Show notes
Most fitness apps are built to track everything. That's exactly why people stop using them.In this episode of Women Disrupting Tech, I talk with Zoe Pineau, co-founder of Fitly AI, about how she lost 150 pounds through macro tracking, spent six years building a traditional fitness app that didn’t break through, and then rebuilt from scratch in one month using AI. We explore why friction kills fitness habits before they start, and how a chat-based agent changes that equation.This episode is for female founders, women in tech, and health tech entrepreneurs who want to understand how AI is reshaping user experience, and for anyone building in a saturated market where being better is no longer enough.What you’ll learn in this episodeWhy macro tracking is mathematically reliable but practically abandoned by most peopleHow Fitly AI lets users log an entire workout and meal in a single sentence, removing the admin burden that kills consistencyWhy “better” is not a differentiator in a saturated market, and what to build insteadHow Zoe used her own transformation as proof of concept when pitching investorsWhy apps are disappearing and what the age of agents means for founders building in this spaceHow a 30-day momentum report keeps founders motivated and investors informedChapters: 00:00 Introduction02:50 Introduction to Fitly AI and Personal Journey05:45 Transformative Weight Loss Experience08:47 Mindset Shift and Habit Formation11:32 Understanding Weight Loss as a Mathematical Process14:11 The Importance of Macro Tracking16:55 Innovating Fitness Apps with AI19:47 Simplifying User Experience in Fitness Tracking22:53 Building Fitly AI: Lessons Learned25:31 The Impact of AI on App Development28:25 Leveraging AI for Business Insights30:33 The Role of Prior Experience in AI Utilization32:30 Data Privacy and Security in AI Applications35:02 Collaborative Development: A Team Approach to App Building37:17 Navigating the Fundraising Landscape39:22 Addressing Competition: Lifestyle Changes vs. Quick Fixes42:18 Motivation and Consistency in Fitness Tracking45:13 The Future of Fitness Apps: Integrating AI Agents47:55 Building a Funding Coach AI for Female FoundersConnect with Zoe Pineau and Fitly AILinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zoe-pineau-850588105/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zoepineauTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thezoepineauWebsite: https://www.fitly.chatShow notes of the episodeBlog: https://womendisruptingtech.blog/2026/06/25/episode-158/Substack: https://open.substack.com/pub/womendisruptingtech/p/episode-158?r=2v0lts&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=trueAbout Women Disrupting TechEvery week, Women Disrupting Tech covers the decisions, patterns, and structural realities that female founders and investors in HealthTech, FinTech, ClimateTech, and AI rarely discuss in public but run into every time they meet. Follow Women Disrupting Tech on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or YouTube to get it in your feed.
