UK, 7th December 2023 — Holly Health, a pioneering personalised digital health coaching platform, announces success in securing £650k in an investment and grant funding round, including £323k funding from Innovate UK, as part of the Future Economy Investor Partnerships scheme. The round sees participation from UK and international investors, including the Innovation SuperNetwork, Plug and Play Ventures, and award-winning NHS primary and community services provider, Modality Partnership, emphasising a shared commitment to addressing the escalating multimorbidity challenge.

Multimorbidity (living with 2 or more chronic health conditions) affects over 1 in 4 adults and is on the rise. Chronic conditions contribute significantly to the NHS’s financial burden (e.g. cardiovascular disease costs the NHS £7.4 billion annually), however, most are largely preventable through lifestyle changes, when given the right support. Holly Health aims to reduce healthcare costs by providing affordable, personalised support to millions.

Holly Health, already partnered with over 150 GP (Primary Care) practices, is dedicated to addressing the growing challenge, through fully digital, personalised coaching support. The funding will help to propel Holly Health to advance its AI coaching service, with an initial multimorbidity focus on hypertension plus mental health challenges.

Grace Gimson, Co-founder and CEO of Holly Health, comments ,

“Over 30% of hypertension patients are affected by anxiety or depression, impacting their ability to manage lifestyle behaviours consistently. At Holly Health, we have supported over 30,000 people so far and are committed to innovating to solve our biggest human and healthcare challenges. This funding marks a pivotal moment – with the support of Innovate UK and the strategic investment from Modality Partnership, we are empowered to combat the complex and unresolved challenge of multimorbidity.”

Modality Partnership highlighted its commitment to transformative healthcare solutions through the collaboration.

“We are delighted to join forces with Holly Health and accelerate our efforts to tackle the growing challenges posed by multimorbidity. We believe Holly Health has great potential to make a meaningful difference in the UK and beyond,”

said Vincent Sai, Group CEO and Partner at Modality.

The 12-month project will engage the public and NHS clinicians in co-designing a hypertension and mental health-focused service. Leveraging AI capabilities, Holly Health aims to enhance its behaviour change service, across exercise, sleep, nutrition and mental wellbeing, in turn, impacting blood pressure management. The project features a three-month RCT focusing on patients with hypertension and depression/anxiety with Northumbria Primary Care. Product innovation will develop beyond the current state of the art, introducing Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) to interpret live user mood, energy, and blood pressure data.

Northumbria Primary Care comments:

“We are delighted to join Holly Health as a healthcare research partner. We are particularly excited about the upcoming Randomised Controlled Trial (RCT), where we will be closely examining the clinical impact of providing Holly Health’s innovative solutions to a specific cohort dealing with hypertension and comorbid depression/anxiety. This aligns with our dedication to pioneering research and finding practical, patient-centric solutions to enhance healthcare outcomes.”

Holly Health Chief Science Officer, Dr Daniela Beivide comments:

“The EMA system will help us to build the foundation of a cutting-edge nudging engine that provides the right type of coaching message to individuals, at the right time. This approach will learn from each user’s unique context to provide relevant support, which ultimately leads to better health outcomes on an individual level.”

In the coming years, Holly Health will embark on an ambitious expansion plan, forging new partnerships, especially with UK NHS partners and international health insurance providers, while broadening services, with a mission to support 5 million people to achieve tangible health changes in the next 5 years.

About Holly Health

Built by a team of psychology experts, Holly Health is a personalised digital coaching service that uniquely integrates intelligent, adaptive, engaging support across key physical and mental health behaviours for long-term behaviour change. Holly Health on the NHS Innovation Accelerator and is commissioned in NHS settings via Primary Care Networks, to support both patient and staff health improvements, as well as alleviating pressures on staff, through increased patient self management.

About Innovate UK and the Investor Partnerships Future Economy Programme

Innovate UK is part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), a non-departmental public body funded by a grant-in-aid from the UK Government. For more information visit UK Research and Innovation’s website (https://iuk.ktn-uk.org/). We drive productivity and economic growth by supporting businesses to develop and realise the potential of new ideas, including those from the UK’s world-class research base.

Innovate UK has launched the Investor Partnerships Programme to provide funding for highly innovative micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the research and development field who require equity funding to develop their technology. The programme encourages businesses to seek equity investment and grow their businesses. Innovate UK has chosen investor partners such as venture capital funds, corporate investors, business angel groups, and social impact investors from the UK, Europe, and the US. The programme is focused on specific themes for future economy areas that include net zero, health and wellbeing, and critical circular materials, among others.

https://iuk.ktn-uk.org/programme/investor-partnerships-future-economy/

The Innovate UK Investor Partnerships Future Economy programme encourages businesses to seek equity investment and grow their business. Across the North, funding is deployed by a consortia of partners led by the Business Innovation Centre (BIC) together with Innovation SuperNetwork, NorthInvest, Funder Her North and the UKBAA.

About Modality Partnership

Modality Partnership is an award-winning NHS Primary and Community services provider, serving 7 million citizens in the UK. Established in 2009, they are known for driving healthcare innovation, specialising in data and digital solutions, and fostering global collaborations. Their expertise spans at-scale primary care delivery, integrated care pathways redesign, population health management, and more. Modality excels in patient-centric care models. Through its social enterprise, Pathfinder Healthcare Developments CIC, Modality provides expert advisory services, supporting healthcare stakeholders globally to achieve universal health coverage. They also offer clinical fellowships to healthcare professionals, promoting positive change worldwide. Committed to accessible, sustainable care, Modality continues its legacy of innovation and patient focus.