ElectroKare

Market position

The company positions itself against PPG-based consumer wearables — Apple Watch, Oura, WHOOP and heart-rate straps — arguing those sensors provide general health awareness but limited chemical detail, and compares its consumer approach to fitness platforms such as Strava and WHOOP with a data-driven focus on hydration and electrolytes. In its clinical framing, it targets non-invasive measurement of parameters that it says were not previously measurable outside of invasive testing.

Rather than adding a new sensor, the company derives chemistry-level estimates from ECG signals already captured by commodity heart rate straps and smartwatches, providing electrolyte and hydration estimates without blood draws, plus in-session rather than retrospective feedback.

Technology

The core technology estimates blood chemistry from electrocardiogram signals. Models are trained on datasets pairing electrolyte measurements to ECGs, and the company has cited published research supporting the relationship between ECG morphology and electrolyte concentrations. Early development used open-source data. The consumer app connects to standard chest straps such as the Polar H10 and to smartwatches, streams live estimates of electrolyte balance, hydration and readiness during activity, and stores ECGs and activity data to produce historical analytics. Current company materials describe an ECG foundation model named Nefesh underpinning both clinical and performance products, with some outputs delivered as one-time reads and others computed continuously.

Go-to-market

Consumer acquisition has relied on organic and podcast-driven awareness, including mentions on health podcasts and the team's own podcast, Silicon Fox, which company statements put at upwards of 70,000 monthly listeners. The product launched via a waitlist that preceded a public beta, distributing through the Google Play Store and later the Apple App Store, and is sold on a monthly membership.

Initially competitive and endurance athletes already accustomed to performance and nutrition tracking, with a stated ambition to reach the broader fitness population (cited as 64 million Americans engaged in fitness). Earlier work targeted chronic kidney disease and dialysis patients, and the founders have described interest in expanding to additional markets including the military. The clinical arm addresses clinicians and medical institutions.

Geography

Founded and associated with Vernon Hills and Urbana-Champaign, Illinois; participated in a Fort Worth, Texas accelerator; relocated to Chattanooga, Tennessee in 2025. A Techstars company listing gives locations as Union Square, New York, NY and Vernon Hills, IL.

History

ElectroKare was launched in March 2024 by Mitchell Leshchiner and Josh Malinkovich after an ideation period beginning in fall 2023. Shortly after launch the team joined the iVenture Accelerator, a University of Illinois program based in the Gies College of Business, and it also participated in Techstars Physical Health Fort Worth in 2024, with Techstars becoming an investor. The company initially targeted potassium tracking for chronic kidney disease and dialysis patients but pivoted toward athletes and general fitness users after concluding that FDA clearance was impractical at its early stage. An Android release preceded an iOS launch; the iPhone app shipped its initial release and has been updated regularly, adding features such as post-session electrolyte breakdowns, an Insights tab with hydration recommendations and cramp risk, supplement options, and out-of-range electrolyte graphs through early 2026. After receiving seed-stage funding from Brickyard VC, the company relocated to Chattanooga, Tennessee, joining the Brickyard program, and announced a public beta in September 2025. Company materials now describe an ECG foundation model, Nefesh, and a two-arm clinical and performance product structure.

Risks & controversies

The consumer app carries a disclaimer stating that ElectroKare is not a medical company, does not provide diagnostic information, and that its outputs are estimates that do not directly measure electrolyte levels as a blood test would, with users directed to consult a physician before medical decisions. The founders have described regulatory clearance as a barrier that drove an early pivot away from chronic kidney disease patients, and have cited difficulty acquiring medical data due to confidentiality rules. Public sources also differ on basic company details, including founding year and headquarters.