Sheffield sleep tech firm SleepCogni hires Apple executive to break into US
A Sheffield ‘sleep-tech’ company has raised £1.4m and hired a former Apple executive to break into the US
SleepCogni raised money with a loan from Innovate UK, crowdfunding and cash from existing and new investors.
The firm makes ‘wearable’ gadget that helps people control their ‘wind down’ process.
WHAT WILL THE COMPANY DO WITH THE MONEY?
The money will be used to scale up the business by preparing for volume manufacturing, developing an online platform and achieving first sales.
It means the firm founded by Sheffield inventor Richard Mills has had a total of £3.2m investment.
It is aiming for a larger fund raise in 2022-2023, he added.
SleepCogni has also hired two new executives. Colin Greene was a former Apple executive for 14 years leading the firm’s US consumer business.
Andrew Morfey, a former finance director at AXA Health-On-Line who led development of its £10m well-being platform.
Richard Mills said they had reached two key milestones: good trial results and FDA registration in the US.
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He added: “I am very thankful for the continued support from our existing investors and thrilled to announce a whole new list of new investors led by Chasnay Capital Partners who not only offer investment but provide ability and experience to achieve global scale.”
HOW DOES THE DEVICE WORK?
SleepCogni’s hand-held aid enables users to self-manage their insomnia by collecting data to provide insights for clinical intervention.
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Trials show the device ‘significantly reduced insomnia complaints’ compared to a placebo, the firm says.
It has secured 11 patents including for its wind down technology, Active-Biofeedback, which uses vibrations to help insomnia suffers break cycles preventing sleep.