Sleep Number Announces Scientific Advisory Board Members

Latest Sleep Number 360® smart bed software release — including new features that help consumers learn how to boost immunity and wellness — influenced by board of sleep experts

Sleep Number Corporation (Photo: Business Wire)

MINNEAPOLIS--()--Sleep Number Corporation (Nasdaq: SNBR), a purpose driven company in the health and wellness space, is announcing the members of its Scientific Advisory Board, an interdisciplinary group of physicians, clinicians, and researchers with expertise in sleep science and health. The advisory board is providing expert counsel on product advancements and capabilities as Sleep Number advances life-changing sleep innovations that are improving individuals’ overall health and wellness.

For years, Sleep Number has applied cutting-edge sleep science and research to enable a deeper understanding of the link between sleep and health. The company paired advanced IoT technology with sleep and consumer research to develop new-to-the-world innovations like the award-winning Sleep Number 360® smart bed. As the COVID-19 pandemic has heightened individuals’ concerns about their immunity and emotional and mental resilience, Sleep Number’s leadership in connecting quality sleep to improved health is more important than ever.

The Sleep Number Scientific Advisory Board — chaired by Dr. Eve Van Cauter, an internationally-known expert on the health impact of sleep and circadian rhythms — is working in partnership with Annie Bloomquist, Sleep Number’s Chief Product Officer, to bring a new level of scientific rigor to the company’s sleep innovation roadmap. The advisory board will provide access to clinical research, sleep studies and publication strategies, and guide Sleep Number as it continues to expand health and wellness solutions.

Scientific Advisory Board Members

  • Eve Van Cauter, PhD: Dr. Van Cauter is professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of Chicago and the Principal Investigator of several federally- and industry-funded research projects focused on the role of sleep duration, quality and timing for health and well-being across the life span. Dr. Eve has advised Sleep Number on product development and research since 2018.
  • Virend Somers, MD, PhD: Dr. Somers is Professor of Medicine at the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science and is the Director of the Cardiovascular Facility and the Sleep Facility Center for Clinical and Translational Science at Mayo Clinic. Dr. Somers also serves on the joint advisory team established as part of a 10-year collaboration between Sleep Number and Mayo Clinic to advance the science of sleep.
  • Judith Owens, MD, MPH: Dr. Owens is Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School and Director of the Center for Pediatric Sleep Disorders at Boston Children’s Hospital. Dr. Owens is one of the world’s leading authorities on connections between sleep, health and behavior in children and adolescents.

“As we advance our mission of improving lives by individualizing sleep experiences, we are linking quality sleep to health and wellness by applying evidence-based sleep and health expertise to our technology and design,” said Bloomquist. “We are working toward a future when Sleep Number® beds will be able to identify chronic sleep issues like sleep apnea and restless leg syndrome or predict the risk of cardiac diseases like heart failure. Our advisors and their expertise are essential to helping us solve the long-term sleep challenges that affect the health of millions of people.”

Sleep Science Fueling Timely Tech Innovations

The advisors are already contributing to Sleep Number® innovations, including the newest health and wellness features in the company’s proprietary SleepIQ® technology, the operating system of the Sleep Number 360 smart bed. The April 26 SleepIQ update introduced two new features informed by the expertise of the advisory board. These advancements support growing consumer interest in immunity-boosting activities and products that support wellness in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

  • Developed by the Sleep Number’s sleep science and research team with the support of Dr. Van Cauter, Sleep Circadian Analytics helps sleepers automatically track their sleep and wake times in the SleepIQ® platform application. Using artificial intelligence, SleepIQ technology learns a sleeper’s patterns and provides guidance to optimize sleep and wake times, such as what time of day they are most alert or their optimal time to go to bed.

    Not only will the Sleep Circadian Analytics insights help each sleeper maximize their sleep schedule to align with their ideal circadian rhythm, it may help fight off illness. One important benefit of Sleep Circadian Analytics relates to immunity, according to Dr. Van Cauter. “Human immune function is profoundly modulated by sleep and circadian rhythms,” Dr. Van Cauter said. “Studies strongly suggest that insufficient sleep, poor sleep quality or irregular day-to-day timing of sleep may adversely affect immunity.”
  • Monthly Wellness Reports provide an overview of personalized insights, highlighting sleep health, circadian stability, and respiratory and cardiovascular health (coming in Q3 2020). The report helps sleepers understand what is happening with their sleep and see how their sleep health has changed over time. Internal research indicated that 8 out of 10 users found these Wellness Reports to be valuable, and 40 percent of the users changed sleep behaviors based upon information provided in the reports, such as going to bed earlier or changing their pre-bedtime routine. If sleepers choose, the SleepIQ® Wellness Reports can be shared with their healthcare providers, giving physicians unique access to individualized data that could help provide a more holistic picture of patient health.

