Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- Beknazar Abdikamalov and Aziz Murtazaev from Karakalpakstan, along with their partner from Singapore Justin Kim, won a grant from Meta (Facebook) to launch a mental health startup Ami. The amount of investment was $3 million.

The project includes online counseling sessions to help make mental health care more accessible. This will allow business owners in Asian countries to implement this software to improve the mental health of their employees.

According to the startups, the idea to create such a platform appeared after the pandemic, since a March 2022 report from the World Health Organization states that after the pandemic, the level of depression and anxiety worldwide increased by 25%.

 “We are impressed with the passion and talent of the Ami team and look forward to supporting them to give people in Asia another way to support their mental health,” said Sunita Parasuraman, head of investment at Meta.

The project founders stressed that in addition to Singapore and Jakarta, two of Asia’s most dynamic start-up hubs, Ami plans to expand throughout Asia, offering companies the opportunity to attract and retain top talent through a specific mental health platform. They see it as their mission to increase people’s knowledge of the importance of mental health.

Meta was joined in the funding round by existing investors Goodwater Capital (backing Kakao, Coupang and Viva Republica), Strong Ventures, January Capital and Collaborative Fund.

We also note that Beknazar Abdikamalov and Aziz Murtazaev conducted master classes for IT Park.

How the platform works

During the registration process, users fill out a form detailing what they are most concerned about, and depending on their answers, they will be connected to a practitioner and receive the necessary psychological support.