MyFitnessPal Buys Teens’ Calorie App After 15M Downloads in 2 Years
MyFitnessPal just bought a calorie-tracking app built by two teenagers in high school.
On March 2, US company MyFitnessPal announced its acquisition of a young rival, a photo-based nutrition app called Cal AI, founded by a pair of 19-year-olds, Zach Yadegari and Henry Langmack. The app quickly gained traction and saw its downloads surge to over 15 million, achieving $30 million in annual revenue in under two years.
According to TechCrunch, the deal, which was finalised in December 2025, took almost a year to be completed. Mike Fisher, CEO of MyFitnessPal, also told the outlet that both the co-founders and the team comprising seven employees and a few contractors have all been retained to continue working on the app.
Although the terms of the deal were not made public, the CEO stated that Cal AI was not outright sold and that they didn’t have to be, as they are happy with the current arrangements.
How a high school side project became a threat worth buying
When speaking to TechCrunch, MyFitnessPal CEO Mike Fisher admitted that while his company closely monitors roughly 70 large and small competitors, he first noticed Cal AI as the app climbed up the app store rankings.
“In fact, the deal took considerable perseverance, Fisher told the outlet. The larger company noticed Cal AI as it started to rise in the ranks on the app store, visible through tools like Sensor Tower.”
He added that the deal was not only sealed by the impressive numbers, but also after conversations with Yadegari himself.
“You have a conversation with them, like I did late spring last year, and you walk away saying this is an impressive young man,” he said.
Fisher didn’t fail to point out that the team takes their work very seriously, holding standups on Sunday nights after attending lectures all week.
Two apps, two audiences
Despite the acquisition, Fisher emphasised that there are no plans to integrate Cal AI into its core application, noting that the two apps currently serve distinct but complementary audiences. He further explained that those who use MFP are most likely concerned about precision, tracking down every piece of their meals, compared to Cal AI users who care more about speed and simplicity.
The apps will be run as a separate unit, even though Cal AI has already received an upgrade shortly after the deal was successful, giving it access to MFP’s large database, powering it with lots of information, such as 20 million foods, 68,500 brands, and menus from more than 380 restaurant chains.
A young founder with a lot to prove
Yadegari, the founder, went viral on X last year after revealing that he was rejected from 15 of 18 top universities despitea 4.0 GPA and a successful startup. Because of this, he planned to skip college and focus entirely on his startup. However, he soon changed his mind after spending a summer with college dropouts in Silicon Valley.
This deal aligns with a trend eWeek recently reported: Amazon’s quiet acquisition of AI wearables startup Bee and Accenture absorbing UK AI firm Faculty.
Related reading: AI startups raised a historic $150 billion in 2025 alone.
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