29/1/2018 – Digital health startup Naluri today announced that it has raised about MYR1 million (about US$258k) in its seed financing round from Singapore’s healthcare analytics firm BioMark and 500 Startups through its Southeast Asia-focused fund 500 Durians.
Commenting on the investment, co-founder of BioMark Dr Christopher Ting said, “Our investment is based on the tremendous potential synergies that we see between BioMark and Naluri.”
“From combining our personalized health recommendations derived from our proprietary analysis of a user’s biomarkets, with the startup’s personalized coaching services, we can help users implement the desired lifestyle changes.”
The new fundings also include seed capital from the company’s founders, which will be used to complete development of its digital platform as well as commercial and clinical trials with Naluri’s industry partners.
“Our goal is for clinical trials to be completed by the first quarter of 2018, to enable the follow-up funding based on the results of the trials,” said Naluri’s co-founder Azran Osman Rani.
Co-founded in mid-2017 by Osman-Rani, Dr. Jeremy Ting, and Dr. Hariyati Abdul Majid, Naluri is a platform that connects users with dedicated health psychologists.
The platform started primarily as a B2B platform for corporate partners, which include hospitals, insurance companies, and corporate employers, to provide a preventive health program founded on health psychology for at-risk policyholders and employees.
The company’s digital app connects users to health and clinical psychologists, who use evidence-based Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Motivational Interviewing techniques to strengthen user’s mental resilience in order to achieve and sustain better health outcomes.
This includes weight loss, reduction in blood pressure, blood sugar levels, cholesterol levels or better stress management, over a personalized 16-week program.
Additional services include in-person counseling and clinical psychological services at their center in Plaza Damas to help with post-surgery rehabilitation, stress, and anxiety management, chronic pain management, eating disorders, smoking cessation, and management of chronic illness such as diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, obesity, stroke, and cancer.
“Malaysia is currently the most unhealthy nation in Asia, with two-thirds of adults having either hypertension, high cholesterol or diabetes, and almost half are overweight,” said Osman-Rani.
“Existing solutions like corporate wellness programs, wearables, diet programs, and gym memberships have low retention rates. Many drop out because of mental resilience factors like self-esteem and confidence, stress and mental fatigue, and a lack of lifestyle problem-solving support,” he added.
