Catch World App: A voice-coached running and cycling app

Catch World App is an Austrian startup founded by a triathlete who wanted to bring sport back into the moment. His idea was a training app with fewer screens to check and less data to analyse. Going out for a run or a ride should feel simple and joyful, with users listening to their body instead of watching a display. He came to Miquido with the idea, a startup budget, and an audience in Austria and Germany, but without a product team.

We acted as his product partner from day one, from discovery workshops through design, development, and release. In 3 to 4 months of development, a small team built a running and cycling app for iOS and Android. It offers 4 challenge modes, 4 difficulty levels, and an AI voice coach powered by ElevenLabs. The app launched in May 2026 and gained a German version and two major updates in the months that followed.

01. No in-house product team

The founder brought deep knowledge of endurance sport but had no one on his side to turn the idea into requirements. Someone had to decide what the first version would include, how each mode would work, and what users would see on every screen.

02. A triathlon vision on a startup budget

The original vision covered triathletes, which meant swimming, cycling, and running in one product. A one-person company could not fund all three disciplines at once, so the first release needed a narrower scope that still felt complete.

03. A German-speaking target audience

Most of the intended users train in Austria and Germany and prefer apps in their own language. The interface and the voice coach both had to work in English and German.

04. Movement that cannot be simulated

Every mode depends on live GPS position, pace, and distance captured during a real workout. Emulated locations could not show how the app would behave on an actual run or ride.

01. Shaping the product from discovery

Miquido ran discovery workshops with the founder and turned the idea into a defined scope. We narrowed the first version to running and cycling, with separate settings for road and gravel bikes. We also advised a free launch, so the app could build an audience before any paid features arrive.

02. Turning every workout into a chase

The app offers 4 challenge modes. Users can outrun a virtual Catcher, chase a target that starts ahead, hold a pace zone, or race on their own earlier route. A fifth mode simply records a workout with a map and voice commentary, and every saved session can later become a Catch Your Best challenge.

03. Coaching through the earphones

A voice coach built with ElevenLabs leads every session, so users can keep the phone in a pocket. It addresses them by name, varies its phrasing, and warns them when the Catcher is 500, 100, and 50 metres behind. Users choose a male or female voice, in English or German.

04. Calibrating to four difficulty levels

Beginner, Easy, Medium, and Advanced levels adjust the rival's strength or the required pace, with the default set by a question at sign-up. Before each workout, the app shows what to expect, such as an expected survival time of 30 to 60 minutes. Cyclists get separate values for road and gravel, for example 25 to 35 km/h and 15 to 25 km/h in the Medium pace zone.

05. Delivering with a lean, AI-assisted team

Miquido built the app with a smaller team working within our AI SDLC, an AI-assisted software delivery process. One engineer covered both the mobile app and the backend. Because GPS emulators could not reproduce real conditions, our tester checked every mode on runs and rides several kilometres long.

01. 3 to 4 months from development start to a live app

Catch World App launched on iOS and Android in May 2026. In those months, a small team covered design, development, and field testing of all challenge modes.

02. 2 major updates after launch

New features shipped in two major releases after the May launch, with Miquido supporting the product until the end of September 2026.

03. 2 languages, with German for Austria and Germany

The German version went live in September 2026. When users change the language in settings, the voice coach switches with the app.

04. 3 to 4 taps from the home screen to a workout

After a short onboarding, users start each session in 3 to 4 taps. Every workout saves automatically and syncs to Apple Health or Health Connect.