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Gamified wellness startup Revery has raised $2 million in pre-seed funding led by Surge, a rapid scale-up program by Sequoia Capital India for startups in India and Southeast Asia. Revery is in beta stealth and has plans to launch globally later this year, starting with a focus on the US market. 

Founders Tammie Siew and Khoa Tran started Revery in March 2021 to help others redefine the management of mental wellbeing by combining cognitive behavioural therapy with gameplay and technology. Drawing on mobile game concepts, the startup wants to make therapy interactive and fun, helping the focus on mental health to become part of a daily lifestyle.

Khoa was first inspired to develop this concept for sleep therapy, as he had first-hand experience on how poor sleep could cause troubling health problems. At the age of 15, Khoa was diagnosed with hypertension and a host of other conditions needing medication. It wasn’t until he was 26 that Khoa found out his poor sleep was the root cause. After correcting his sleep issues, his blood pressure is now normal and many of his previous conditions have improved.

“Many people do not have the time or resources to access quality sleep and mental healthcare like I did. At Revery, we’re committed to raising awareness about the critical role that sleep plays in determining our wellbeing and how we can take charge of our health,” said Khoa.

“Roughly two out of three adults feel that they don’t sleep well, and there are less than 1,000 sleep therapists across the globe. We believe that tapping into the growing $90 billion mobile gaming market as a delivery vehicle is, pun intended, a game changer. This fundraise is the first step in scaling therapy for millions around the world who need it,” added Tammie Siew, Co-founder and CEO of Revery.

The fundraise is led by Sequoia Capital India’s Surge and includes participation from notable venture funds Pascal Capital, GGV Capital, zVentures, and Patron. Angel investors include Kunal Shah, Founder, CRED; Sai Srinivas, founder of Mobile Premier League (MPL); Juha Paananen; Carolin Krenzer; Albert Lee, who previously co-founded MyFitnessPal before it sold to UnderArmour in 2015; and Josh Lee. 

“We are excited about the growing mental wellness market, and believe that Revery’s unique mobile game-based approach has the opportunity to create an immense impact,” Jenny Lee, Managing Partner of GGV Capital, commented. 

“We know that mental wellness is a major concern for youth and millennials, and that gamification helps increase engagement and efficacy. As the world’s leading lifestyle brand for gamers, most of whom are youth and millennials, Razer is supportive of Revery’s efforts to gamify therapy and improve lives,” said Cho Weihao, Investment Director at Razer zVentures.

The startup is part of Surge’s fifth cohort of 23 companies that have developed new digital solutions to help companies and individuals work, live and learn better in a rapidly evolving Southeast Asian landscape.