First Round is a seed-stage venture firm focused on building a vibrant community of technology entrepreneurs and companies, including Uber, Square, and Warby Parker. Through custom-built software, incredible in-person experiences, and a host of other unique services, First Round helps tiny companies get big while constantly reimagining the role of venture capital. It offers a growing number of services and products to help founders build companies from scratch. First Round has adopted the Diversity Term Sheet Rider.

First Round Capital

BoxGroup is an early-stage investment fund that invests in technology companies. The fund aims to invest in the consumer, enterprise, fintech, healthcare, life science, and marketplaces industries at the earliest stage, as early as pre-seed round and as late as Series A. It supports companies based on a conviction in the team and seeks entrepreneurs working at the beginning of movements in existing markets or new markets yet to be created and with visions to create the next generation of category-defining businesses. Their typical investment ranges from $200,000 to $500,000. Adam Rothenberg and David Tisch founded BoxGroup in 2009 in New York, New York.

BoxGroup

Primary is the premier early stage venture firm working alongside founders to build unicorns like Alloy, Chief, Electric, K Health, Slice, Vestwell, and many more.  The firm takes a low-volume, high-conviction approach—and devotes unreasonable resources toward making sure founders can succeed. With an Impact team that outnumbers investors 2:1, operational experts spend 100% of their time making hires, signing customers, and enabling future fundraising to supercharge growth. This partnership with top-tier founders makes companies in Primary’s portfolio 2x more likely to raise a Series A and 19x more likely to reach a billion-dollar-plus valuation—a third of Fund I companies are unicorns, less than a decade out.  We’re always excited to meet 99th-percentile founders building in B2B SaaS, built world, fintech, healthcare, infrastructure, and supply chain. And while we have a home court advantage in NYC, we invest globally, at pre-seed through A.

Primary Venture Partners

Rainfall is an early-stage investor founded in 2011 and committed to partnering with world-class founders to help them change industries. Rainfall invests globally and follows a generalist strategy, pursuing opportunities across sectors with an emphasis on FinTech, No-Code, SaaS, Dev Tools, Gaming, and Digital Health with additional investments in Web3 and AI.

Rainfall Ventures

They aim to support and nourish passionate entrepreneurs and inspiring brands that will make the daily lives of people healthier, happier, and more enlightened. They’re guided by their own experiences as entrepreneurs, and  they view all of their investments as partnerships—working with the founders to reach their unique goals. As individual investors, they are open to different paths to growth and exit strategies, and this flexibility is central to the promise they make their brands: they’re here to help you win big.

Able Partners

Tusk Venture Partners is the only venture capital firm at the nexus of technology and regulation. TVP is an early-stage venture capital firm based in NYC, focused on investing in technology startups operating in highly-regulated markets.

Tusk Venture Partners

Primary Ventures is a venture capital firm that focuses on early-stage financial companies. The firm facilitates the development of ventures that seek to strengthen the ecosystem of technological solutions linked to the world of markets and finance.

Primary Ventures

Sound Ventures is a venture capital firm. The company seeks to invest in the technology sector.

Sound Ventures

Insight Partners is a global software investor that partners with growth-stage technology and software companies. Insight has a deep focus in Fintech, Cybersecurity, AI/ML, DevOps, and Healthcare sectors. Across their people and their portfolio, they encourage a culture around a core belief growth equals opportunity. As of December 31, 2022, the firm has over $75B in regulatory assets under management. Insight Partners has invested in more than 750 companies worldwide and has seen over 55 portfolio companies achieve an IPO.

Insight Partners

Optum Ventures provides capital and strategic guidance to startup companies solving health care's pressing challenges. It is the venture capital investment arm of Optum that invests in digital health companies that use data and insights to help improve consumers' access to health care services and how care is delivered and paid for, and that makes the health care system more reliable and easier to navigate.

Optum Ventures

Thoma Bravo is a private equity firm with a 40-year history, including over $30 billion in investor commitments, and a focus on investing in software and technology companies. It pioneered the buy-and-build investment strategy and applied it to the software and technology industries.

