Atmana Raises 500k USD to Help Youngsters with Phone Addiction

Bangalore based start-up, Atmana, which helps combat technology addiction has raised 500k as part of its seed round of funding. The round saw participation from investors like Y Combinator, Goodwater capital & angels like Dhruv Gupta, co-founder of Orange health, and Austen Allred, founder of Lambda school. Atmana was part of the last batch (S21) of Y Combinator.

While the world was battling a pandemic, another problem started silently taking control of the lives of many. The problem is excessive screen time and a general dependency on technology. It has been spreading fast, perhaps faster than the pandemic. Post-Covid, most Indians are hooked onto their devices almost all the time. This is largely unhealthy for most people if not for all. Post JIOfication, India is 3rd globally in terms of smartphone usage; the average Indian spends 4.6 hours per day on their device.

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Atmana is focusing on tackling this very problem. It aims to help youngsters control excessive screen time using mobile first solutions that use content filtering combined with proven techniques used in substance de-addiction like those used in alcohol and smoking addiction treatment. “Neurologically, technology addiction is no different from a substance addiction, says TejasBalasubramanya, the founder. We have psychiatrists and psychologists in our team who help us leverage proven techniques from addiction treatment in tackling technology addiction.

Atmana has already helped over 1.5 million people globally in over 100 countries with their mobile apps. Currently, have more than 10,000 paying customers primarily from countries like the US, UK, Canada, Germany, etc.

“I’m quite a productivity freak and wanted to cut down on the hours that I used to spend every day on YouTube and Quora. Though there were existing tools, they failed to keep me accountable to my goals and I used to fail in cutting down usage. I felt there had to be a better way.” Thus came the idea for BlockerX – Atmana’s 1st product. What keeps the team motivated is solving a global problem that can help millions of people lead a more fulfilling life. The team is also driven by the opportunity to build a top-notch product from India for the world.