We are excited to announce that Matchstick Ventures Fund III has completed an investment in Althea. Althea is an end-to-end software for the introduction of regulated psychedelics into health care.

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As evidence has grown for the effectiveness of psychedelics in treating a wide range of mental illness, alongside bipartisan support for decriminalizing them for both research and use, many healthcare systems, universities, biotech, and pharma companies are beginning programs to study psychedelics. Additionally, in Colorado and Oregon where the use of psychedelics in controlled settings has recently been decriminalized, clinics are opening up under regulated programs to use these medicines for therapy and treatment. 

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Alongside the introduction of psychedelics, a need for platforms and systems to help manage the rollout has arisen. Health systems, universities, and companies are all in need of software that can help them ensure their programs are run appropriately and in compliance with regulations. Additionally, as psychedelics are further studied, software can help ensure research is done correctly and results are collected and available for learning.  

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Althea is developing a vertical software solution for the regulated introduction of psychedelics. Their platform will help manage patient intake to ensure the appropriateness of treatments, as well as baseline and post-treatment outcomes. The software also allows for clinical studies to be implemented into its workflows. 

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Currently, Althea is working with the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, a leader in psychedelic research, to develop their solution. Althea is collaborating with them to help ensure compliance, as well as gathering data on the results of psychedelic studies that can be used later to prove the efficacy of these drugs. Eventually, Althea plans to work with biotech and pharma companies to use their data and results to develop compounds and treatments. 

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The founding team at Althea are repeat founders with experience in the healthcare software space. Niko founded Redox, a healthcare data company, and his co-founders, Andrew and Sara, also bring software and healthcare experience. We have known them for a long time, and look forward to working with them as they develop solutions for this new and expanding space in healthcare.