Thoma Bravo

Cigna Ventures is the arm venture of Cigna, that accelerate growth of start ups in health care industry. The company's mission is to accelerate Cigna’s ability to improve the health, well-being and sense of security of the people we serve by partnering with and investing in innovative companies, and delivering differentiated value in the marketplace. It focuses on harnessing transformative ideas in insights and analytics; digital health and retail; and care delivery and management.

Cigna Ventures

Alma

Alma is a membership-based network for mental health care providers that aims to improve access to high-quality, affordable mental health care. Its platform enables providers to accept insurance and also provides a member directory, client-matching service, scheduling, and billing functions, as well as education, training, and a community for support.

Alma is an electronic health record (EHR) and practice management platform for mental health providers. The platform enables therapists to manage various aspects of their practice, including insurance billing, scheduling, client referrals, and continuing education. Alma's EHR system allows providers to onboard new clients, document care, create evidence-based treatment plans, and track client progress over time using clinical assessments. In June 2024, Alma expanded its EHR suite by introducing AI-generated progress notes through a partnership with Upheal. This feature aims to reduce therapist burnout by automating the note-taking process, allowing providers to spend more time focusing on client care.

New technologies are opening up mental health services to previously overbooked and underserved populations.

Mental Health Tech

Citing Need to ‘Re-Focus Resources,’ Digital Therapy Platform Alma Lays Off 9% of Staff

Alma is an electronic health record (EHR) and practice management platform for mental health providers. The platform enables therapists to manage various aspects of their practice, including insurance billing, scheduling, client referrals, and continuing education. Alma's EHR system allows providers to onboard new clients, document care, create evidence-based treatment plans, and track client progress over time using clinical assessments. In June 2024, Alma expanded its EHR suite by introducing AI-generated progress notes through a partnership with Upheal. This feature aims to reduce therapist burnout by automating the note-taking process, allowing providers to spend more time focusing on client care.Alma’s membership for its practice management tools is a monthly fee of USD 125. The company also provides free matching support to patients that use the platform.&nbsp;In <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/12631">August 2022</a>, Alma raised USD 130 million in a Series D round led by Thoma Bravo which valued the company at approximately USD 800 million. As of July 2021, the company also experienced a 13x YoY revenue growth compared to April 2020, while its insurance program grew 30x in the past 18 months.Key customers and partnershipsAs of September 2024, Alma’s network of therapists has grown to more than 21,000 members in all 50 US states.In addition to its partnership with Upheal to integrate AI-generated progress notes into its EHR system, it also partnered with Wiley to offer evidence-based treatment plans as part of its EHR functionality.

Boulder Care is a telehealth provider that offers virtual addiction treatment for substance use disorders, primarily focusing on opioid and alcohol use disorders. The company provides medical care, medication management, peer recovery coaching, and case management services through a mobile app, allowing patients to connect with a multidisciplinary care team, including physicians, nurse practitioners, peer recovery specialists, and social services support. Boulder Care's treatment approach includes medication-assisted treatment (MAT), prescribing medications such as buprenorphine-naloxone (Suboxone) for opioid use disorder and naltrexone, acamprosate, and others for alcohol use disorder. The company also delivers naloxone doses to patients to help reverse opioid overdoses.The company has implemented value-based payment arrangements with insurers, tying its financial success to patient outcomes. As of May 2024, Boulder Care had served over 12,000 patients across multiple states, with a concentration in Washington, Oregon, and Ohio. The company reports retention rates of 70%–80% of patients remaining in treatment after six months, significantly above the national average. Boulder Care had also expanded its services to include treatment for adolescents as of January 2024.Key customers and partnershipsBoulder Care has established partnerships with numerous health plans and employers to provide access to its services, including Elevance Health, UnitedHealth Community Plan, and Centene.

Boulder Care

<div>
 
 7 Cups provides an emotional-support platform with a network of volunteer listeners. Users can anonymously access either one-on-one chats or group chats 24/7, free of charge for issues such as depression, anxiety, relationships and those related to the LGBTQ+ community. It also teaches users skills such as meditation to improve their lives. If users want additional support, the company also provides access to an online therapy platform with a network of 180 licensed therapists for a subscription plan of USD 150 per month. 7 Cups is available for users above 13 years of age (users between 13 and 17 years old engage with listeners who are specifically trained in teenage interactions).
 
