Mental health startup Wysa raises $20 million in Series B led by HealthQuad

(Representative Image)

Wysa, a startup that allows users to talk about mental health issues with its artificial intelligence-based chatbot, has raised $20 million in Series B funding, the Bengaluru-headquartered company said on July 14.

The round was led by HealthQuad and saw participation from British International Investment (BII), the UK’s development finance institution. Other investors in the company include W Health Ventures, Kae Capital, Google Assistant Investments, and pi Ventures, the startup said.

“The platform is largely free to use for our B2C users. Monetisation mostly happens through enterprise clients who seek add-on services for their employees via monthly or yearly subscriptions,” said Wysa co-founder Ramakant Vempati said.

Wysa's AI chatbot advises users according to their mental health needs, guiding them through appropriate, evidence-based CBT (cognitive behavioural therapy) exercises within the app, and towards other mental health services or crisis support.

It company has 4.5 million users and is getting 3,500-4,000 sign-ups a day, the startup said. It also claims to have hosted around 550 million mental health conversations between users and its proprietary chatbot already.

The company also monetises by providing “insights to health services into usage rates of digital well-being tools while maintaining user privacy”.

Its enterprise customers include Accenture, Colgate-Palmolive, Aetna International, Swiss Re, the National Health Service (NHS) in the UK, and the Singapore’s health ministry.

Vempati said that while 95 percent of its B2C users find a resolution of their problems within the platform, the number is only slightly lower at 85 percent for users coming in through its enterprise clients.

“Around 90 percent of our users have said that they have found the chatbot experience therapeutic. Our app is rated in the range of 4.8 -4.9 (out of 5) on various app stores, which again points to the fact that users benefit from the platform,” he added.

Wysa’s AI chatbot got an FDA Breakthrough Device designation for adults with a diagnosis of chronic musculoskeletal pain and associated depression and anxiety.

“Clinical trials have validated Wysa’s efficacy and published peer-reviewed results show that therapeutic emotional bonds formed by Wysa are equivalent to human therapist relationships,” said the company.

Wysa plans to use the funds to invest in its product and engineering in India and grow its market-facing teams in international geographies like the US, the UK and Canada, the startup said.

According to the company, 15-20 percent of its user base is from India, 40-50 percent from the US, the UK, Australia and Canada, and the rest from other parts of the world.

Charles Antoine-Janssen, Chief Investment Officer, HealthQuad, said: “We are thrilled to be part of the Wysa team. Wysa is developed in India and is marketed globally. The needs for Wysa are present all across, from high income to low-income countries.

“Mental health triaging of patients using AI which is fast, effective and non-stigmatising for patients living in unaccepting societies answers a huge need in India, the rest of low-income Asia, Africa as well as the wealthiest countries of the world.”