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Fintech unicorn Bilt partners with Equinox on rewards. Aug 20, 2026 at 10:47 am Bilt, a rewards platform for renters, and luxury gym chain Equinox have launched a joint membership benefit that lets Bilt members earn points toward Equinox classes and spa services. Bilt is an American firm that provides tenants with the opportunity to earn bonus points by simply paying rent - a service that most reward programs do not cover. Points earned from payments (called Bilt Points) are redeemable in the travel, dining, and lifestyle markets. Bilt was established in 2021 and already partners with landlords from over seven million properties in the US, while also becoming one of the most financed fintech startups in the country. Among the ten most valuable and best-funded US fintech unicorns tracked in Forbes' 2026 Fintech 50 list, Bilt is a membership and loyalty program for renters that allows members to earn rewards on rent and homeowner association payments. Its valuation exceeded $10,7B in 2025 after a $250M funding round. A new partner of the firm is Equinox, which is a luxury gym and spa chain that was established in 1991 and is available in various major cities around the world, such as New York, Los Angeles, and London. The new partnership, called "Bilt for the Committed," connects the two companies' membership systems. Thanks to a new feature on the Bilt app called Bilt Neighborhood Concierge, members are now able to redeem their Bilt Cash for credits on personal training sessions, spa treatments, and Pilates classes at Equinox. They can also browse all Equinox classes and book their appointments through the app without ever having to leave it. New Equinox members joining the club through the Bilt app will get three offers to enjoy as new members: 10,000 Bilt Points, one personal training session at no cost, and a 50-minute spa treatment at no cost. For a limited time, members who check in at an Equinox club during the campaign are entered into a drawing for one month of free rent and one month of covered Equinox membership dues. Ten additional winners will receive a free spa service or training session. "Equinox has long defined health and wellness as a cornerstone of how people live, perform, and thrive," said Harvey Spevak, Executive Chairman and Managing Partner, Equinox Group. "Through our partnership with Bilt, we're creating new pathways for members to access the experiences and environments that support a high-performance lifestyle. It's a natural evolution at the intersection of luxury living and performance." "The home is the center of how people live and some of the best neighborhoods have always had an Equinox at the heart of them," commented Ankur Jain, Founder and CEO, Bilt. "This partnership is about making world-class wellness a natural part of the connected neighborhood life Bilt is building. Now with Equinox, our members have seamless access to premium fitness and wellness experiences right where they live." The deal is another example of a rewards company extending beyond payments into physical, subscription-based services and turning routine transactions like rent into access to non-financial products. By adopting fintech solutions, gyms can also improve operational efficiency, enhance member satisfaction, and ensure robust financial management. Nina bobro. 2151 Posts Nina is passionate about financial technologies and environmental issues, reporting on the industry news and the most exciting projects that build their offerings around the intersection of fintech and sustainability.

Bilt adds Equinox to rewards platform, pushing further into fitness. August 19, 2026 1/3 free articles used this month. The partnership lets Bilt members turn rewards earned through housing payments and everyday spending into Equinox personal training, Pilates and spa experiences Bilt is deepening its push into fitness and wellness, this time partnering with luxury fitness giant Equinox. The rewards platform and Equinox have launched "Bilt for the Committed," a partnership that allows joint members to redeem Bilt Cash for credits toward Equinox experiences including personal training, studio Pilates and spa services. Bilt members can also use the platform's Neighborhood Concierge to browse Equinox class schedules, explore club amenities and book spa services, further integrating the luxury fitness brand into Bilt's growing ecosystem of neighborhood experiences. "Equinox has long defined health and wellness as a cornerstone of how people live, perform, and thrive," Equinox Group executive chairman and managing partner Harvey Spevak said. "Through our partnership with Bilt, we're creating new pathways for members to access the experiences and environments that support a high-performance lifestyle." The deal builds on Bilt's growing interest in fitness as the company expands beyond its origins as a platform that rewards consumers for paying rent. Earlier this year, Bilt partnered with Mindbody to bring more than 7,000 fitness studios onto its platform, including locations from F45, Orangetheory and ID Hot Yoga. Members can earn points on classes booked through Bilt and pay using points, Bilt Cash or a linked card. The Equinox deal goes a step further by directly tying Bilt's rewards currency to services inside one of the fitness industry's most prominent luxury brands. "The home is the center of how people live and some of the best neighborhoods have always had an Equinox at the heart of them," Bilt founder and CEO Ankur Jain said. "This partnership is about making world-class wellness a natural part of the connected neighborhood life Bilt is building." To kick off the partnership, Bilt members who join Equinox through Bilt or directly at an Equinox club can choose from three limited-time welcome offers: 10,000 Bilt Points, a complimentary personal training session or a complimentary 50-minute spa service. Members can also upgrade their Equinox memberships through the Bilt app. The companies are adding a gamification element, too. During the promotional campaign, each Equinox club check-in gives eligible Bilt members an entry for a chance to win one month of free rent and one month of covered Equinox membership dues. Ten additional winners will receive either a 50-minute spa service or personal training session. The partnership underscores the increasingly prominent role of fitness and wellness in Bilt's effort to connect consumers' housing payments with the businesses and experiences surrounding where they live. Bilt's network now spans more than 7 million homes nationwide, with its rewards ecosystem extending across travel, restaurants and fitness. Last year, the company raised $250 million last year at a $10.75 billion valuation.

