Who is Destin George-Bell?
Destin George-Bell is a Kentucky native and 2020 University of Kentucky graduate who built Card.io, a gamified fitness app, after moving to Austin, Texas. Before the startup he worked as a content creator for the NBA 2K League and landed sponsorships from brands including Old Spice, Mobil 1 and McDonald's, then left that work to focus on the app full-time. The idea came during the pandemic, when he struggled to stay consistent with workouts and wondered what Pokemon Go would look like as a fitness app. Card.io, launched in 2022, turns walks, runs and rides into team games such as Turf War, in which players claim and defend real-world territory, and it syncs with Strava and Garmin.
Niantic, the company behind Pokemon Go, provided its first investment. Card.io appeared on the Season 16 premiere of Shark Tank, where George-Bell asked for $150,000 for 5%. Daymond John and guest shark Rashaun Williams offered $150,000 for 15%, and he accepted. At the time the app reported more than 25,000 users in over 70 countries and use by about 350 U.S. running clubs.
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