Valuable lessons from an early-stage exit: Mental health startup Options MD successfully acquired by Resilience Lab

In a move that underscores the growing importance of mental health technology, New York-based Resilience Lab has announced its acquisition of Options MD, a promising startup in the personalised mental health treatment space. This early-stage acquisition highlights the rapid consolidation in the digital health sector and Resilience Lab’s aggressive growth strategy.

A Match Made in Mental Health Tech

Options MD, co-founded by Morgan Hewett and Kyle Pierce in 2020, has made waves in the mental health tech scene with its AI-driven platform that matches patients with treatment-resistant depression to personalised care options. The startup’s innovative approach caught the eye of Resilience Lab, a tech-enabled mental health provider that has been expanding its footprint in the behavioral health market.

HyperExits spoke to Morgan Hewett, former CEO of Options MD, who shared her thoughts on the acquisition: “Joining forces with Resilience Lab allows us to scale our vision of personalised mental health care faster than we ever could have imagined. Their resources and network will be invaluable in bringing our solution to more people who desperately need effective treatment options.”

The Founders’ Journey

Hewett’s journey to founding Options MD was deeply personal. After watching her brother battle treatment resistant depression and struggling with PTSD herself, she recognized the need for a more efficient way to match patients with effective treatments. Along with her co-founder Kyle Pierce, a health-tech attorney, and her CTO Nick Foden, a software engineer with a background in healthcare, Hewett set out to create a platform that could revolutionise mental health care delivery.

The startup quickly gained traction, raising $6 million in pre-seed and seed funding in 2021 and 2023 and catching the attention of major players in the healthcare industry. Options MD’s proprietary algorithm, which analyses patient data to recommend tailored treatment plans, has shown promising results in early trials.

Hewett debunks the theory that all startups are bought not sold as she understood early on that selling a company was at the end of the day no different than any other “Sales” job. Something she had lots of experience with given her time at Meta. Humble to a fault, the founder shares her process with HyperExits, which included:

• Working with her investors and advisors to come up with the sale strategy

Morgan credits her investor, Ryan Perlowin who is a two times exited founder turned angel, as giving her great advice. When the funding markets had dried up, he convinced her that it was the “Perfect time to sell”.

• Identifying the Ideal Buyer Profile (which was Series C & D stage companies looking for technology to help build their profile and defensibility using AI in the mental health space)
• Coming up with the long list of Buyers and their CEOs
• Setting up a CRM to help manage the sales process
• Creating sales collateral
• Executing the sales call
• Follow ups
• Shortlisting and closing the funnel
• Executing the next stage of the funnel into due diligence with the buyer
• Focus on the close & negotiating her exit
• Transaction completion
• Leadership transfer planning and handover

“Almost every target acquirer’s CEO took my call, I found that the Founder / CEO to CEO call approach worked whether it was a warm introduction or even a cold outreach” Morgan Hewett.

Resilience Lab’s Strategic Move

For Resilience Lab, the acquisition of Options MD represents a strategic expansion of its mental health offerings. Founded in 2019 by Marc Goldberg and Christine Carville, Resilience Lab has been on a mission to make high-quality mental health care more accessible through its tech-enabled therapy platform.

This isn’t Resilience Lab’s first foray into acquisitions. In 2023, the company acquired Grouport, a group therapy platform, signalling its intent to diversify its mental health solutions. This provided some signal to Morgan that the company was open to growing in-organically through acquisitions. The addition of Options MD to its portfolio further strengthens Resilience Lab’s position in the personalised mental health treatment market.

Marc Goldberg, CEO of Resilience Lab, explained the rationale behind the acquisition: “Options MD’s cutting-edge technology aligns perfectly with our mission to provide personalised, effective mental health care at scale. We’re excited to integrate their AI-driven approach into our existing services and expand our ability to help those with treatment-resistant conditions.”

Industry Implications

This acquisition reflects a broader trend in the digital health industry, where larger, well-funded companies are snapping up innovative startups to enhance their technological capabilities and expand their service offerings. It also highlights the increasing focus on personalised medicine in mental health treatment.

While the financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, industry experts speculate that the acquisition was likely in the mid to high eight-figure range, given Options MD’s promising technology and early traction.

“While the media is often fixated with the very large exits that happen in the hundreds of millions or even billions, there is very much a world where there are smaller exits in the $10-20 million range. Founders need to understand that this may be an option for them if they do in fact want to sell and have a distinct USP through their technology or team” Morgan Hewett.

Looking Ahead

As Options MD integrates into Resilience Lab, the mental health tech community will be watching closely to see how this union shapes the future of personalised mental health care. With the combined expertise of both teams and Resilience Lab’s resources, there’s potential for significant advancements in treating complex mental health conditions.

For Morgan Hewett, this acquisition marks the beginning of a new chapter in their mission to transform mental health treatment. As part of Resilience Lab, Options MD willhave the opportunity to see their vision realised on a much larger scale, potentially impacting millions of lives in the process.

In an industry where innovation can literally save lives, the Options MD acquisition by Resilience Lab could be a game-changer for mental health care delivery, setting a new standard for personalised, tech-enabled treatment options.

“Our acquirer did want me to stay on to lead the AI Product capability and its further development across their business. But I knew that for personal reasons, I needed to take a rest, and decided to take a detour to Harvard Business School.” Morgan Hewett

Morgan is currently pursuing an MBA at Harvard Business School and is now a part of the HyperExits community, helping share her journey and story with others as she builds on her next chapter past the acquisition. She loves all things related to mental health, women’s health, fitness and beauty and welcomes connections with any entrepreneurs in those spaces.

Would it be weird to include my email contact info incase anyone wants to reach out?