Is this AI-powered gym the future of fitness? Personalised workouts created by a Genius

The ‘first full-scale AI-powered gym’ in LA pairs AI software with human coaches to keep you on track – so be good, for goodness’ sake

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Fred Fitness CEO Andre Enzensberger explains how its AI-powered equipment works. The gym in Los Angeles pairs AI software with human coaches to keep gym-goers on track. Photo: Instagram/fredfitnessofficial

Published: 4:15pm, 11 Apr 2025

The Genius knows all. It knows my height, my weight, my hydration, my cardio stamina – even, regrettably, my body’s visceral fat percentage.

I am standing on a bioelectrical impedance device – which looks a lot like a scale but with metal handles and metal foot pads – and it is sending low-grade, painless electrical signals through my hands and feet to measure my muscle, fat and water content. The percentages of each are then fed into an AI program.

Welcome to Fred Fitness, which touts itself as Los Angeles’ “first full-scale AI-powered gym”.

You might be wondering: what does that even mean? Mostly that its AI-powered software, referred to as Genius, is integrated into every piece of cardio and strength equipment at the gym.

Throughout your workout, it functions as an ever-present force with an agenda: to help you reach your training goal, whether that is weight loss, strength building or toning, in the most efficient way possible.

The facility opened in mid-February in a 1,068 square metre (11,500 sq ft) former outdoor wear and gear store in the city in the US state of California. Fred Fitness CEO Andre Enzensberger says the gym has about 400 members, who pay US$150 a month to be bossed around by an algorithm.