What Interactive Wear AG does

Interactive Wear AG is a Starnberg, Germany-based technology company founded in May 2005 through a management buy-out of Infineon Technologies AG's wearable electronics division. The company develops embedded software and hardware platforms for wearable sensor data acquisition and analysis, with a particular focus on Edge-AI capable of running on resource-constrained microcontrollers (ARM M0+ class). Its portfolio spans modular development platforms (MicroHub, NanoHub, MicroHubPro), heating systems (iThermX and the iTherm Flex-S/M/L family), LED lighting systems (iLightX L20), textile cables and proprietary snap-button connectors, sensors (IMU, pressure, strain, respiration), and customized power solutions. The platforms support BLE, NFC, and proprietary NFMI communication, and run on the open-source Zephyr RTOS to enable hardware-independent application development.

The company serves enterprise customers primarily across four vertical segments: sports and fitness, rehabilitation and healthcare, workwear and smart PPE, and fashion and luxury apparel, with automotive interiors and ambient-assisted living as secondary segments. Named customers include OPED Orthelligent (rehabilitation sensors), AKMedTec (heated patient transport), Feraru Dynamics (HAVS vibration prevention), Zegna and Bogner (heated luxury apparel), Triumph Motorcycle (LED safety jacket), Elumino/Creation Baumann (interior lighting), DANE Lynsted (wearable safety apparel), and Charité Berlin (research). The business operates three revenue streams: custom product development and engineering services, hardware and component sales, and OEM/embedded technology licensing, with more than 130 commercialized projects delivered and components integrated into more than 200 end products in the market. Publicly funded R&D consortia — EGHI (BMBF, 2021-2024), BEAUTIFUL (BMBF, 2023-2025), BIONIC (completed), and i-compression (completed) — serve as both technical development vehicles and go-to-market mechanisms with academic and industrial partners including FAU, DFKI, Fraunhofer FIT/FKIE/IZM/IIS, Charité Berlin, and Fortiss.

Interactive Wear monetizes through project-based engineering engagements (feasibility studies, workshops, prototyping, production ramp-up), OEM component supply, and consulting services, with no public pricing disclosed and all engagements negotiated per-project. The company is led by Executive Board member Andreas Roepert, with an Advisory Board chaired by Awa Garlinska and including Gerhard Bienert and Uwe Boehm. It is a privately held Aktiengesellschaft registered in Munich (HRB 158184), with no disclosed external investors, funding rounds, or parent company following the original Infineon spin-off.

Name

Interactive Wear AG

Legal name

Interactive Wear AG

Website

https://interactive-wear.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Interactive Wear AG is a Starnberg, Germany-based technology company developing embedded hardware/software platforms and Edge-AI for smart textiles and wearable sensor applications, serving enterprise customers across sports, healthcare, workwear, and luxury apparel via custom engineering services and OEM component supply.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Wearable Electronics and Smart Textiles

NAICS

Textile and Fabric Finishing and Fabric Coating Mills (3133)

SIC

Electronic Components & Accessories (3670)

akta.pro primary industry

Smart & Conductive E-Textiles (Heated Textiles/Sensors/EMI Shielding/Antistatic) (IMAOADAM)

Keywords

• Wearable electronics platforms
• Smart textile components
• Edge AI sensor systems
• Embedded wearable computing
• Body sensor networks

