Pebble Smartwatch Lands First App Partner: RunKeeper

The startup behind the innovative Pebble smartwatch, a smartphone-connected watch that recently became the most-funded Kickstarter project ever, has landed its first app partner: the popular workout-tracking app RunKeeper.

When the watch becomes available this fall, it will be integrated with RunKeeper, allowing cyclists, hikers, walkers, and skiers to track their fitness right from their wrist, Pebble Technology and RunKeeper announced on Wednesday. The so-called "watchapp" will display RunKeeper fitness data on the Pebble smartwatch's electronic-paper display, and let users control the app without having to pull out their phone.

"We know that many of you are always looking for ways to make your fitness tracking easier, and with Pebble integration, you won't ever have to pull the phone out of your pocket or armband — you can just see and do everything you need right from your watch," Jason Jacobs, CEO of Runkeeper, wrote in a blog post.

RunKeeper, which boasts more than 10 million users, is a natural fit for the Pebble platform, giving users a more conventional way to track their fitness activities, Palo Alto, Calif.-based Pebble Technology said. Pebble plans to release an open software development kit (SDK) in August, which will enable other apps to be developed for its smartwatch. The company will also launch a watchapp directory later this year for all Pebble apps.

"One of the most exciting things about Pebble is that anyone will be able to build apps for the watch, which is going to result in new capabilities and functionality that we haven't even thought of yet," Pebble Technology founder Eric Migicovsky said in a statement.

The Pebble Smartwatch connects to iPhone and Android smarthphones via Bluetooth, and vibrates when the phone receives an incoming call, email, or text message. The project was posted on the crowd sourced funding platform Kickstarter last month and has already raised more than $7.5 million, with 16 days left.