WeWard, a free walking app that rewards 20m users for steps, has announced that tennis star Venus Williams has joined the company as an investor and ambassador.
According to the World Health Organization, 31% of adults and 80% of adolescents do not meet the recommended levels of physical activity. WeWard data shows Americans walk nearly half as much as they should and rank among the lowest in daily walking activity compared to their developed nation counterparts.
Williams and WeWard aim to raise awareness around the dangers of physical inactivity, and highlight the health benefits—across cardiovascular health, mental health, metabolism, and energy levels—that come with developing a daily walking routine.
WeWard has pledged to donate $25,000 to support Venus’ charity of choice, CARE, which works to address global poverty by supporting economic growth, improved health, access to education, and more for women and communities around the world. The startup will also be hosting a month-long ‘Venus Williams Championship’ in-app where participants can unlock increasing donation amounts with their collective steps. If the final steps milestone is reached, WeWard will donate $40,000.
Users can also engage in Venus-themed walking challenges and redeem special rewards, including tickets to sporting events, Garmin watches, gift cards, and more.
The partnership follows the release of Williams’ health and wellness book STRIVE, which outlines a holistic and science-backed approach to life improvement.
“As someone who is deeply passionate about personal health and wellness, I’m thrilled to be partnering with WeWard,” Williams said.
“A large part of staying well and active is simply by moving your body whichever way you can, and with WeWard, walking becomes a fun and rewarding experience. I’m excited to be part of a movement that encourages people to take that first step towards a healthier, more active lifestyle.”
Founded in 2019, WeWard users can track and redeem their daily steps for incentives like cash deposits, charity donations, or retail gifts, and do social challenges. WeWard users have been shown to increase walking activity by nearly 25%, and to date, the company has given $20m in cash back to users, $1m to charity partners, and helped save more than 600,000 tons of CO2 from walking.
The partnership with Williams marks a milestone for the startup, which expanded to 20 new countries in July 2024 and recently passed 1m downloads in the US since its rollout into the region.
“We couldn’t have found a better partner to help us inspire more people to walk,” said founder Yves Benchimol.
“Venus has been such a huge inspiration to so many throughout her multi-faceted career, and we’re thrilled to have her energy, advocacy, and entrepreneurial spirit onboard to help us drive WeWard’s mission to get more people walking.”