Headquarters

HQ city

Starnberg

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Custom Product Development and Engineering Services: Full-cycle development services from idea/concept through to manufacturing, including feasibility studies, system specification, demonstrator/prototype/pre-series development, certification support, and production ramp-up. Consulting services provide fast access to wearable electronics expertise. Workshops customized to customer needs (e.g., heated system workshops covering electricity basics, power, connectivity, integration methods).
2. Hardware and Component Sales: Sale of embedded compute platforms (MicroHub, NanoHub, MicroHubPro), sensor systems (IMUs, pressure, strain, vital parameter sensors), textile cables (2B05, 4B07, 6B10 series), connectors (snap buttons, USB, DC, audio), heating elements (iTherm Flex-S/M/L), LED light systems (iLightX L20), power solutions (LiPo batteries, power banks, solar cells, wireless charging), and development kits.
3. Technology Licensing and OEM Embedding: Platforms and component portfolios licensed or embedded into customer products. Customers develop products based on Interactive Wear's broad portfolio of electronic systems using a modular platform strategy, resulting in commercialized wearable and smart textile products sold under customer brand names.
4. Data Science and AI Project Services: Edge-AI experts and data scientists work closely with customers on data acquisition and analysis. Preconfigured systems (body sensing, environment sensing) accelerate data science projects. Customers benefit from algorithm libraries for activity recognition, gait analysis, vibration analysis, and cognitive load prediction.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Interactive Wear AG develops and supplies embedded hardware and software platforms for wearable and smart textile applications, including Edge-AI-enabled sensor data acquisition, heating, lighting, and textile interconnection components. The company combines proprietary modular platforms (MicroHub, NanoHub) with patented heating and lighting subsystems (iThermX, iLightX) and conductive textile cables to enable enterprise customers to integrate electronics into garments and other textile products for sports, healthcare, workwear, fashion, and automotive applications.

Product overview

Interactive Wear AG offers a modular platform strategy combining embedded hardware and software for wearable sensor applications. The core portfolio centers on the MicroHub/NanoHub development platforms for sensor data acquisition, complemented by specialized solutions: iLightX L20 for LED lighting integration into garments, and the iThermX/iTherm Flex family (Flex-S, Flex-M, Flex-L) for heating applications. Supporting infrastructure includes textile cables (TWC series), connectors, and power solutions. The company provides end-to-end services from feasibility studies through prototyping to production, with over 200 commercialized products developed using this platform approach.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• MicroHub: Wearable development platform for sensor data applications, ranging from single sensor systems to multi-sensor fusion platforms.
• NanoHub
• iThermX
• iLightX
• MHX

Products and services

• MicroHub Development Platform Scalable modular wearable development platform for real-time sensor data applications. Runs neural networks on resource-constrained ARM Cortex-M4/M0 microcontrollers (up to 200 MHz) and supports BLE and WiFi communication for body sensor network development. Used by enterprise customers to build Edge-AI-enabled wearable sensor products.
• NanoHub Development Platform Compact modular wearable development platform for low-power sensor data acquisition and processing applications. Designed for compact sensor Edge-AI products where size and power consumption are critical.
• iLightX L20 LED Lighting System LED-based lighting system designed for integration into garments and accessories. Features washable textile cables, YKK Stocko DUR8 snap-button connectors, and is powered by a 3.7V/1400mAh Li-Ion battery delivering approximately 15-20 hours of operation. Used for visibility and safety applications such as motorcyclist jackets.
• iThermX Modular Heating Platform Modular heating platform combining lightweight heating elements, controllers, and power supplies. Supports 5W-36W thermal power output with temperature increase between +5C and +50C. Embroidered litz wire heating elements meet automotive quality standards and are suited for fashion, sports, workwear, and automotive seating applications.
• Sense and Act Systems Distributed on-body sensor systems for measuring vital parameters, motion, pressure, strain, and environmental data. Configurable for tracking, posture monitoring, heart rate, and respiration rate. Used by enterprise customers building connected wearable sensor products.
• Textile Cables (TWC Series) and Connectors Flexible textile cables with 2, 4, 6, or 10 litz wires for data and power transfer, using copper silver-coated strands with approximately 0.30 ohm/m resistance. Washable at 30-40 degrees C. Complemented by proprietary snap-button (Prym 381_12), audio 3.5mm, USB-A/Micro-USB, and custom harness connectors for integration into garments.
• Power Solutions for Wearables Customized power solutions ranging from thin 3mm integrated LiPo batteries (100mAh @3.7V) to large power banks (20Ah @3.7V), including wireless charging and energy harvesting with solar cells for wearable electronics.
• Textile Integration Services Engineering services for integrating electronics into textiles, including snap-button mechanical and electrical connections, capacitive sensors, and integration of sensors and actuators into garments and other textile products. Sold as a standalone service engagement to enterprise customers.
• Custom Product Development and Engineering Services Full-cycle custom product development services from idea and concept through feasibility studies, system specification, demonstrator/prototype/pre-series development, certification support, and production ramp-up. Workshops are also delivered covering topics such as heated systems, electricity basics, power, connectivity, and integration methods. Sold directly to enterprise customers.
• Edge-AI Data Science Project Services Data science and AI project services in which Edge-AI experts and data scientists collaborate with customers on data acquisition and analysis. Preconfigured body sensing and environment sensing systems accelerate data science projects. Customers benefit from algorithm libraries for activity recognition, gait analysis, vibration analysis, and cognitive load prediction.

