Nothing else says the indoor training season is here like a ‘This Season On Zwift’ announcement, where upcoming features and content are revealed, new hardware is launched and the community prepares to switch on the fan and clip in again.
It’s almost a tradition – except this seaon's TSOZ is far from traditional. There are new roads and a new Zwift Click controller, new events and new improvements to racing, but the biggest news is the AI-powered Personalized Recommendations, which will be available from November. Building on the Fitness Trends tracker launched this summer, Personalized Recommendations will “serve content tailored to help each Zwifter hit their goals. Recommendations served will account for recent training load, based on both indoor and outdoor (when connected) activity, riding preferences, including activity types, and much more, meaning Zwifters can jump in with one click, allowing them to spend more time riding and less time choosing.”
When I interviewed Zwift’s founder and CEO Eric Min earlier this year, my final question to him was, What’s next? His answer: “People show up to Zwift for different reasons – some want to compete, some want to lose weight, some want to just have fun. And we want to make sure we understand what your desires are, and your desires change over time. That we are serving the right kind of content at the right time. We’ll tell you, hey, we know a little bit about what you want, we know what kind of fitness you have, we know maybe what time you work out – here are some choices. Really distil it to a handful of choices rather than going through a library of a thousand different things that you can do.”
Clearly this had been a long-term priority for Min and Zwift and must have been already in the pipeline, and it makes a huge amount of sense in an increasingly AI-powered world. Strava users, for example, get an ‘Athlete Intelligence’ commentary after every activity (though it's true it states the obvious at times). So how does it work? Using the ‘Tune button’ Zwifters can choose from a mix of content types including workouts, routes, events and Robo Pacer rides, helping preserve variety. However, says Zwift, with each recommendation accounting for recent ride history (including outdoor rides recorded with Garmin, Wahoo, Hammerhead etc head units) and personal goals, they can be assured that whatever activity they choose, it will be “both productive and fun”.
For users who have third-party coaching apps, like TrainerRoad – which has leaned into data-driven adaptive training for some time now – Zwift says these will take preference on the Home Screen, but there will still be the option to ‘tune’ these activities and mix things up. Personalized Recommendations will display both in the home screen in the main Zwift App and also in Zwift Companion. Zwift is apparently not aiming to take on the likes of TrainerRoad, Xert, intervals.icu for scientific rigour – as Min said, Zwifters are there for different reasons and aren’t all looking for complex intervals. Zwift’s AI is more about accessibility.
Tying in with Personalized Recommendations, when an activity is completed Zwift will now display a summary of all key information in an updated Progress Report screen, including fitness score progression, training status, goal progression, current streak, bike upgrade progression, level progress, racing score improvements, and more. The display reverts to the home screen, but users can go deeper into their latest metrics using Fitness Trends in the Zwift Companion app.
Hardware: new Zwift Ready and new Zwift Click Controllers
Zwift is moving closer to a cohesive hardware ecosystem with an expansion of its Zwift Ready program, and focusing on getting the price of entry down as low as possible with costs starting from £279.99/€250/$299.99. Zwift Ready trainers will be available from Wahoo, Elite, Van Rysel, JetBlack, and Garmin-Tacx (USA only). For the uninitiated, Zwift Ready trainers come with the Zwift Cog pre-installed. This replaces the cassette that you’d use on a standard smart trainer, and supplies resistance changes or virtual shifting via the Zwift Click controller instead of the bike’s own shifters and derailleurs, meaning almost any bike is compatible. The new Zwift Click controllers have integrated navigation and shortcut buttons, which are similar to those seen on the Zwift Ride smart bike, and previously Zwift Play controllers. According to Zwift, the new Zwift Click retains the ability for riders to mount the controllers in almost any location and they are compatible with all handlebar types. Additionally, to ensure it can be placed in almost any location, the new Zwift Click allows you to customise the button configuration so that users can orient them however they like. There’s no mention of steering, but it’s not inconceivable that steering could be enabled in the future without the more advanced setup of the Zwift Play.
Zwift Unlocked replaces Tour of Watopia
Running October 6-November 16, Zwift Unlocked will replace the Tour of Watopia. Like its predecessor, Zwift Unlocked offers double XP but Zwift promises 10 entirely new routes across multiple Zwift Worlds. As before, each stage can be raced or just ridden, with long and short options on offer.
The final two stages of Zwift Unlocked will take place on a freshly expanded New York map. Zwift says this is its largest map expansion in years, adding 31 kilometres of new roads to New York, including 20 new routes (16 bike and four run).
Additionally, the new Power Segments feature embedded in these routes is a new take on sprint sections, rewarding wattage rather than speed or time. Riders will see their performance against themselves over a rolling 90-day window and against the global community.
Fair Play: score decay and anti-botting detection
Zwift racing is of course one of its most compelling features but also its most controversial. This season’s updates seem to go further than ever to make competition as fair as possible. Zwift Racing Score has been refined with ‘score decay’ introduced for racers who haven’t competed in the last 30 days; updated seed scores based on riders’ most recent personal bests (inside or outside of races), and a new option for event organisers to categorise riders by their 30-day best score and not just their current score. According to Zwift, these changes ensure your score reflects your current peak fitness, instantly rewards strong performances, keeps matchmaking dynamic, and makes races feel fairer and more competitive for everyone on the start line.
There’s also the rollout of anti-botting detection, which is live already and a backend system that flags suspicious performances. Zwift says this is “helping us clean up racing, protect leaderboard integrity, and stopping unfair XP farming… laying the groundwork for a new generation of anti-cheating technology designed to detect and eliminate unrealistic performances and make racing on Zwift even more authentic over time.”
And Then There’s Everything Else…
As usual, there’s much, much more. The Brompton World Championship (“Tweed is Speed”) adds a dose of British eccentricity (and unlockable tweed kits), while the Drop Shop gets MyCanyon colourways just like the IRL artist collab versions (see the hero image) – and Zwift says there are more coming this season.
Let’s end with the new Event Cooldown feature, which is already live. When Zwifters complete a group event they now have the option to stay in the event world to cool down. Zwift says this aims to improve event experience by extending the opportunity to continue the conversation, reminisce about the epic battle that went down, share a funny moment, connect on Zwift Companion, or discuss plans for your next activity much like you would after completing an outdoor event. One extra loop, anyone? Oh go on then!
Go to Zwift's website for all the details.
