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
Teenage inventor creates retro game console that fits in your palm
For teenage entrepreneur Ernest Pereira, gaming is going small. The 18-year-old innovator is releasing a limited run of his retro game console, the Duinodrive, before shipping off to the Naval Academy in the summer. The Duinodrive — which can fit in the palm of your hand — comes in a kit that users assemble themselves…
Beth Ellyn McClendon: If you want investors, skip LLCs and form a C-Corp
Editor’s note: Beth Ellyn McClendon is a seed-stage investor with board and advisory board experience. She previously worked in design and product management for Google Mapping, Android, YouTube, Cisco and Netscape. The opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. So, you’re planning a startup, you’ve got a good lawyer and now you’re thinking…
Popular TEDxKC won’t return in 2018; organizers to focus on women, youth events
TEDxKC — one of the largest and most-popular independently-organized TEDx events in the world — won’t be back for 2018. While TEDxYouth@KC and TEDxKCWomen are expected to return in 2018, hitting pause on TEDxKC’s “general ideas” event will allow organizers to reflect on accomplishments, missteps and milestones, said Mike Lundgren, co-founder of TEDxKC. “We asked two…
Fitbit integrating Sickweather illness forecasting into new wearables
Sickweather is stepping into the wearables market. A new partnership with industry leader Fitbit is expected to see the Kansas City-based startup’s illness forecasting technology integrated into Fitbit’s new products. “Smartwatches provide a powerful platform to deliver important health tools that help our users manage conditions more conveniently than ever before,” said James Park, co-founder…