Wysa bags $20M from HealthQuad and BII

Wysa has raised $20 million in a Series B round from HealthQuad and British International Investment (BII). Existing investors including US-based W Health Ventures, Kae Capital, Google Assistant Investments, and pi Ventures, among others, also participated in the round.

The mental health platform plans on using the funds to expand further in India, the US, and the UK, among other global markets. Wysa will also provide wider usability through multi-lingual support.

Started in 2015 by Jo Aggarwal and Ramakant Vempati, Wysa is an AI-based platform, where users with initial signs of mental health disorders can come and talk to the bot. The platform then recommends if the user needs to seek professional help, among other remedies.

Wysa claims to have a user base of 4.5 million across 65 countries. The startup also provides its services to firms including Accenture, Colgate-Palmolive, Swiss Re, the National Health Service (NHS) in the UK, and the Ministry of Health in Singapore.

Mental health disorders are faced by a wide range of populations across India. But due to stigma and lack of therapists and psychiatrists, people continue to suffer. But the pandemic did help in bringing in more awareness and discussion around depression and anxiety, among other issues.