German mental health startup Sympatient scores €7.5 million for digital anxiety clinic

Around 370 million people worldwide are affected by anxiety disorders every year. This means that anxiety and panic disorders occur more frequently than depression. In Germany, anxiety disorders also account for the largest proportion of mental illnesses. Despite the high demand for treatment, the average waiting time for a therapy place in Germany is around five months.

Addressing the challenge, German digital health startup Sympatient has developed a comprehensive digital treatment for anxiety disorders. The startup has received €7.5 million in funding. The Series A round was led by Verve Ventures and backed by existing investors, two new angel investors and former healthcare executives.

Founded in 2020, Sympatient aims to provide digital psychotherapy. It has developed an Invirto program, which can be carried out from home with the use of virtual reality technology to treat panic disorders, agoraphobia or social phobias. While other providers rely on purely digital solutions, Invirto's treatment is always integrated with psychotherapists or doctors.

Christian Angern, co-founder and CEO of Sympatient said: “In the past two years, we have been able to help several thousand patients with anxiety disorders - that's more than many clinics treat in a comparable period. By establishing a Digital Anxiety Clinic, we now want to expand our specialisation and cover the entire treatment pathway for anxiety disorders – from diagnosis to therapy and aftercare.”