Quantifiable outcome

• Motion detection hit rates of >99.5% with Enhanced Features technology vs. 85-93.2% with standard CNN approaches, enabling real-time analysis on ARM M0+ microcontrollers
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability5 records

Feature7 records

Partnerships

32 partnerships are on record, tiered core, foundational, supporting and minor.

• Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Information Technology (FIT)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Project partner in the BMBF-funded BEAUTIFUL project (01/2023–12/2025). FIT contributes ergonomic assessment expertise and develops control center simulators for evaluating physio-psychological states of control center personnel.
• Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2021FAU coordinates the EGHI project (02/2021–10/2024), funded by BMBF. Interactive Wear contributes overall system design from sensor integration to neural network evaluation, demonstrator development, and business model creation. Additional FAU collaboration includes Machine Learning & Data Analytics research.
• DFKI (German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2021Partner in the EGHI project, contributing augmented vision and AI expertise. Interactive Wear collaborates with DFKI's Augmented Vision department on machine learning applications for wearable sensor data analysis.
• Infineon Technologies AGfoundationalStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2005Interactive Wear AG emerged from the complete acquisition of Infineon Technologies AG's wearable electronics activities in May 2005, representing a complete management buy-out of Infineon's wearable tech division. This founding relationship established the company's initial technology portfolio and team.
• University Duisburg-EssensupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch partner in the EGHI BMBF-funded project, contributing health behavior and user experience expertise to the personalized behavioral assistance system development.
• Bodymed AGsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in EGHI project contributing healthcare and behavioral science domain knowledge, providing clinical and user adoption perspectives for health monitoring solutions.
• Fraunhofer Institute for Communication, Information Processing and Ergonomics (FKIE)supportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in the BEAUTIFUL project contributing to the development of assistance systems for control center operators in critical infrastructure environments.
• Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration IZMsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch partner providing expertise in microelectronics reliability and integration for smart textile and wearable technology development.
• Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits IISsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch partner contributing integrated circuit expertise to wearable electronics development and sensor signal processing.
• RWTH Aachen University - Institute of Textile Technology (ITA)supportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic research partner specializing in textile technology, supporting smart textile material development and integration techniques for wearable electronics.
• Technical University of Dresden - Chair for Molecular Functional MaterialssupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch partner in molecular functional materials for developing new conductive materials, fibers, and fabrics for smart textile applications.
• Technical University Munich - Chair for Applied Software EngineeringsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner contributing software engineering expertise for wearable computing and IoT application development.
• Deutsche Institute für Textil- und Faserforschung Denkendorf (DITF)supportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerLeading German textile research institute providing expertise in textile manufacturing, functional materials, and smart textile industrialization.
• TITV Greiz - Institute for Special Textiles and Flexible MaterialssupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch institute specializing in special textiles and flexible materials, supporting integration methods and new conductive textile component development.
• Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin - Nursing Research GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIn the i-compression BMBF-funded project, Charité used Interactive Wear's MicroHub for motion data recording, achieving >99.5% hit rates in motion detection. Collaborated on neural network development for gait analysis in elderly care.
• FortisssupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch institute specializing in neuromorphic computing, contributing third-generation artificial neural network expertise for edge AI optimization in wearable devices.
• Institut für Agrar- und Stadtökologische Projekte (IASP)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBerlin-based institute contributing to urban ecological and agricultural project applications of wearable sensor technology.
• Avacon Netz GmbHsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerGrid operator partner in the BEAUTIFUL project providing real-world control center environment for ergonomic assistance system development and testing.
• Bundesanstalt für Arbeitsschutz und Arbeitsmedizin (BAuA)supportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerGerman Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health contributing occupational health expertise to the BEAUTIFUL project for grid control center operator well-being.
