wrist-based wearable that could track a variety of body metrics, like heart rate. This marked the starting gun for the next wave of health tech and wearables, and WHOOP remains a key player in the space to this day. Under Will Ahmed's leadership, the company has raised hundreds of millions of dollars from notable VCs like SoftBank and IVP. But it has also won over many of the world's highest performing people: football superstar Cristiano Ronaldo, tennis pro Aryna Sabalenka, and singer Niall Horan are just a few on the long list of individuals who use or have even invested in WHOOP. What is little known, however, is the special role the city of Hamburg has played in this global success story from the start. The American tech company’s Head of Design is Martin Oberhäuser, founder of the Hamburg-based "Bureau Oberhäuser." For over a decade, he has worked closely with Will Ahmed, profoundly shaping the WHOOP product design and visual identity. Next May at the OMR Festival, Founder & CEO Will Ahmed and Head of Design Martin Oberhäuser will reveal how this unique partnership came to be, how WHOOP successfully established a subscription model in a competitive market, and what the future holds for the company.
Omr Festival 26 doesn’t happen twice.
Join thousands of marketers at OMR Festival 2026. Hits Hamburg on May 5–6. Be part of it – or hear about it later.