ADHD Wearable Startup Lands $250,000 from The Launch Place
The Launch Place (TLP) is pleased to announce its $250,000 investment in Revibe Technologies, a North Carolina-based startup developing digital therapy software for wearables to treat attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism. After bringing its flagship artificial intelligence-driven smartwatch and wristband to the adolescent market, the company is iterating on its success with FokusRx—a nonpharmacologic software-as-a-medical device (SaMD) approach to treating attention and focus deficits.
The financing will support additional clinical research and development activities for the company’s upcoming, next-generation device, FokusRx. “The company plans to embark on its next phase of research with a clinical program initially targeting pediatric focus and attention as well as autism spectrum disorder and will eventually move into areas of adolescent and adult focus and attention as well,” said Revibe Chief Executive Officer Joseph Koziak.
Revibe has helped tens of thousands of children across the U.S. with its last two consumer products, Revibe Classic and Revibe Connect. The company strives to reach many more once FokusRx is brought to market, building on the design and form factor of its existing SaMD solutions while adding new advancements in sensor technology.
Eva Doss, The Launch Place President and CEO, said her team chose Revibe because they saw high market demand for its products and believed in the technology’s potential. “Revibe’s wristband enables children and adults to get additional opportunities in education and work by fusing psychology with technology,” Doss said. “Studies show that Revibe Connect can improve focus for children by 19.8% or more—without the use of prescription medications, which is a tremendous help and a gamechanger in the industry.”
The new investment comes from The Launch Place’s Seed Fund II, which targets promising early-stage startups seeking venture capital and angel investors. The fund invested its first $250,000 in Revibe in 2020. Five years earlier, The Launch Place became the company’s first institutional investor, investing $40,000 via its Pre-Seed Fund in 2015. Through the years, TLP provided funding, advice and connections that helped lend credibility to Revibe as new opportunities arose.
Revibe began in 2013 when founder Rich Brancaccio, then a school psychologist, wanted to help his students who struggled with focus and started exploring solutions at the intersection of behavioral science and personal technology. That same mission stands today, as FokusRx prototypes are currently operational and in the process of being refined and optimized. Revibe is also wrapping up supporting software to bolster FokusRx, working with families and physicians to glean input throughout the development process.
“We were very impressed with Rich’s deep, first-hand knowledge of the issues children with ADHD are facing every day in school and his unwavering dedication and commitment to finding a tech-based solution that can help,” Doss added.
About Revibe Technologies
Wake Forest, North Carolina-based Revibe Technologies develops digital therapeutics that combine psychology and wearable technology to manage the attention and focus deficits associated with ADHD and autism. One of the company’s debut products is Revibe Connect, a machine learning-enabled smartwatch that helps students stay focused through vibration signals. After several studies backed the technology’s viability, the startup is using its experience to inform a new solution: FokusRx, an AI-powered wearable device paired with software offering personalized treatment, data analysis and other capabilities.
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