Empathy Health Technologies announced Wednesday that it raised $7.6 million to support its Sober Sidekick app, which helps prevent relapse by connecting those struggling with substance use disorder with peers.
Sober Sidekick provides access to a sobriety tracker, 24/7 Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, messaging with peers, daily motivations and professional help. The app prompts users to send supportive messages to others in the app, and receive messages back when they need support. It also leverages predictive technology like its Empathy Algorithm, which analyzes behavioral patterns and language to predict relapse risk and engage members.
If a member self-reports a relapse, they automatically receive a compassionate support message from the company, and if they reply, they can enter a chat with a virtual support team. The company works with both commercial and public payers in value-based contracts, but the app is also free for anyone to download.
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“The problem we’re here to solve is the fact that relapses, suicides and overdoses aren’t things that happen in clinics or therapy sessions. They are things that happen when people are alone,” said Chris Thompson, founder and CEO of Empathy Health, in a recent interview. “So the Sober Sidekick platform can guarantee [that in] minutes, if not seconds, for anyone who posts at any time, there’s going to be a written response from six peers in your community every single time.”
The $7.6 million round was led by HealthX Ventures and included participation from Nina Capital, Ikigai Healthcare Funds, American Heart Association Ventures, Suncoast Ventures, Cortado Ventures and Wilson Sonsini Investment Company. In total, the company has raised $11.4 million.
HealthX Ventures chose to invest in Empathy Health because it’s addressing a significant unmet need in healthcare.
“Most of the healthcare system sees relapse months after it happens, hidden in utilization data,” said Kristi Ebong, partner at HealthX Ventures, in a statement. “Empathy Health is the first organization I’ve seen that can detect relapse risk while it’s unfolding and intervene in the moment. Turning peer engagement into predictive intelligence represents a novel model for how substance-use disorder is managed and measured. This is the shift that both individuals and payer organizations have been looking for.”
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The financing will help Sober Sidekick scale value-based partnerships with payers, according to Thompson. It will also improve its predictive technology by advancing its empathy algorithm so it can detect relapse risk earlier. Lastly, it will expand member support operations, including growing its human support teams, data science capabilities and care navigation infrastructure.
Thompson’s own lived experience motivated him to build Sober Sidekick. He began his journey to sobriety on Thanksgiving day in 2018 when he entered a sober living home. It was during this time that he came up with the idea for the app.
“One of the things I recognize is that alcohol and drugs were never my problem,” he said. “They were my best solution. So if people are isolated without an outlet, it’s only a matter of time before they relapse. … The problem for anyone who overdoses, the problem for anyone who dies, is that they had a thought or a feeling they were afraid to share out loud. And that is the problem that we address boldly.”
Sober Sidekick has grown significantly since it launched in 2019. The app has been downloaded about 1.1 million times, and it has over 145,000 monthly active users and more than 2 million peer engagements. An analysis from the Validation Institute found that those who engage five times with Sober Sidekick are 68% less likely to experience a relapse.
Ultimately, the company aims to “redefine success” in substance use disorder care, according to Thompson.
“Instead of episodic treatment and reactive crisis management, we see relapse prevention as a measurable, sustained care outcome,” he said. “Additionally, we want to build a continuous care infrastructure where support isn’t triggered after a crisis, but before it begins, transforming relapse risk into a solvable, actionable signal in real time. Ultimately, we envision a future where recovery is not framed by how many times someone returns, but by how consistently they stay supported.”
Other companies that provide substance use disorder support include Reframe, Pelago and Boulder Care.
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