Former Google, Sequoia execs raise US$2m to launch mental wellness startup Revery

REVERY, a mental wellness startup which combines cognitive behavioural therapy with gameplay, has raised US$2 million in pre-seed funding led by Sequoia Capital India's Surge programme.

Other investors include San Francisco-based Pascal Capital, Razer's corporate venture arm zVentures, as well as global investor GGV Capital, one of the earlier investors in Grab and Alibaba. Some angel investors including founders from gaming platform Mobile Premier League and NonStop Games, as well as founders of startups MyFitnessPal and CRED also participated in the round.

Founded by Tammie Siew and Khoa Tran in March this year, the startup incorporates mobile game concepts into therapy, hoping to make the experience "interactive and fun". The startup said it will first focus on sleep therapy, and hopes to launch globally later this year.

Before starting Revery, Ms Siew worked at the Boston Consulting Group and Sequoia Capital India, where she was the first female adviser for Sequoia in South-east Asia. Her co-founder Mr Khoa was previously a software engineer at Samsung and a product manager at Google.

The startup believes that gamifying mental wellness will help them tap the growing US$90 billion mobile gaming market too. This fundraise is the "first step in scaling therapy for millions around the world who need it", said co-founder Ms Siew, who is also the chief executive.

While playing games on a mobile phone for therapy can be fun, it does not mean that it's not taken seriously at Revery. The startup said it has a panel of advisers which include leading Fiona Barwick, a clinical associate professor in the department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences - Sleep Medicine Division at Stanford Medical; Stanley Liu, director of the Stanford Sleep Surgery Fellowship; and Ryan Kelly, an award-winning researcher and acclaimed pioneer in video game research and development.

Jenny Lee, managing partner of investor GGV Capital noted that Revery's mobile game-based approach has the "opportunity to create immense impact" in a growing mental wellness market. "We are happy to back such a mission-driven team in this space."