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- Volume 73 | The Neural Era
📰 The Pulse
NextSense Raises $16 M to Launch EEG-Powered Smartbuds
The future of wearables just got wired into your brain. Mountain View-based neuroscience startup NextSense has raised a $16 million Series A to launch the world’s first wireless earbuds with built-in EEG sensors.
Launching in Q4 2025, NextSense Smartbuds offer clinically accurate sleep tracking and real-time auditory stimulation that boosts slow-wave sleep by up to 50% in early users. “Relax” and “Focus” modes will soon let you modulate calm or attention states through adaptive soundscapes.
Why it matters — NextSense represents the leap from tracking to closed-loop enhancement. By reading and responding to brain activity, these Smartbuds personalize recovery and cognition in real time. Partnerships with universities and pharma are already underway, with medical applications targeted for 2027. (More)
The Playbook Take — Brain tech is officially entering the wellness mainstream. NextSense isn’t just building another sleep tracker — it’s creating a new category where earbuds become neural tools for deeper rest, sharper focus, and cognitive recovery. Super pumped and curious to see how this category continues to innovate.
🧬 The Shop
COROS | PACE 4
The new PACE 4 is the ultralight AMOLED GPS watch built for athletes chasing precision. Up to 41 hours of GPS and 19 days of daily battery use, built in mic to record training logs or notes — all under 32 g.
Blenders | Element Goggle
Blenders Eyewear moves into snow season with distortion-free optics, lightning-fast lens swaps, and a fit so comfortable you’ll forget you’re wearing them.
RGMN + | Newly Launched Clean Hygiene
Founded by 30× Ironman Rick Steele and World Series champ Matt Szczur, RGMN + offers clean skincare for men — four everyday essentials: soap, deodorant, lotion, toothpaste.
Aviron | Abs Hero Core Trainer
Toronto-based Aviron, known for turning rowing into a video-game experience, just dropped Abs Hero, a dynamic plank platform that transforms one of fitness’s least-loved movements into something people actually want to do. Move left, right, forward, and back to engage 20 + core and upper-body muscles per rep. Sync with the Aviron iOS app for game-driven workouts, leaderboards, and Time Machine Mode that lets you compete with your past self.
Abs Hero by Aviron
Godspeed | Cellular Energy Drink
A next-generation hydration blend combining electrolytes, ketones, paraxanthine, and nootropics to fuel energy at the cellular level — the new category between energy and longevity.
Neutonic | Creatine Sticks
Single-serve creatine packs for on-the-go fueling. Flavors: Pineapple, Strawberry Lime, and Unflavored.
BUBS Naturals | Creatine
Officially live. Creapure® creatine monohydrate, NSF Certified for Sport®, unflavored and trusted by pros.
Magic Spoon | Hot Chocolate Flavor
Your favorite childhood cereal gets a winter upgrade — rich cocoa flavor with 13 g protein and zero guilt.
Novos | Longevity Mix – Tropical Passion
Longevity meets taste. The new Tropical Passion blend brings vitamins, polyamines, and nutrients for cellular health in one daily scoop.
🔋 Recovery At The Push Of A Button
Finally — a recovery tool that speaks your body’s natural language: frequency.
Your cells are like batteries — powering every thought, heartbeat, and movement. But stress, screen time, and overtraining drain that charge fast.
HAELO uses Pulsed Electromagnetic Field Therapy (PEMF) to restore cellular energy and balance at the push of a button.
Backed by 2,000+ double-blind studies
Trusted by elite coaches, Olympians, and pro athletes
Designed for at-home use
Just choose a Frequency Set in the app, place the coil on your body, and hit play. Each session aligns with your body’s natural rhythm — helping you regulate, repair, and recharge from the inside out.
The Playbook Take — PEMF isn’t just for biohackers anymore. Tools like HAELO are giving athletes access to one of the most effective, noninvasive recovery methods in the world.
👉 Use code PLAYBOOK and get $300 OFF
🎙️ On The Podcast
The Sleep Mask That’s Changing How Athletes Recover
This week on The Playbook podcast, we sat down with Lori Oliver, co-founder and CEO of The Inactive Company — the sleep-performance brand turning a century-old product into a genuine recovery tool.
Lori and her co-founder Jill (both former Spanx leaders) reimagined the sleep mask from scratch. Instead of flimsy silk or bulky foam, they built the Inactivator — a patented, ergonomic mask that delivers true 100% blackout and integrated temperature regulation without the weight.
Why it matters — Darkness is the #1 cue for melatonin production. Cooling helps you stay asleep longer. Put them together, and you get a simple, science-backed way to upgrade sleep quality — the performance variable most people ignore.
And the pros are taking notice.
The NFLPA equips players with the Inactivator for international travel, and even sends it to athletes on the injured reserve list looking for faster recovery. Several NFL and college programs now incorporate the mask into their sleep protocols.
Lori also breaks down:
Sleep as the ultimate performance enhancer
How morning sunlight and evening light hygiene can reset your sleep instantly
Why building lean and in public beats stealth mode
The surprising consumer beliefs about sleep she had to overcome
What she learned from working alongside Sara Blakely at Spanx
The Playbook Take: Sleep isn’t downtime — it’s data-driven recovery hardware. When athletes and founders start treating it like training, the results follow. And The Inactive Company is building the tools to make that shift accessible.
Listen to the full episode here
💰 The Boardroom
Fastbreak.AI Raises $40M to Reimagine Youth Sports Operations
Fastbreak.AI — the AI-powered sports operations software — secured a $40M Series A with investors including Greycroft, GTM Fund, the NBA, NHL, and TMRW Sports. Athlete backers include Patrick Cantlay, Larry Fitzgerald Jr., and Luke Kuechly.
The Playbook Take — This is the backend OS for sports. Fastbreak is quietly building the digital infrastructure for the $20B youth sports market.
Lucky Energy Raises $25M and Assembles an All-Star Beverage Board
Clean-label energy brand Lucky Energy closed a $25M Series B led by Paine Schwartz Partners. Founder Richard Laver — the youngest survivor of Delta Flight 191 — built Lucky on perseverance and purpose. The brand’s five-ingredient formula (caffeine, maca, beta-alanine, ginseng, taurine) mirrors its mission: real energy, no BS.(More)
The Playbook Take — In a crowded energy aisle, authentic founder stories cut through noise. Lucky has one of the best.
Sports Stars Rush Into AI — Lingard, Cook & Jones Back MAGIC AI
MAGIC AI, creator of the award-winning MAGIC Mirror, raised $9M and added footballer Jesse Lingard, cricket legend Sir Alastair Cook, and Strictly’s Katya Jones as investors and AI trainers. The mirror uses ReflectAI® to coach form in real time across 240+ workouts and even responds in the athlete’s voice.
The Playbook Take — The AI fitness race is on — and athletes want equity in the hardware shaping training at home.
Enduraphin Completes Seed Round to Expand PHINTECH™ Protein System
Enduraphin, maker of ready-to-mix protein bottles, closed its Seed round backed by Latavius Murray, Patrick Corbin, Jim Boeheim, Michael Rubin, and others. Used by 150+ NCAA and pro teams, the brand offers NSF Certified for Sport® protein with no scoops and no mess.
The Playbook Take — Convenience is king. Enduraphin is the Stanley Cup of protein bottles — every athlete will have one in their bag.