 
 Volunteer peer listeners get free training and support as well as flexible scheduling. Once a user requests a chat, it will be directed to available listeners and if the user requests a specific listener, he will be connected as soon as the listener accepts the demand. The service is anonymous and the listener has no access to the details of the user unless the information is disclosed to the listener by the user in their conversations. As of January 2022, 7 Cups has facilitated more than 51 million conversations, served 25 million individuals, and had 300,000 trained listeners. The listeners serve in 180 countries in 140 languages.
 
</div>

7 Cups

wayForward provides technology-supported behavioral health and emotional wellness services for employers planning to make services available to their employees. It uses a screening procedure designed by neuropsychologists to triage and help employee members get clinically relevant mental healthcare. The company provides a self-guided app, text-based coaching, video visits, telepsychiatry, and if required, in-person visits or an on-site counselor. wayForward leverages its evidence-based approach and artificial intelligence in delivering its services and claims that it has been able to reduce anxiety symptoms by 48% and depression symptoms by 59%.The company raised USD 2 million in a seed round in June 2020, which brought total funding to USD 4.5 million. DarioHealth, a chronic disease management platform based in Israel, signed a definitive agreement to acquire 100% of wayForward in May 2021 for a total consideration of USD 30 million. As of May 2021, the wayForward had approximately 20,000 members and was available in North America, Australia, and Europe.

wayForward

Coa is a mental health company that conducts online classes led by licensed therapists for mental health users. The classes focus on conditions such as stress, anxiety, confidence and relationships. The company raised USD 3 million in a seed round in October 2020 from investors led by Crosslink Capital.

Meru Health is an online platform that connects patients experiencing stress, depression, anxiety, burnout, and other mental health issues to licensed therapists. The company was founded by Kristian Ranta in 2016 after his older brother died from suicide after battling depression. The platform offers a 12-week program and personalized text-based coaching services and virtual workshops. Meru also provides access to progress reports and anonymous peer support groups as well as sleep, nutrition, and mindfulness advice. The program utilizes a wearable device that monitors heart rate variability and provides real-time feedback, allowing patients to visualize the connection between their mental and physical health.In March 2024, Meru Health introduced a 100% fees-at-risk pricing model for healthcare payers and employers, guaranteeing outcomes, access, and engagement. This value-based care approach aims to incentivize enrollment, quality care delivery, cost management, and medical cost savings.The company reported a 10x YoY growth in its customer base in 2020 and plans to serve 10 million users by 2027. The company also achieved 8x YoY growth in revenue in 2020 amid an increase in demand in mental health services brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic.Key customers and partnershipsMeru Health partners with major health insurance providers, including Humana, Aetna, and Moda Health. In January 2022, the company joined Evernorth's national behavioral health provider network, making its services available to Cigna health plan customers accessing benefits through their employer or individual and family plans.Meru Health also works with employer groups to provide mental healthcare for employees. In September 2022, Meru Health and clinical trial platform Curebase <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/13230">announced a partnership </a>to carry out a three-year clinical trial to measure the effectiveness of Meru Health’s 12-week digital depression treatment targeting primary care patients. The study was funded by the National Institutes of Health’s Small Business Innovation Research program.

Meru Health

Online peer-to-peer platform and support system that connects mental health communities.

Mobile-based apps and FDA-approved software that incorporate evidenced-based cognitive behavioral therapy to prevent, treat, or manage mental and behavioral conditions in conjunction with or as a replacement for traditional medication.

Products for behavioral health and mental health tracking, measurement-based care, and real-time remote monitoring of patients.

Subscription or membership-based platforms and apps to connect therapists, psychiatrists or behavioral health coaches with patients.

Offers virtual offerings for mental health consultations

Mental healthcare services offer personalized care tailored to a user's needs and treatment progression

There are mental health providers offering services specifically to help LGBTQ+ or BIPOC individuals

Several mental health technology providers offer therapy services rendered by AI/ML technology

Alma

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