The Journey of Magic AI Founders: Varun Bhanot and Sunil Jindal’s Path to Revolutionizing Fitness

After graduation, Varun dabbled in investment banking in New York and the finance world.

But the long hours, the straightjacket corporate culture, made him start to yearn for a more fulfilling experience, a turn toward the capricious vibe of startups.

Meanwhile, Sunil approached his inquisitiveness in the science direction. Sunil who studied physics at Imperial College London, was an analytical mind that excelled at problem-solving.

Early in his career, he specialized in product management and developed expertise in crafting solutions that revolved around users. The tech jobs he held taught him about nascent technology, but it was his collaborative nature and technical know-how that would ultimately help connect hardware and software innovations. These opposing backgrounds – for Varun, law’s rigor; for Sunil, the exploratory nature of physics – provided a solid basis for a collaboration grounded in diverse strengths, and developed into their common entrepreneurial leap.

The Meeting Point: From Hubble's Halls to a Shared Fitness Vision

The founders met at Hubble, a high-growth UK proptech startup where they joined early on. Varun got in as an intern, seeing firsthand the madness and the victories of scaling from day one to pre-Series B funding. Sunil, by then established in product roles, also helped shape user experiences during hyper growth. Amid late nights and team brainstorming sessions, they bonded over frustrations with stagnant industries and a mutual fascination with technology's untapped potential.

For Varun, that moment came at a time of intense personal reckoning. He was battling being overweight after a late-night-heavy lifestyle (whiskey and kebabs mainly) and decided to get fit. Traditional exercise routines were intimidating and demotivating, inspiring – motivating and scalable/alike you know – they don’t personalize. This metamorphosis sparked his vision that technology can bring the power of the best coaches to the masses, outside of the walls of the gym.

Drawing on his background in physics, Sunil recognized the potential for AI and sensors to develop immersive, data-rich experiences.

Their conversations ranged from inconsequential chats to specific concepts: an AI powered mirror where users could be instructed in real-time, their form adjusted and workouts customized. What started as a side hustle at the bottom of Varun’s parents’ basement in 2021 became the birth of Magic AI, after working on it professionally, inspired them to dovetail their professional expertise with personal passions.

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Basement Beginnings: Bootstrapping Amid Resource Constraints

Starting Magic AI was just about starting small, literally. With the cash they had, the two began working out of Varun's family home, burrowing into cramped spaces littered with code notebooks and fitness gear. They bootstrapped a simple e-commerce side hustle—selling treadmills on Shopify—to bring in money for the research and development. It felt like every sale was a small victory, and it was earning me the ability to fund early experiments with AI algorithms and mirror hardware.

Their determination was tested daily by the lack of resources. They had no dedicated team, no venture capital, and so they coded, designed, and reached out to customers all by themselves. Sunil's product expertise led him to iterate on prototypes, while Varun’s sales hustle brought in the cash. But the isolation of the very early building weighed heavily, especially as they were both working full-time at Hubble before going all in.

This phase epitomized their dedication to the lean principle of doing more with less, demonstrating that in the UK’s startup scene native grit could shatter foreign capital.

Navigating Storms: Funding Rejections and the Human Side of Hustle

No founder journey escapes turbulence, and for Varun and Sunil, fundraising became their fiercest battleground. Pitching investors was to look them in the eye and say, “I’m probably wrong.” Early meetings were nothing if not frank: there were doubts about the size of the market for yet another fitness gadget, as well as their credentials—Varun’s law background raised eyebrows, while queries about commercial viability were raised by Sunil’s physics roots. One investor thoroughly checked Varun’s LinkedIn profile, a telling sign of the personal strain of nonstop validation.

After over 50 rejections, 2023 was when that persistence was rewarded with a £2 million seed round from investors who saw the potential for the AI mirror to disrupt the home fitness market. But the strain had stayed with him emotionally — sleepless nights, second-guessing his choices, the fear of failure ringing louder than the words of encouragement.   Hiring amplified these challenges; convincing top talent to join an unproven venture required framing uncertainty as opportunity, turning interviews into mutual evaluations of fit and faith..

Through all of it, the fact that they were co-founders was their constant, anchor, reminder: that having shared struggles to find something to do makes for the most resolute of crews.

A Bold Horizon: Envisioning AI as the Great Equalizer in Fitness

At Magic AI's core lies a vision unyielding in ambition: to make world-class personal training accessible to everyone, anywhere. Varun and Sunil imagine a world where AI eliminates barriers—cost, location, intimidation—delivering hyper-personalized sessions via the Magic Mirror. This holographic device tracks movements, offers form corrections, and curates workouts with celebrity athlete content, all powered by proprietary ReflectAI technology.

Their broader ethos extends beyond fitness. Varun’s efforts with Unhoused.org, a nonprofit he started with his wife to address homelessness via technology such as crowdfunding and 3D-printed housing, embody a philosophy of direct application of invention to societal challenges. Sunil balances this by bringing expertise in ethical AI and advocating for products that enable users without compromising privacy. Together, they aim to scale Magic AI globally, targeting 12-20% monthly growth to fuel expansions into new markets and features.

This forward gaze positions Magic AI not just as a product company, but as a catalyst for healthier, more equitable lives.

Milestones Marking Momentum: From Seed to Series A Ambitions

As of late 2024, Magic AI steadied their basement-born bet with a $5M raise, solidifying the company. Recognition followed: inclusion in the 2024 Startups 100 index, collaborations with retailers including Selfridges, and glowing feedbacks that the mirror is so woven into home routines. Production grew, thousands of units delivered, each one embodying polish on the hardware-software axis.

By 2025, the company redefined the limits once more—introducing AI to enable advanced metrics such as rep counting and weight guidance, and bringing in content libraries that include strength, yoga and more. These triumphs were stacked on early validations, like TED demonstrations and media spotlights, establishing Magic AI as a UK fitness tech leader.

Beyond the Mirror: Lessons from a Relentless Founder Duo

The story of Varun Bhanot and Sunil Jindal with Magic AI is about living the startup ethos – chaotic, exhausting, but incredibly rewarding. From attending law school and conducting science experiments to running a startup that is reimagining the home gym, their stories demonstrate how individual weaknesses became sources of strength for the group. In a world where 90% of startups fail, their story is one of hope for aspiring entrepreneurs: vision is resilient when it is complemented with pragmatism.

Magic AI is heading towards a global breakout out and Varun and Sunil are growing — humanizing their edge in technology by being human by design. They track Aretha and Alicia's careers to show that the greatest breakthroughs don’t come from perfect beginnings but from the bravery to experiment in the dark.