Mightier

Mightier is a Boston-based children's mental health company that pairs video games with heart-rate biofeedback to teach emotional regulation. Children wear a Bluetooth heart rate sensor while playing games on the Mightier Kid App; an in-game emotion meter called the Gizmo visualizes their heart rate when they become overexcited, frustrated or stressed, and children practice evidence-based calming techniques such as progressive muscle relaxation, deep breathing and mindful tracing to lower their heart rate and resume play. The stated goal is for children to internalize these skills and transfer them to everyday situations. The program is positioned for children ages 6-14 dealing with anxiety, ADHD, anger, autism, outbursts and oppositional defiant disorder, and the company recommends about 45 minutes of play per week.

The subscription includes a hardware kit with a rechargeable heart sensor and a deck of Conversation Cards, an optional dedicated GamePad device preloaded only with Mightier games, an app library of more than 25 games, monthly mailed Skill Packs of crafts, games and stories organized around an emotion and a calming skill (digital versions for international customers), and a Parent App providing real-time progress data, articles and resources. The company's approach was developed and tested at Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School and is described as backed by a decade of clinical research.

Alongside the direct-to-family offering, Mightier markets to employers, clinicians and schools, and in 2021 entered a strategic partnership with Magellan Health under which it began offering its program to health plans and employers and collaborated on studies and pilot programs, including research on children with autism.

Founding story

Mightier was co-founded by Craig Lund, who serves as chief executive officer, and Jason Kahn PhD, chief science officer and a part-time instructor of psychiatry at Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School. The program grew out of clinical research conducted at Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School into the use of play and biofeedback for children's emotional regulation.

Business model

Mightier sells a consumer subscription that bundles hardware (a heart rate sensor, Conversation Cards and an optional GamePad), a game app, mailed or digital monthly Skill Packs, and a Parent App. It also distributes through partner channels aimed at employers, clinicians and schools, and through a partnership with Magellan Healthcare it offers the program to health plans and employers.

Subscription plans billed monthly at $40/month, six months at $34/month ($204 billed), or twelve months at $28/month ($336 billed), with an optional $50 GamePad add-on. Purchases can be paid with HSA/FSA funds and carry a 90-day money-back guarantee. Shipping rates, taxes, VAT and duties are charged at checkout for international orders.

Traction

The company reported having helped over 50,000 families since its 2018 launch. Company materials state that 87% of families see positive change within 90 days, and clinical results cited include reductions in outbursts of 62 percent, oppositional behavior of 40 percent and family stress of 19 percent, plus a 45% improvement in symptoms for children on the autism spectrum in a study completed in May 2021.

Latest developments

The company continues to sell family subscriptions with hardware kits, monthly Skill Packs and the Parent App, and markets partner programs for employers, clinicians and schools. Its leadership team includes CEO and co-founder Craig Lund, co-founder and Chief Science Officer Jason Kahn, and COO Daniel Gutierrez, formerly of DraftKings.