Today healthtech company Poppins (formerly known as Mila) has announced a €8 million financing round led by Eurazeo alongside Verve Ventures, Allianz France and HEC Ventures. This brings the company's funding to €12.9 million.
Founded in 2018 and spun out of the École Polytechnique, the company is dedicated to the treatment of children's neurodevelopmental disorders, launching a therapeutic program for the families of children with specific "dys" learning difficulties, such as dyslexia, dysorthographia and dyscalculia.
In France, 7 million people are affected by such disorders.
Often diagnosed late, these disorders have social, educational and psychological consequences that impact a child's development and well-being.
Poppins has created a digital therapy in the form of a musical video game downloadable to tablets or smartphones that can be used independently at home by children aged 7 to 11 with one or more specific learning disorders.
A CE-marked digital medical device, the app is based on five years of scientific research carried out by engineers from the École Polytechnique and doctors and speech therapists from the teams at the La Timone hospital in Marseille, in close collaboration with the Fédération Française des DY.
According to Prof. David Cohen, Head of the Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Department at the Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital, Paris, the medical device, evaluated at home in a double-blind, randomised placebo-controlled trial, "reinforces the accessibility of care for these young patients. It is an invaluable complement to the usual care pathways."
Until now, Poppins has only been available to members of complementary health insurance plans, which cover the cost of digital therapy.
Allianz France has acquired a stake in Poppins via its InnovAllianz strategic investment fund, after successfully testing the medical device with 8,000 employees of Allianz France whose children aged 7 to 11 suffer from specific learning difficulties tested the Poppins medical device free of charge for three months.
The funding also includes the support of the company's historical shareholders: Kurma Partners, BNP Paribas Développement and Bpifrance.
With this refinancing, Poppins' ambition is to roll out a digital therapeutic program on a large scale, accessible to as many people as possible, without geographical or social barriers. The funds raised will also enable Poppins to expand its research and clinical study program.
Lead image via Poppins.
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