Digital mental health chatbot company Wysa has raised $20 million in a Series B funding round led by HealthQuad.
This investment, which was first reported by Axios, brings the company’s total raise to just shy of $30 million.
Founded in 2016 the digital health company has offices in Boston, London and Bengaluru, India. In 2021 the company raised $5.5 million in a Series A round led by Ajax Health. The product is currently in 65 countries and has served 3.5 million users.
Wysa users have access to an artificial intelligence-backed chatbot that can provide users with cognitive behavioral therapy techniques, mediations, breathing and mindfulness exercises. The company pitches its product as a way for users to manage stress and access support 24/7.
The company also has a self-care library users can access for support with specific issues including trauma, sleep challenges and relationships.
In addition to the chatbot, the company has a team of qualified therapists who can give users support through in-app, text-based chats. The company has offerings for individuals as well as employers.
The U.S. is facing a major behavioral health staffing shortage. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, 130 million Americans live in a region with a mental health clinician shortage. The foundation projects the country would need about 6,000 new mental health practitioners in order to meet the demand in federal government designated health professional shortage areas.
Now some digital health companies are pitching AI-backed bots as a way to help meet the growing demand for behavioral health support.
Wysa isn’t the only mental health chatbot on the market. San Francisco-based Woebot Health, which uses AI to help provide mental health support to patients through an app, has raised a total of $123 million in venture funding.
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