A London-based running coaching app that gives each runner a personalised training plan, from first 5K to ultramarathon, built by two University of Southampton friends.
Runna is a running coaching app. You tell it your goal, your current fitness and how many days a week you can run, and it builds a plan around you, whether you are heading for your first 5K or a multi-day ultramarathon. Its plans combine coach-written programming with artificial intelligence, and the app also offers strength workouts, mobility and Pilates sessions, plus advice on nutrition and managing injuries. It connects to most running watches and fitness trackers, so your runs flow into the plan. A feature called RunnaAI looks at how fast you ran each session and gives personalised feedback.
Runna was started by two Southampton graduates, Ben Parker and Dom Maskell, who met in the university lacrosse club. After university Ben worked as a personal running coach with about 40 online clients, and Dom, one of those clients, suggested automating the coaching. They built the first version in their spare time over six to nine months and sold personalised marathon plans as emailed PDFs before turning the idea into an app. Their stated mission is to make the experience of working with a running coach accessible to everyone, from first-time runners to people chasing faster marathons. A core value they describe is being "here for and because of our users".
Runna is based in London. One report from 2025 put the team at about 150 people, though that is an older number and we did not find a first-party page confirming it. In April 2025 the running-and-cycling app Strava agreed to buy Runna, and Strava's chief executive Michael Martin said the plan was to keep investing in the Runna app and team and to run it as a separate company, closely connected to Strava. Runna has also partnered with parkrun UK and with events such as the Hackney Half.
On people and culture, Runna's own story is one of founders who are runners and coaches themselves. Its team includes coaching experts alongside engineers and a growing AI team, and the company credits its loyal subscribers and in-app community for its growth. One article noted that the company gives staff late starts on Wednesdays so they can do group runs, which is the company's own claim. The same article said Runna won a Startups 100 marketing award in 2025 and had a large social-media following.
The roles in a company like this are wide. There are software engineers and AI specialists who build the app, designers and product managers who decide how it feels to use, running coaches and sports scientists who write the plans, community and customer support staff, and marketing and partnerships teams who work with races and clubs. If you enjoy running, coding, sport science or telling stories on social media, these are the kinds of skills it draws on. The company's own website is the best place to see how the team is organised now that it sits alongside Strava.
Website: www.runna.com
PURPOSE helps school and university students explore 62 sectors and over 1,000 entry-level careers in the UK, then connects them directly with employers.
Explore PURPOSE