Residents of Karakalpakstan Beknazar Abdikamalov and Aziz Murtazaev, along with their partner from Singapore Justin Kim, received a $3 million investment from Meta (Facebook) to launch a mental health startup – Ami. 

With the help of the project, business owners in Asian countries will be able to improve the mental health of their employees. The project includes online counseling sessions to help make mental health care more accessible.

“We are impressed with the passion and talent of the Ami team and look forward to supporting them to give people in Asia another way to support their mental health,” said Sunita Parasuraman, head of investment at Meta.

According to startups, the idea to create such a platform appeared after the pandemic, as a March 2022 report from the World Health Organization says that the level of depression and anxiety around the world has increased by 25%.

The founders of the project also emphasized that Ami offers companies the opportunity to attract and retain the best specialists through a specific platform to support mental health. They see it as their mission to increase people’s knowledge of the importance of mental health.