Health Tech: Kabir Ali On How Nue Life’s Technology Can Make An Important Impact On Our Overall Wellness

An Interview With Luke Kervin

Human Connection

Building human-focused technology that creates positive social impact is essential, but we ultimately believe people heal people. As proven by research — human connection is one of the most important factors in an individual’s health. There cannot be mental health without human connection.

In recent years, Big Tech has gotten a bad rep. But of course, many tech companies are doing important work making monumental positive changes to society, health, and the environment. To highlight these, we started a new interview series about “Technology Making An Important Positive Social Impact”. We are interviewing leaders of tech companies who are creating or have created a tech product that is helping to make a positive change in people’s lives or the environment. As a part of this series, I had the pleasure of interviewing Kabir Ali, Head of Operations & Chief of Staff.

Kabir Ali is an advocate for accessible and innovative mental health care. As an operations executive in the wellness industry, his passion is to create collaborative teams that provide effective treatment at the highest standards of compliance. Kabir serves as Head of Operations & Chief of Staff at Nue Life, a newly launched next-gen mental wellness company that believes in the power of psychedelics to catalyze change.

Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series. Before we dive in, our readers would love to learn a bit more about you. Can you tell us a bit about your childhood backstory and how you grew up?

I was born in Bombay, India and grew up in various Canadian cities with an unconventional family that moved around a lot, which meant I never stayed long in one place. This provided me with a multicultural experience, but with that, I also experienced racism as a South Asian living in remote Canadian suburbs. These encounters were really the catalyst for my experience with mental health issues.

On top of that, being from India, my family and I spent a considerable amount of time there when I was growing up. I became immersed in the Bollywood scene, surrounded by celebrities and a culture of drugs. I smoked my first joint at age 12, which was the start of my drug addiction. When I was 22, my family was incarcerated, which propelled my depression and addiction. My comfort with a community that participated in heavy drug use made it clear that I was unhealthy and my problem needed to be addressed.

I was introduced to ketamine therapy treatments by a friend, Dr. Kazi Hassan, who recognized that my drug use was unhealthy and not sustainable, and has a deep understanding of how those suffering from depression and addiction can benefit from these treatments. My first in-person treatment with a clinician changed my life and my relationship with addiction. The ketamine assisted sessions helped me reflect on my drug use and look inwards to understand the root cause of the mental health symptoms I was experiencing, which allowed me to move forward. Overnight, I became a cheerleader and advocate for ketamine therapy treatment, and wanted to spread the word and help others who are suffering.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?

The most interesting experience I’ve had in this industry actually happened to me personally. It was my biggest breakthrough with ketamine therapy, during one of my first sessions, which allowed me to access parts of my conscience that hadn’t before. This ultimately allowed me to work through past trauma in therapy, led me out of my addiction, and helped me become more self aware.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

Yes, I am incredibly grateful for my long-time friend and colleague Dr. Hassan, who I mentioned earlier. He changed my life by introducing me to ketamine-assisted therapy treatments. I was able to begin a journey where I could reflect on my drug use and understand how I was using it as a way to deal with past trauma of experiencing racism and losing my family. His mentorship and friendship blossomed into a business relationship, which has ultimately become Nue Life.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

One quote I often reflect on is: “Things don’t happen to you, they happen for you.” With my previous addiction and subsequent mental health journey, this quote is something I come back to as a reminder of my resilience and what I’ve overcome.

You are a successful business leader. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? Can you please share a story or example for each?

Emotional Resilience: I was participating in unhealthy drug use to fill a void caused by past trauma. I was able to take this experience and find my purpose in life by helping start a company that could allow others to have their own unique mental health breakthrough via ketamine-assisted therapies.

Compassion: With the assistance of my friend, Dr. Hassan, I’ve come to understand the importance of treating everyone I encounter with compassion. Everyone has their own personal health journey.

Transparency: Transparency and communication are key components to success and working well as a team. I always encourage my team to be honest and communicate what is going well or what needs improvement.

Ok super. Let’s now shift to the main part of our discussion about the tech tools that you are helping to create that can make a positive impact on our wellness. To begin, which particular problems are you aiming to solve?

At Nue Life, we’re dedicated to transforming mental wellness for all by addressing the root cause of anxiety, depression, and PTSD. Through our 360-degree approach, Nue Life offers a mix of innovative healing modalities, medicine, and technology that has created a holistic path to long-term wellness that treats the mind, body, and spirit.

How do you think your technology can address this?

Nue Life’s AI-assisted technology is a key tool in our mental health therapies. Our technology provides feedback to the medical team throughout patients’ entire journey to ensure the safety and success of each treatment. When patients decide to share their data with us, we are able to gain a holistic view of their progress and better assess their needs to ensure they achieve long-term success.

Can you tell us the backstory about what inspired you to originally feel passionate about this cause?

My experience with addiction and depression, and ultimately my breakthrough using ketamine-assisted therapies is what led me to find my calling. I want to help others find the relief I did and address symptoms of mental health at their root cause to achieve long-term wellness, which is exactly what we’re doing at Nue Life.

How do you think this might change the world?

650 million people struggle with mental health worldwide, but the current treatment options available can be inaccessible, inadequate, and often, ineffective. Nue Life takes a holistic, 360-degree approach to wellness by fusing physical and mental health through an integrated whole person health model. We also are increasing accessibility to this type of therapy by offering at-home treatments at a competitive price point, in order to help as many people as possible develop a healthier relationship with themself.

