AppliedVR
Techstars '16Los Angeles, US Β· Founded 2015 Β· 69 employees on LinkedIn Β· 8 known investors
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AppliedVR develops immersive therapeutic software using technology to deliver drug-free clinical treatments for patients. The company focuses on healthcare applications where traditional medical approaches have limitations.
Also known as Applied VR
Founders & leadership
AppliedVR was founded in 2015 by Matthew Stoudt and Josh Sackman.
Board
Investors Β· 8
Also in the syndicate Β· 2
Company profile
researched Aug 2026AppliedVR develops immersive therapeutics: virtual-reality programs that combine VR hardware and software with cognitive behavioral and other evidence-based therapeutic techniques to treat pain and related conditions without drugs. Its lead product, RelieVRx, is described by the company as the first FDA-authorized prescription VR medical device for chronic lower back pain, delivered as a self-administered eight-week at-home program that teaches pain-management and coping skills. A second product, SustainVR, is a general wellness device available only within the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, positioned as non-pharmacological on-demand support for stress, anxiety, pain, PTSD, depression and sleep. Earlier products included EaseVRx (the prescription chronic low back pain program that preceded RelieVRx branding) and SootheVR, a general wellness tool used in hospitals for relaxation and distraction from pain.
The company frames its work around chronic pain as a public-health problem, citing more than 72 million U.S. adults with chronic lower back pain and chronic pain costs estimated as high as $635 billion annually. It positions immersive therapeutics as an alternative to opioids and surgery, supported by peer-reviewed clinical research, including a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial of its eight-week at-home VR program published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research in 2021. The company reports 13 publications associated with RelieVRx and 18 with SustainVR.
AppliedVR also works on distribution infrastructure, describing efforts to build a "VR pharmacy" platform for delivering VR therapeutic prescriptions to patients in hospitals, clinics and the home.
Founding story
AppliedVR was founded in 2015 in Los Angeles by Matthew Stoudt (CEO), Josh Sackman (President) and David Sackman (Chairman). The idea originated while the founders were at LRW, a global market-research firm, where they explored virtual reality for collecting data and insights and encountered more than thirty years of academic research showing VR's ability to influence attitudes, behavior and health outcomes. The company spun off from LRW to apply those findings to healthcare. Josh Sackman's personal experience as a pediatric patient β he was born with congenital joint ligament abnormalities and underwent repeated reconstructive surgeries β motivated the focus on making chronic pain more manageable. Matthew Stoudt came from digital media and advertising technology, and David Sackman had worked at Lieberman Research on VR's capacity to change behavior and build empathy. The founders saw the opportunity as translating concepts proven in academic labs into real-world applications as VR hardware form factor, price and usability improved.
Business model
AppliedVR sells immersive therapeutic devices and programs into healthcare channels, with RelieVRx distributed as a prescription Class II medical device and SustainVR distributed as a general wellness device within the Veterans Affairs system. The company pursues payer reimbursement as a core part of its model, and cites an established unique Medicare code (E1905) with a coverage and reimbursement rate, plus coverage contracts with commercial health plans, Medicare and the VA.
Revenue is tied to sales and reimbursement of its VR therapeutic devices and programs through health systems, payers, Medicare and the VA, supported by a dedicated Medicare code and coverage contracts. The company has also described building a "VR pharmacy" platform for delivering VR therapeutic prescriptions.
Traction
As of November 2021, AppliedVR reported use by more than 200 health systems and more than 60,000 patients, and total funding of $71 million. Its chronic low back pain product received FDA Breakthrough Device Designation for treatment-resistant fibromyalgia and chronic intractable lower back pain, and RelieVRx is presented as an FDA-authorized Class II prescription device with 13 associated publications; SustainVR has 18 associated publications. The company reports Medicare code E1905 with coverage and reimbursement, and coverage contracts with commercial health plans, Medicare and the VA.
Latest developments
The company's current product portfolio comprises RelieVRx, an FDA-authorized prescription VR device for chronic lower back pain with established Medicare coding and coverage contracts, and SustainVR, a general wellness device offered only within Veterans Affairs to support veterans living with chronic pain and mental health conditions. The company states it is expanding its immersive therapeutic approach to additional indications.
βΈFull profile β market position, technology, go-to-market, geography, history, risks & controversies
Market position
AppliedVR describes itself, and was described by investor JAZZ Venture Partners in 2021, as a leader in VR-based prescription digital therapeutics for pain. It reported being trusted by more than 200 of the world's leading health systems, with its technology used by more than 60,000 patients in pain management and wellness programs as of November 2021. It was named a 2021 Fast Company Most Innovative Company. Press coverage identified Karuna Labs and XR Labs as competitors also treating chronic pain with VR.
The company emphasizes regulatory and reimbursement milestones alongside a published evidence base: FDA Breakthrough Device Designation, FDA authorization of RelieVRx as a Class II prescription device via the de novo pathway, a unique Medicare code (E1905) with a reimbursement rate, coverage contracts with commercial plans, Medicare and the VA, and peer-reviewed clinical trials including a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study.
Technology
The company pairs consumer-style VR headsets with clinically designed software curricula that apply cognitive behavioral and skills-based techniques in controlled immersive environments intended to deepen engagement and accelerate skill building. Programs are structured as multi-week, self-administered courses; the chronic low back pain program runs eight weeks and is delivered at home. The company describes its therapeutics as powered by bio-data and driven by AI, and emphasizes applying medical-device-grade research rigor to product development.
