Why we invested in Butterfly Learnings

In today’s rapidly changing world, when households are increasingly becoming nuclear and lifestyles are becoming more stressful, raising a child is not getting any easier. A child’s emotions and behavior are most fragile and tend to change quite frequently during their developmental phase, typically between an age bracket of 2-8 years. Children often get overwhelmed with emotions and end up showing aggressive, irritable, and anxious behavior, finding it difficult to sit still, pay attention or interact with others.

The fluctuating moods and behaviors are typically considered normal. However, when the behavior persists for a longer duration, it may indicate an underlying developmental issue that requires professional help. In India, the increasing mental health challenges in children remain largely undiagnosed. These could include temper tantrums, delayed speech, aggression, attention deficits, anxiety, and autism.

As per a research study, 1 in 5 children face developmental and behavioral issues and up to 80% don't get the care they need, with increasing needs aggravated by the Covid-19 pandemic. Mental health disorders often begin in childhood, and if left untreated end up creating a bigger challenge for individuals as they age.

Founded by Dr. Sonam Kothari, Butterfly Learnings is a technology-enabled behavioral health solution for children. With the growing behavioral and developmental issues in children, India lags behind in having a standardized approach to treatment. Sonam, being a pediatric neurologist herself, learned about the existing market gap firsthand from her experience of seeing increased footfall of such cases.

Butterfly Learning focuses on delivering comprehensive pediatric care through - Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy, speech therapy, pediatric neurology, occupational therapy & parent training in one solution. It provides integrated evidence-based care through innovative technology, virtual behavioral health services, and a collaborative care team focused on supporting children across developmental stages.

The US Behavioural Health is a $2Bn market, whereas there are no major organized players in Development and Behavioral Therapy in India. ABA therapy is the only evidence-based treatment to have been covered under insurance in the US which helps reduce the burden of out-of-pocket health expenses. It uses the principles of positive reinforcement as its foundation to treat issues with communication, motor skills, and behavioral disorders.

 In the US, where ABA therapy despite being referred to as the “gold standard” of therapy for individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is experiencing a shortage of trained providers of ABA, as per a research study. In India, as well there is a huge demand-supply gap for Behavioral Analysts and often children facing developmental issues are recommended to seek help from a speech or occupational therapist.

Butterfly Learnings is providing training to therapists to deliver ABA therapy. They have also designed assessment templates for children to enable personalized therapy and have developed treatment protocols. They aim to expand their presence via physical centers and expand access through their digital platform.

In this venture, Sonam is joined by her husband, Dr. Abhishek Sen - a second-time founder whose previous Medtech company Biosense Technologies was also seed-supported by CIIE.CO. Biosense was acquired by Perkin Elmer-owned Tulip Diagnostics in 2019. Given the pedigree of the founders and having experienced the journey of Biosense together, we couldn’t have been more proud of joining forces for Butterfly Learnings. With a clear market gap and a solid founding team in place, we wish and hope for Butterfly Learnings to emerge as a leading company in the segment.

At CIIE.CO, we have co-invested in the Seed Round of the Butterfly Learnings along with Insitor Partners, 9 Unicorns, Venture Catalysts, Sagana, Fondation Botnar, UTIL Stiftung, and Enzia. We have also backed other companies in the mental health segment including Manah Wellness, TerraBlue XT, and Neuphony, and are on the continuous lookout for such disruptors who bring in a different perspective trying to solve a difficult problem with technology-backed innovation. We would love to add value to your journey. Please do write to us at seed.ciie@iima.ac.in. Read our thesis on the Mental Health sector in India here.