SleepIQ technology is one of the most comprehensive and accurate sleep databases in the world. Sleep Number’s innovative platform captures over 12 billion biometric data points nightly, conducting one of the largest longitudinal sleep studies in history while improving sleep physiology of sleepers across the United States. Additionally, SleepIQ technology uses the power of data and artificial intelligence to unlock individual and population sleep patterns and provides bio-signal benefits for consumers. With more than 700 million sleep sessions of data and research, the digital health platform is linking quality sleep to individualized wellness.

“The Scientific Advisory Board members’ shared passion and expertise in linking sleep to health will further Sleep Number’s mission,” said Dr. Van Cauter. “The combination of Sleep Number’s hardware platform — the 360® smart beds — with the immense scale of SleepIQ technology and applied sleep research will continue to make a meaningful difference in millions of lives.”

About Sleep Number

As a purpose-driven company, Sleep Number’s mission is to improve lives by individualizing sleep experiences. Our revolutionary Sleep Number 360 smart beds deliver proven quality sleep through effortless, adjustable comfort. Our integrated SleepIQ operating system captures over 12 billion biometric data points every night and offers actionable insights to improve overall sleep health and wellness.

To experience proven quality sleep, visit sleepnumber.com or one of over 610 Sleep Number® stores. More information is available on our newsroom and investor relations sites.

Forward-looking Statements

Statements used in this news release relating to future plans, events, financial results or performance are forward-looking statements subject to certain risks and uncertainties including, among others, such factors as current and future general and industry economic trends and consumer confidence; risks inherent in outbreaks of pandemics or contagious diseases, including the COVID-19 pandemic; the effectiveness of our marketing messages; the efficiency of our advertising and promotional efforts; our ability to execute our company-controlled distribution strategy; our ability to achieve and maintain acceptable levels of product and service quality, and acceptable product return and warranty claims rates; our ability to continue to improve and expand our product line; consumer acceptance of our products, product quality, innovation and brand image; industry competition, the emergence of additional competitive products, and the adequacy of our intellectual property rights to protect our products and brand from competitive or infringing activities; claims that our products, processes, advertising, or trademarks infringe the intellectual property rights of others; availability of attractive and cost-effective consumer credit options; pending and unforeseen litigation and the potential for adverse publicity associated with litigation; our manufacturing processes with minimal levels of inventory, which may leave us vulnerable to shortages in supply; our dependence on significant suppliers and third parties and our ability to maintain relationships with key suppliers or third-parties, including several sole-source suppliers or providers of services; rising commodity costs and other inflationary pressures; risks inherent in global sourcing activities, including tariffs, pandemics, strikes, and the potential for shortages in supply; risks of disruption in the operation of our main manufacturing facilities or assembly distribution facilities; increasing government regulation; the adequacy of our and third-party information systems to meet the evolving needs of our business and existing and evolving risks and regulatory standards applicable to data privacy and security; the costs and potential disruptions to our business related to upgrading our management information systems; the vulnerability of our and third-party information systems to attacks by hackers or other cyber threats that could compromise the security of our systems, result in a data breach or disrupt our business; and our ability to attract, retain and motivate qualified management, executive and other key team members, including qualified retail sales professionals and managers. Additional information concerning these and other risks and uncertainties is contained in the company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including the Annual Report on Form 10-K, and other periodic reports filed with the SEC. The company has no obligation to publicly update or revise any of the forward-looking statements in this news release.

Contacts

Julie Elepano
Sleep Number Public Relations
(414) 732-9840
Julie.elepano@sleepnumber.com

Cassie Batinich
Weber Shandwick
(801) 920-6246
cbatinich@webershandwick.com

Contacts

Julie Elepano
Sleep Number Public Relations
(414) 732-9840
Julie.elepano@sleepnumber.com

Cassie Batinich
Weber Shandwick
(801) 920-6246
cbatinich@webershandwick.com