Go-to-market
AppliedVR sells through health systems and hospitals, pursues payer pilots and reimbursement contracts, and distributes SustainVR exclusively within the Veterans Affairs system. It builds demand through clinical research collaborations with academic and health-system partners, including Cedars-Sinai, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, George Washington University, the Mayo Clinic, Geisinger, Cleveland Clinic and UCSF-embedded S.O.L.V.E. Health Tech, and it is developing a VR pharmacy distribution platform.
Patients with chronic pain β initially chronic lower back pain β as well as those with acute and postoperative pain and anxiety; U.S. military veterans experiencing chronic pain, PTSD, stress, anxiety, depression and sleep problems; and the health systems, providers and payers that purchase and reimburse the programs. Research with S.O.L.V.E. Health Tech at UCSF also examined VR pain management in safety-net settings for Medicaid patients.
Geography
Headquartered in Los Angeles, California, with commercial focus on the United States, including the Veterans Affairs system; earlier company materials reference VR being introduced to patients in hospitals across multiple countries.
History
After launching at the start of 2015, the founders first brought SootheVR to market as a general wellness tool used in hospitals. AppliedVR participated in the Techstars Cedars-Sinai Healthcare Accelerator in 2016 for initial funding, later raising seed and Series A rounds. It validated its approach through research trials with partners including Cedars-Sinai, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, George Washington University and the Mayo Clinic. In March 2021 the company announced $29 million in Series A funding to advance EaseVRx, which had received FDA Breakthrough Device Designation as the first VR prescription therapeutic to do so. In November 2021 it raised a $36 million Series B, bringing total funding to $71 million, while awaiting an FDA decision on its first de novo submission. The product line subsequently became RelieVRx, described as the first FDA-authorized prescription VR medical device for chronic lower back pain, and the company added SustainVR for veterans.
Risks & controversies
The business depends on FDA regulatory outcomes and on payer coverage and reimbursement decisions; earlier product plans were contingent on pending FDA decisions, including the first de novo submission. SustainVR's availability is limited to the Veterans Affairs channel, and the company competes with other VR pain-management companies.
Compiled by commissioned research from 8 cited public sources β announcements, filings, and press listed under research sources below.
Key figures
latest reportedCompany-reported or press-reported figures, each dated to when it was claimed β not independently audited.
Founder mafia
2 people who came through AppliedVR went on to found or lead other companies.
Competitors Β· 5
by search overlap
Companies competing with AppliedVR for the same Google search keywords, organic and paid, via search-intersection analysis.
Non-dilutive funding Β· 3 SBIR/STTR awards
Federal grants β no equity taken| Agency | Phase | Year | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| National Institutes of Health (NIH)National Institutes of Health | Phase II | 2019 | $1.5M |
| National Institutes of Health (NIH)National Institutes of Health | Phase II | 2019 | $1.5M |
| National Institutes of Health (NIH)National Institutes of Health | Phase I | 2017 | $150K |
Source: SBIR.gov award data (U.S. Small Business Administration). SBIR/STTR awards are competitive federal R&D grants and contracts β non-dilutive capital alongside any venture rounds above.
Timeline Β· 10
launches, deals, and filingsSustainVR, a general wellness device available only within Veterans Affairs, offers on-demand non-pharmacological support for stress, anxiety, pain, PTSD, depression and sleep.
Company product page states RelieVRx is the first FDA-authorized prescription VR medical device for chronic lower back pain, an FDA-authorized Class II medical device, with an established unique Medicare code (E1905) with coverage and reimbursement rate and coverage contracts with commercial health plans, Medicare and the VA.
Funding round with investments from F-Prime Capital, JAZZ Venture Partners, Sway Ventures and SVB Ventures, bringing total funding to $71 million ahead of an FDA decision on the company's first de novo submission.
$36M source β
AppliedVR collaborating with Geisinger and Cleveland Clinic on separate NIDA-funded clinical trials testing VR as an opioid-sparing tool for acute and chronic pain.
Collaborative research with S.O.L.V.E. Health Tech, a health equity incubation partner embedded within the University of California, San Francisco, published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research, studying VR for pain management in safety-net settings for populations such as Medicaid patients.
Press coverage reported a $29 million raise to further develop EaseVRx and expand products for chronic pain, postoperative pain and anxiety, with investors including F-Prime Capital, JAZZ Venture Partners, Sway Ventures, GSR Ventures, Magnetic Ventures and Cedars-Sinai.
$29M source β
Results from a pivotal eight-week randomized clinical trial found the EaseVRx device produced clinically meaningful improvement in multiple pain outcomes with high participant satisfaction and engagement.
The company's flagship chronic pain product became the first VR prescription therapeutic to receive FDA Breakthrough Device Designation, for treatment-resistant fibromyalgia and chronic intractable lower back pain.
AppliedVR took part in the Techstars Cedars-Sinai Healthcare Accelerator in 2016 as initial funding, preceding its seed and Series A rounds.
Dated company events from announcements, filings, and press; legal rows summarize public dockets and regulator releases.
βΈResearch sources Β· 8
primary sources listed
- AppliedVRappliedvr.io Β· web
8 public sources were cited for this profile; the first-party ones are listed here.
Frequently asked questions
- What does AppliedVR do?
- AppliedVR builds prescription and wellness virtual-reality therapeutics for chronic pain, including the FDA-authorized RelieVRx device.
- Who founded AppliedVR?
- AppliedVR was founded by Matthew Stoudt, Josh Sackman in 2015.
- Who are AppliedVR's investors?
- AppliedVR's investors include Entrada Ventures, F-Prime Capital, JAZZ Venture Partners, Magnetic Ventures, Presence Capital, Techstars.
- Where is AppliedVR headquartered?
- AppliedVR is headquartered in Los Angeles, US.