Changing Health, a provider of digital behaviour change programmes, has secured £3 million in new funding.
The round was led by Shift Invest from the Netherlands, together with renewed investment from existing backers Tate & Lyle Ventures and the North East Innovation Fund.
Spun out of Newcastle University and Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust in August 2016 by Professor Mike Trenell, the company combines evidenced psychological tools with technology to enable people to improve their lifestyle habits.
It will use the investment to develop existing and new programmes to address a huge unmet need and drive growth in the UK and overseas.
“Changing Health is quickly building momentum as health experts recognise that promoting lifestyle medicine – in a format anybody can access – is the best way to help people live longer, healthier, happier lives,” said CEO John Grumitt.
“This investment will allow us to reach more people and support them in new and exciting ways.”
Changing Health provides its programmes to private and public healthcare providers and insurers, and is currently adopted by 30 NHS organisations across the UK to help people with Type 2 diabetes make positive lifestyle changes and better manage their condition.
Users progress through a series of app-based learning modules to give them a better understanding of their health, and are then assigned a lifestyle coach, professionally trained in health psychology, to mentor them on regular phone calls and digital interactions for up to 12 months.
Florentine Fockema Andreae, investment partner at Shift, added: “Changing Health is a great example of how a digital innovation can reach large numbers of people in urgent need of lifestyle change.
“The company is led by a capable team who combine academic expertise with commercial acumen, and that combination has been invaluable as the company translates nine years of scientific research into products that make a real difference in people’s lives.”
Next year, Changing Health plans to launch an “industry-leading” AI platform for its UK and international partners which will deliver a personalised experience for each user.
The platform will harness the power of big data to proactively identify the social, environmental or demographic factors most likely to influence users’ lifestyle behaviours and provide a bespoke intervention for maximum impact.