Invi MindHealth has secured up to US$4 million from the United States Department of Health and Human Services to track how psychedelic therapy helps veterans heal.
Researchers will use the funding to study the impact of treatments like psilocybin and ibogaine on veterans, with Oura Rings playing a central role in gathering objective health data. This initiative employs a smartphone app, psychoactive compounds and sleep technology.
The INVI app works in a straightforward manner. Participants wear Oura Rings that continuously monitor key biometrics such as heart rate variability, sleep quality and activity levels. The app pairs this real-time wearable data with self-reported check-ins on mood, stress, energy and cognition.
It then generates a clear “MindScore” that reveals trends and early warning signs. In the small veteran pilot study, 50 participants will wear Oura Rings for a full month to establish their personal baseline. They will subsequently travel to a healing centre in Mexico for guided psychedelic therapy. Psychedelics like psilocybin and ibogaine remain illegal for PTSD treatment in the U.S. despite enthusiasm.
Partner researchers from Baylor University will track the shifts in biometrics and mental health metrics immediately after treatment and over the following weeks and months. This combination of Oura Ring data and app insights is intended to give scientists measurable proof of how the therapies affect the body and mind.
Jonathan Wilson, a U.S. Navy SEAL veteran with over 15 years of service, created the app. Wilson lost teammates in combat and later to suicide. After leaving the military, he battled PTSD and a loss of purpose while working at Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE: GS). Conventional treatments did not help enough. In 2018, he tried ibogaine therapy in Mexico. The experience alleviated his trauma and restored his well-being. He witnessed the same powerful changes in fellow veterans and knew he needed objective data to prove what worked.
Wilson founded INVI MindHealth, short for invisible to highlight unseen mental struggles, after earning his MBA at the University of Oxford. He built the platform around the SEAL “Swim Buddy” concept, adding a peer accountability feature where users choose buddies who receive alerts on concerning data trends.
“INVI is for all of us who are struggling, for the families who’ve been torn apart, and for those who can’t find their way out of the darkness,” Wilson wrote last year. “We’re here to bring the hidden damage to light and to fight for the support and understanding that’s long overdue.”
This latest initiative builds directly on momentum from one year ago when INVI MindHealth raised US$1.5 million in seed funding. The company’s broader focus extends beyond psychedelics to offer everyday mental resilience tools for veterans, first responders, athletes and others.
Read more: Finnish sleep tech ring maker ŌURA prepares to go public
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