A mental health app that started with one surprisingly popular feature now has bigger ambitions. The Path, a therapy-plus-coaching app co-founded by former Calm employees and motivational speaker Tony Robbins, launched with a $14.3 million seed round and a distinct claim: an AI model that scores far higher on a mental health safety benchmark than consumer chatbots do.
From Mental to The Path
The idea grew out of a men’s mental health app called Mental, where co-founder and CEO Anson Whitmer noticed that one feature — AI interactive audio — resonated wildly with users. Whitmer, a former early employee at Calm, was drawn to mental health tech after losing a beloved uncle to suicide when he was 19 and, later, a cousin. After earning a PhD in psychology, he decided the scale of the problem demanded more than a meditation app: there simply are not enough therapists in the world.
The Seed Round
Tony Robbins became so enamored with the startup that he moved from investor to co-founder. The Path has now raised $14.3 million in seed funding led by Prime Movers Lab, where Robbins is a partner, with participation from speed skater Apolo Anton Ohno, boxer Deontay Wilder, and Designer Fund. Robbins has since helped shape the app around his popular self-improvement methods.
A 95 on Vera-MH
The startup’s headline claim is safety. Whitmer says its specially trained AI model has scored 95 on the Vera-MH mental health safety AI benchmark, compared to a top score of 65 for consumer bots. The model is post-trained from open source models and does not use the major consumer LLMs at all — meaning The Path is not simply a wrapper over them.
Therapy, Not Engagement
The design philosophy also differs from consumer chatbots, which Whitmer says are optimized for engagement — the opposite of what therapy should do. Consumer bots solve problems quickly and reinforce ideas to keep users coming back. The Path’s AI is trained instead to set up structure and dig out assumptions.
- It challenges you, rather than merely agreeing with you
- It works to understand the problem deeply before offering resolution
- It is trained from a place of understanding, not quick answers
Pricing and Availability
The Path currently offers 11 virtual AI therapists, with preferences for directness and other traits, and is free as it gains users. The startup eventually plans to charge $40 a month. Whitmer sees the wider opportunity in numbers like OpenAI’s claim that at least 900 million people use ChatGPT for mental health-related queries every week — all currently served by bots that are not built for therapy.