MindTales CEO — building mental resilience as a founder
Starting today, October 10th 2022 and running until October 14th 2022, we are highlighting women in STEM in our week-long celebration of Ada Lovelace Day.
Viktorija Aksionova is the co-founder and CEO of MindTales — a mental health tech startup based in Abu Dhabi that is increasing accessibility to digital wellness and emotional health support in the UAE.
The idea of MindTales came from Aksionova’s own struggles in finding credible and accessible mental health support. In fact, more than 70% of people with mental health issues across the globe are unable to receive the help they require due to a lack of access to therapy and counselling. Aksionova founded MindTales in 2020 and secured $1.23 million in seed funding earlier in 2022.
As part of our Ada Lovelace spotlight series, Aksionova shares advice for female founders raising capital, reveals her tips for overcoming the messy early days of a startup and explains why startups should spearhead the ecosystem’s efforts in improving diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Could you introduce yourself and MindTales?
Early on in my career, I moved to the UAE to join one of the sovereign wealth funds and accumulated more than 10 years of experience in the asset management industry. I was keen to use my experience to create change within health tech, I then ventured into the entrepreneurship space.
As a 2x startup founder, now I’m leading MindTales, which aims to disrupt the UAE’s mental healthcare system by creating the region’s first platform for corporate wellness. MindTales’ mission is to transform the region’s workplace wellness landscape. We provide a wide range of digital interactive, science-backed exercises and access to wellness coaches. The platform is designed to equip employees with a “toolkit” to understand and boost their emotional health. The MindTales wellness journey uses AI to provide a personalized and tailored approach to individual needs. This means we suggest a daily plan and helpful strategies based on the goals users pick, as mental wellness is not a one size fits all approach.
What was your motivation for starting MindTales? Tell us about your journey so far.
MindTales was born out of a personal pain point and experience. A few years ago I felt quite overwhelmed by the high workload and stress and I was looking for support. Despite there being a lot of information, it was difficult for me to identify and find the best solution to my problem — and I just couldn’t find an easily accessible and affordable service. This was the moment when the idea for starting MindTales and creating a full-stack solution for emotional and mental well-being was born. And since then our goal is to make mental health more accessible and inclusive.
What support was invaluable during the early days of building MindTales?
In the early days of building MindTales, it was very important to receive feedback on the idea and its feasibility and to get help in assessing the market situation. We have spent four months on research, talking to key stakeholders, and understanding the ecosystem and our customers. In the end, you are trying to solve a problem and therefore it is very important to understand what it is that customers need. At the same time having relevant partners and support early on is very important. We are very grateful to HUB71 and the Department of Health for supporting us from day one. Helping with our first MVP, connecting to key clients and investors.
In terms of diversity, equity, and inclusion in the startup ecosystem, what do you want to see more of?
The MindTales team is very diverse and we have team members from more than nine different countries. The different backgrounds of our team members complement each other, and we are aligned through our passion and enthusiasm for entrepreneurship.
The diversity and inclusion that we would like to see in the startup ecosystem overall begin within startups themselves. The ecosystem is still missing more female empowerment and female founders and VCs. By having more women in start-ups and awakening their entrepreneurial DNA we can also have more female founders. It is also important to have more support and education for entrepreneurship at the university level and make it more diverse and inclusive.
What funding advice would you give to a first-time founder?
It is important to build a prototype early-on, because initially when you raise the money you raise from angel investors and venture capitalists. Start-ups are all about putting pieces together. It is important to focus on the product and its market fit, and then funding will follow.
Most VCs were entrepreneurs before, and decide to invest and share their experience. In the region, however, many do not have an entrepreneurial background and therefore it is important to demonstrate a product or traction early on.
What’s next for MindTales?
We are constantly looking to create an impact and scale our platform to different markets. Right now, our application is working in English, Arabic, Ukrainian, and Russian, but we are expanding. Within the next year, we’re looking to onboard 1000 companies and create happy, healthy, and productive workplaces around the globe.
Thanks Viktorija!
We hope you can join us for Ada Lovelace Week — use #AdaLovelace and #WomenInTech on socials to shout your support and celebrate the women you respect. You can follow the content we’re publishing this week via the #AdaLovelace tag here on Medium.
Ada Lovelace Day, celebrated on the second Tuesday of October every day, is an international celebration of the achievements of women in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM). It aims to increase the profile of women in STEM and create new role models to encourage more girls into STEM careers and support women already working in STEM.
Aerospace Xelerated is a 3-month funded programme for exceptional startups to accelerate the sustainable growth of the aerospace industry, led by Boeing. Learn more about our work in our FAQ or book an Office Hours call to chat with the programme team.
Stay up-to-date with our latest updates via Twitter and LinkedIn and subscribe to our mailing list!