Keeping “Black Mirror” and the “Law of Unintended Consequences” in mind, can you see any potential drawbacks about this technology that people should think more deeply about?

At Nue Life, we understand the importance of leveraging our technology to support users, not to dilute the humanity that comes from the compassionate care our clinicians provide. Technology will never become a replacement for the human-to-human empathy Nue Life treatments provide, it is simply utilized as a tool to provide the best care possible. Any company that begins using this sort of technology as a replacement for human compassion should recognize that as a sign to slow down and be more mindful.

Here is the main question for our discussion. Based on your experience and success, can you please share “Five things you need to know to successfully create technology that can make a positive social impact”? (Please share a story or an example, for each.)

Accessibility

In April 2019, we offered in-center ketamine therapy supporting clients in a cozy-cute space. In this first year, we had 75 clients. Tears flowing on the daily, our clinicians created a space for our clients to heal.

Words cannot describe how it felt to witness these transformative breakthroughs. It was a lot.

Everything changed when the pandemic settled in. We could no longer support the people that found hope. They found something that finally worked for them and just like that it was taken away.

This was a difficult time but technology saved all of us.

We transitioned our in-center protocol to a telemedicine model within weeks.

People felt supported.

Our clinicians didn’t abandon their patients.

We leveraged technology via telemedicine. Instead of IV/IM therapy, we sent the medication in the form of rapid dissolve tablets. This reduced the cost to the patient by nearly 75%.

Accessibility has been in our DNA since day one. It never felt good asking folks to commit $4,000- $6,000 to feel something again. It didn’t feel “great” collecting those payments. We always looked for opportunities to cut costs and pass on the savings to our clients but nothing made a dent like telemedicine.

Without tech, it is impossible to heal and support people at scale.

2. Proactive User Education around Precision Medicine

Mental healthcare has been a one size fits all approach. Many patients are rushed through appointments where their concerns aren’t addressed, and their questions aren’t answered only to receive a temporary solution guided by routine methods.

Our patients don’t have to deal with any of that. Our providers provide space for clients to feel heard and center their perspective about their mind and body above all. Throughout their journey, not only do clients have a team of providers, but they also have a team encouraging them to make informed decisions about their health.

Technology helps us dial in and dial-up patient education and outcomes.

Through our platform, we provide precision medicine and integrative mental health education through every touchpoint so our patients can make informed decisions and take their mental health into their own hands.

3. Individualization

We’re are focusing on providing an individualized approach to mental health.

The precision medicine model uses highly detailed information from genetics, environment, and lifestyle to help diagnose, recommend treatment options, and predict the effectiveness of those treatments.

The ever-connected technology patients access through our mobile application allows us to curate and deliver a more personalized experience.

Our property music streaming service supports the therapeutic experience, as music helps patients feel, heal, and grow.

4. Transparency

Also, I believe the intentions behind systems/applications need to be communicated with the utmost transparency, so users understand how a platform serves and supports them. Users need to trust tech and the only way we can establish this in my view is to over-communicate.

We all share concerns about how our data is being leveraged.

We have all agreed to multiple “Terms of Use,” but we do not stop to read the fine print.

Some of our documentation was a tad too heavy and formal during our earlier days. Folks didn’t feel comfortable.

Discovering this allowed us to lean in and connect with our patients. Technology has supported our team and providers in maintaining the patient-provider relationship beyond an appointment.

The data we leverage helps our medical team drive better patient outcomes while improving safety, quality, and efficiency for a better standard of care.

5. Human Connection

Building human-focused technology that creates positive social impact is essential, but we ultimately believe people heal people.

As proven by research — human connection is one of the most important factors in an individual’s health. There cannot be mental health without human connection.

When we transitioned to a mobile application, we wondered how our clients would react. To our surprise, the time we took to dial in on our communication with them in the early days allowed us to have a smooth transition.

We focused on maintaining the importance of a human connection and enhanced our approaches to nurture our community. Keeping our previous touchpoints to including more so our clients know that were are only one touch away.

Technology is what powers us, but people are what drives us.

If you could tell other young people one thing about why they should consider making a positive impact on our environment or society, like you, what would you tell them?

I would tell them honestly and wholeheartedly that nothing compares to having a fulfilling and purposeful career path — I believe that should be a top priority for everyone in each professional decision. Once in a career path that’s purposeful and personally meaningful, it’s important to continuously evaluate the impact we are creating and sharing with the world we co-exist in. Stick to your morals and practice self-awareness, even in professional settings. Our heart has a way of keeping us grounded and communicating with our mind and bodies that can’t be taught.

Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would like to have a private breakfast or lunch, and why? He or she might just see this, especially if we tag them.

Joe Rogan and Lex Friedman. I would love to engage in a question-heavy dialogue with them to spark different parts of my consciousness.

How can our readers further follow your work online?

Check out our Nue Life Journal for articles on mental health, dealing with its symptoms, and the power of psychedelic therapy (and subscribe to our newsletter to get these in your inbox!). You can also follow along on my Linkedin for personal and professional updates.

Thank you so much for joining us. This was very inspirational, and we wish you continued success in your important work.