When AI repeats old harm: what the Equinox ad controversy reveals about objectification and accountability. Artificial intelligence may be new technology. The stereotypes it reproduces are not. Equinox recently faced widespread criticism over an advertisement from its global "Question Everything But Yourself" campaign. The image depicted the disembodied head of an East Asian woman mounted on a metal stand, with a hand pressing a finger between her lips. Asian American creators and community members criticized the image as sexualized, objectifying, and dehumanizing. Equinox ultimately removed the advertisement following the backlash. But the controversy raises an important question: How does imagery like this make it through an entire creative and approval process without someone recognizing the harm it may cause? Why the image struck a nerve. Equinox intended its campaign to challenge the growing influence of artificial intelligence and the blurred line between what is real and what is manufactured. But the image of the East Asian woman carried meaning beyond AI. Her head was detached from her body. She appeared immobilized and physically manipulated by someone else. The imagery reflected concerns that Asian women have raised for decades about being portrayed as submissive, exotic, sexually available, controllable, or existing for someone else's pleasure. Popular culture has also repeatedly portrayed Asian women through futuristic or robotic imagery, as artificial, programmable, obedient, or replaceable. That history matters. The issue was not simply that an Asian woman appeared in an AI-generated advertisement. It was the combination of race, gender, sexualization, bodily dismemberment, and artificiality. Images do not exist outside the cultural context in which they are created. AI does not eliminate human responsibility. It can be tempting to treat problematic AI-generated content as a technological mistake. But artificial intelligence did not independently create and publish this campaign. Humans developed the concept. Humans created or approved the prompts. Humans selected the images. Humans reviewed the campaign. And humans ultimately decided what the public would see. AI may generate an image. Humans still decide whether to publish it. That distinction is becoming increasingly important. Generative AI systems learn from enormous amounts of human-created material. Along with its creativity and knowledge, those materials contain racism, sexism, objectification, and longstanding stereotypes. When companies use these technologies, they have a responsibility to critically evaluate what the systems produce. Technology cannot become an excuse for avoiding accountability. Intent does not erase impact. Equinox may not have intended to reinforce harmful stereotypes. That does not mean the impact should be ignored. A company can intend to make one statement and still communicate something entirely different to the people who see it. When members of a community explain that an image echoes stereotypes historically used to objectify or dehumanize them, the response cannot end with: "That was not what we intended." The more meaningful question is: "Why did we fail to recognize what this image could communicate?" Provocative advertising requires particular care. If discomfort and shock are part of the creative strategy, companies should be asking who is being depicted, whose body is being used to create that reaction, and what racial or gender stereotypes may be reinforced along the way. Those conversations should happen before publication, not after public backlash begins. Removing the advertisement is only the first step. Equinox's decision to remove the image was appropriate. But meaningful accountability requires more than taking something down once people object to it. Companies using AI should examine how problematic material was approved in the first place. * Were racial and gender implications considered? * Were diverse perspectives included in the creative process? * Did anyone identify concerns before the campaign was released? * And, most importantly, what will change to prevent the same problem from happening again? The goal should not simply be avoiding the next public relations controversy. It should be creating systems that recognize harmful imagery before it reaches the public. New technology requires better judgment. The Equinox controversy is about more than one advertisement. Artificial intelligence is rapidly changing how companies create images, tell stories, communicate with audiences, and make decisions. But innovation does not eliminate the need for human judgment. It makes that judgment even more important. Responsible use of AI requires companies to question what these systems produce, recognize the biases they may reproduce, and listen when affected communities identify harm. At Liberty Law, Liberty Law believe accountability begins with recognizing the humanity of the people affected by institutional decisions. That principle applies whether the harm occurs in a workplace, a school, a corporation, or through emerging technology. Equinox told its audience to "Question Everything." That principle is worth taking seriously. Liberty Law should question the technology shaping its culture. Liberty Law should question the stereotypes embedded within the images it produces. And when new technology repeats old forms of dehumanization, Liberty Law should never mistake novelty for progress. In solidarity, Micha Star Liberty Attorney | Survivor Advocate