Whoop CEO: Abu Dhabi Partnership to Drive Predictive Health Revolution in the Gulf

Whoop is significantly expanding its presence in the Gulf's burgeoning longevity economy. The Boston-based human performance company has announced a new clinical research partnership with the Abu Dhabi Department of Health. This collaboration is bolstered by a substantial $75 million anchor investment from Mubadala Investment Company, contributing to the GCC becoming one of Whoop's most rapidly growing markets.

"This region has become one of the most important regions for Whoop," stated founder and CEO Will Ahmed in an interview. "We're growing extraordinarily fast here in the GCC. We're up about 15 times in the last three years. Our membership base here has grown over 85 per cent just in the past year." The company also reported GCC year-on-year growth exceeding 75 percent.

Speaking at the Abu Dhabi Future Health Summit, Mr. Ahmed detailed that the agreement with the Department of Health will support crucial clinical research focused on prevention, sleep, cardiovascular health, and aging. This announcement is part of a multi-year strategic initiative by Abu Dhabi entities to invest in and collaborate with Whoop, a company known for its wearable health trackers.

Earlier this year, Whoop and Mubadala formalized a strategic partnership aimed at advancing proactive health, performance science, and preventative healthcare innovation in the UAE, with the $75 million investment serving as its foundation. This investment was part of Whoop's $575 million Series G funding round, which valued the company at $10.1 billion. The round was led by Collaborative Fund and included participation from Mubadala and the Abu Dhabi-based 2PointZero Group.

Under the terms of the agreement, Whoop will establish a dedicated office in Abu Dhabi. The company will also expand its Advanced Labs blood-testing product, introduce full Arabic localization for its platform—launched this month with a GCC-wide campaign—and initiate the Whoop-Mubadala Health Research Initiative. This longitudinal research program is designed to enhance the UAE's health value chain, covering areas from diagnostics and genomics to prevention and behavioral optimization.

Mr. Ahmed views Abu Dhabi as a critical testing ground for transitioning from reactive to predictive healthcare. "The power of continuous health monitoring is that it can really understand signals in your body that you may not be able to feel," he explained. "We believe those insights can actually drive health outcomes, which is to say it can make you lower your weight, it can make you decrease your blood pressure." He noted that the company's 14-year-old thesis—validating continuous monitoring with elite athletes before moving into the mainstream—is now being realized in the Gulf.

Addressing the timing of the significant Gulf investment amidst regional conflicts, Mr. Ahmed emphasized a long-term commitment. "The timing of some of that partnership was complicated with the wars in this region. But to me, it was obvious to show up because I'd been showing up for the last decade."

For Abu Dhabi, the Whoop partnership is a key component of its broader longevity infrastructure strategy. An EY survey highlighted that while 61 percent of respondents had used a wearable device in the past year and 87 percent reported positive experiences with AI in health decisions, only 43 percent follow a structured fitness plan. Officials believe the integration of wearables and clinical data can bridge this gap.

Whoop, which has raised approximately $1 billion in total capital, plans to pair its Gulf expansion with retail distribution, sponsorships with the UAE Team Emirates-XRG cyclists and Al Nassr football team, and the establishment of its first performance research and development lab outside Boston in Whoop Qatar by late 2026.

"There are many countries in the world that are excited about wearable technology," Mr. Ahmed concluded. "When you can remove bureaucracy and you can say, look, no, we want health care not to be reactive but actually proactive, then a lot of things fall in suit."