• Ergoneers GmbHsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvider of measurement technology for behavioral research, contributing to BEAUTIFUL project with expertise in physiological and behavioral data collection.
• Humatects GmbHsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerTechnology partner in the BEAUTIFUL project contributing expertise in human-machine interaction and ergonomic system design.
• PSI Software AGsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerSoftware and systems integration partner in BEAUTIFUL project contributing energy management and control system expertise.
• Visseiro GmbHsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in BEAUTIFUL project contributing visualization and decision support technology for critical infrastructure management.
• E.ON SE (Associated Partner)supportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerAssociated partner in BEAUTIFUL project, one of Europe's leading energy companies providing industry perspective on grid operations and control center requirements.
• Schleswig-Holstein Netz AG (Associated Partner)supportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerAssociated partner in BEAUTIFUL project providing practical grid operator environment for testing assistance systems developed in the project.
• Rolls Royce Power SystemssupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerPilot deployment site for BIONIC body sensor network system in industrial and construction work environments at Friedrichshafen facility. NFMI communication technology validated in this real-world industrial setting.
• AccionasupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerSpanish infrastructure and renewable energy company serving as pilot deployment site for BIONIC smart workwear motion tracking at construction sites. AI evaluates data in real-time to detect poor posture during construction work.
• Roessingh Research and DevelopmentsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerDutch research institute that developed the gamification app for the BIONIC project, contributing user engagement and rehabilitation expertise for wearable sensor applications.
• IHK (Munich Chamber of Industry and Commerce)supportingOthersChamber of commerce membership providing industry representation and networking in the Munich business ecosystem.
• VDE (German Electro-technical Commission)supportingOthersMembership in the German electro-technical standards organization for technical standards influence and industry credibility.
• Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG)supportingTechnology or IntegrationMember of the Bluetooth SIG, enabling access to BLE technology specifications and ecosystem for developing Bluetooth Low Energy communication modules.
• EtherCAT Technology GroupsupportingTechnology or IntegrationMembership in EtherCAT Technology Group supporting Ethernet-based communication standards for industrial sensor and control applications.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Prevayl: Prevayl builds smart textile platforms embedding biometric sensors into premium athletic apparel for performance and recovery monitoring. Comparable on combining textile-integrated sensors with edge processing and a brand-embedded/OEM business model serving sportswear manufacturers.
• Loomia: Loomia develops e-textile components including heating elements, pressure sensors, and textile cables integrated into garments, with a similar B2B/OEM model supplying soft-circuit components to fashion, automotive, and medical customers. Most direct comparability on product portfolio (conductive textiles, heating, sensors) and go-to-market (component sales + licensing to OEMs).
• Sensoria Health: Sensoria Health develops smart garments and wearables with embedded sensors for rehabilitation, fitness, and chronic disease management. Comparable on smart garment integration for rehabilitation/healthcare verticals, though with a more consumer/DTC orientation than Interactive Wear's OEM model.
• Hexoskin: Hexoskin (Carré Technologies) produces biometric smart shirts and wearable sensor platforms for health monitoring, sports performance, and research applications. Comparable on textile-integrated multi-sensor systems with edge processing for vitals, respiration, and activity tracking.
• Myant: Myant builds a textile computing platform (Skiin) embedding biometric sensors into everyday clothing for health monitoring, rehabilitation, and PPE applications. Comparable to Interactive Wear's MicroHub/MHX portfolio with multi-sensor BSN, edge analytics, and OEM-style integration into apparel, footwear, and bedding.
• Xenoma: Xenoma develops e-skin smart apparel with embedded stretchable sensors and electronics for motion capture, fitness, and healthcare applications. Comparable as a smart-textile platform company targeting sports, healthcare, and apparel OEMs with sensor-integrated garments.
• AiQ Smart Clothing: AiQ (Tex-Ray subsidiary) manufactures conductive yarns, textile heating panels, and smart clothing integrating biometric sensors and LEDs for sports, healthcare, and industrial customers. Highly comparable as a smart-textile component manufacturer with heating, lighting, and sensing product lines analogous to Interactive Wear's iThermX, iLightX, and textile cables.
• Clothing+: Clothing+ (formerly FT Labs / Bonbouton) manufactures smart-textile sensors and integrates biometric monitoring into garments and footwear, serving sports, healthcare, and lifestyle brands. Comparable as an OEM supplier of textile-integrated biometric sensor platforms for apparel manufacturers.

Peers

• Athos (now under Under Armour / Revel):

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/interactive-wear-ag

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Interactive Wear AG