Butterflies and brain waves: KC-area’s Healium floating with WEBBY nomination
April 9, 2019 | Austin Barnes
A year of traction continues for Columbia-inflated startup Healium by StoryUP.
The virtual reality solution for situational stress and anxiety recently landed a WEBBY nomination for best use of augmented reality, revealed Sarah Hill, the company’s founder.
Healium at InvestMidwest
“A WEBBY nomination for a small midwest company like ours is a big deal,” Hill said of the recognition that pits the startup against such media giants as AMC, NBC Universal, and Viacom-owned Nickelodeon.
Awarded annually, the WEBBY Awards celebrate the internet’s best in key categories, including: websites, video, advertising, media and public relations, apps, mobile and voice, social, podcasts, and games.
Healium secured a nomination for its VR simulation that enables a user to relieve stress by hatching butterflies with their brain waves, Hill touted.
“Healium is for people who aren’t necessarily a Buddhist monk, don’t already have an established mind body connection — but they need something quick that can quickly show them and allow them to see their feelings displayed inside the screen as opposed to having to go through years or months of practice on trying to develop that inner connection on your own,” she said.
Honored by the recognition, Hill said she’s hungry for a win — not just for her startup, but for all Missouri entrepreneurs.
“The winners are decided by the public and it would be pretty cool to have a Midwest company win,” she said. “It’s like an Emmy for the internet. … We need all the votes we can get!”
Click here to vote for Healium in the 2019 WEBBY Awards.
Healium, StoryUp
2019 has already proven to be a year of immense growth for Healium, Hill added.
The startup recently closed a deal to deploy Healium kits on 28 airlines, won $4,000 in a CES sponsored pitch contest and Best in XR at SXSW, and was invited to take part in the 20th showing of the InvestMidwest Venture Capital Forum.
“We completed a Department of Defense innovator cohort, we have revenue, and we’re in the middle of a million dollar seed round,” Hill said of Helium’s continued success.
Click here to read more about the inception of Healium in a TV newsroom.
2019 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Digital divide initiative could help 9,000 Kansas City households
More than 9,000 Kansas City households are among the potential beneficiaries of a new national digital divide initiative. Comcast recently partnered with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s ConnectHome initiative, marking the largest expansion to Comcast’s Internet Essentials program. Now all Kansas City households within a Comcast service area that receive HUD housing…
New Startland reporter wants to immerse herself in KC’s culture of innovation
Two months ago today, I packed up the last of my belongings in my Columbia, Mo. apartment. And to be frank, I was slightly embarrassed to be moving back in with my parents in Independence, Mo. A recent graduate from the University of Missouri’s School of Journalism, it seemed that almost everybody I knew was…
Exclusive: John Fein departing Techstars to lead new $7M Midwest venture fund
After three years with the Kansas City-based Sprint Accelerator, John Fein is moving on to lead a venture fund that has ambitious Midwestern plans. Fein, who’s served as the managing director at the Techstars-led accelerator since 2014, will serve his last day with the organization on July 31. With decades of fast-paced startup experience, Fein…
Mid-America Angels set for second consecutive record-breaking year
The Mid-America Angels is poised to make 2016 a record-breaking year. The area investment group already has deployed $1.7 million via seven deals in the first six months of 2016, setting pace for its biggest year of investment in its ten-year history. In 2015, the firm set a record for its amount of capital deployed,…