In “Macbeth” Shakespeare described sleep as the “staple food in the feast of life”. But like his title character, many adults don’t sleep well. Reverie would like to help with an app that combines cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for insomnia with mobile gaming concepts.
Founded in 2021, Revery is currently in beta stealth mode and plans to launch its app in the US later this year. The company announced today that it has raised $ 2 million under the leadership of Sequoia Capital India’s surge program. Attendees included GGV Capital, Pascal Capital, zVentures (Razer’s corporate venture arm), and angel investors like MyFitnessPal co-founder Albert Lee; Gambling Entrepreneur Juha Paananen; CRED founder Kunal Shah; Sam Srinivas, Founder of the Mobile Premier League; Carolin Krenzer; and Josh Lee.
A mutual friend, Lee, first introduced himself to Revery founders, Tammie Siew and Khoa Tran. Before founding the startup, Siew worked at Sequoia Capital India, Boston Consulting Group and CRED, while Tran was a former product manager at Google.
Revery plans focus on other mental health issues going forward, but it starts with sleep because “it has such a strong correlation with mental health and we use protocols, cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia that is robust and has been proven for 30 years” Siew told ProWellTech. “That is the first clue, but the goal is to develop several games for other wellness indications as well.”
ON Study by the research company Infinium found that around 30 to 45% of adults worldwide suffer from insomnia, a problem exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Chronic lack of sleep is associated with a wide variety of health problems, including high blood pressure, stroke, depression, and decreased immunity.
For Revery’s team, which includes former Zynga and King lead game designer Kriti Sawa, and software engineer Stephanie Wong, the focus is on sleeping personally.
Revery’s team on a Zoom call
“Everyone on our team has a deeply personal connection with the mission because everyone on our team has experienced or experienced mental health challenges or has had a family member or friend go through,” Siew said. “You saw how late intervention has consequences that could have been avoided if you had got help earlier.”
When Tran was 15 years old, he was diagnosed with high blood pressure and several other health conditions that required medication. It wasn’t until he was 26 years old that Tran found out that sleep apnea was the cause of his medical problems. After the surgery, Trans’s blood pressure normalized and many of his other conditions also improved.
“When my sleep disorder was finally treated, it was only when I began to realize the effects of sleep on mental health,” said Tran. “For me, I was very lucky that a doctor discovered my sleep disorder and I was very lucky to have the time and resources for treatment. For many people it is incredibly inaccessible. “
Revery’s medical advisory team includes the doctor who performed the trans operation, the Stanford Sleep Surgery Fellowship Director Dr. Stanley Liu; Stanford Professor and Behavioral Sleep Medicine Expert Dr. Fiona Barwick; and Dr. Ryan Kelly, a clinical psychologist who researches how video games can be used in therapy.
When thinking of sleep apps, those that focus on meditation (e.g., calm and headspace) or soothing noises usually come to mind. The Revery team doesn’t share many details about their app before launch, but they say it’s casual games designed to get people to return to short game sessions over a long period of time. The aim is to use gamification to make CBT practices interactive and entertaining so that they become part of the users’ daily routines.
“It’s the same type of gameplay that Zynga and King used, which is why Kriti’s experience is very helpful,” said Siew. Casual games are about rewarding people for small actions, and for the Revery app, it means positive reinforcement for habits that contribute to better sleep. For example, it will reward people for putting their cell phones away.
“I think a lot of people have the wrong idea that sleep is only resolved when you fall asleep. They don’t know that what you do throughout the day affects sleep, ”Siew said. “A big part of it is also your thoughts, your behavior, and the other things you do. In order to improve sleep effectively and sustainably, we have to change your thoughts and behavior outside of the time you are trying to fall asleep. “
In a statement, Jenny Lee, Managing Director of GGV Capital said, “We are excited about the growing mental wellbeing market and believe that Revery’s unique mobile game-based approach has the potential to make a huge impact. We are pleased to be able to support such a mission-oriented team in this area. “
