Why we invested in Periapt, an ADHD care delivery platform

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common neurodevelopmental issues affecting children, and one of the most difficult for parents to manage. I should know. My 8-year-old daughter has ADHD.

My experience dealing with the challenges of managing an ADHD diagnosis led me to cross paths with Ziv Elul, a successful Israeli entrepreneur. He had just launched Periapt, a company developing a care-delivery platform to help parents manage ADHD for their children. Like me, Ziv and his two partners, Gili Avital-Lang and Meir Amsellem, decided to tackle this challenge because they have children with ADHD. Their vision is to create a platform to help parents coordinate and manage ADHD care with objective and continuous care.

The opportunity to partner with a serial entrepreneur on an issue I’m passionate about was a golden opportunity. Ziv sold his previous company, Inneractive, for $86 million, and later took over as CEO of the acquiring company, Fyber N.V. He helped Fyber double its revenues and oversaw its sale to Digital Turbine a year ago for $650 million.

Samsung Next invested in Periapt because the market needs a centralized pediatric care management platform. We participated in a $6 million pre-seed round, led by Pico Partners. Other investors included the CEOs of Verbit, Payoneer, Fitness 22, Nimble, and Natural Intelligence. Daniel Recanati and Aristagora VC also participated.

The Periapt platform will address major pain points in the market, including conflicting information about ADHD treatment options, daily management struggles, and challenges understanding a child’s behavior. ADHD is the leading pediatric disorder diagnosed in children, representing a potential $47 billion market in the U.S.   

Periapt’s platform promises to improve clinical outcomes of children's ADHD treatment by helping clinicians make evidence-based decisions and by educating and supporting parents, in compliance with pediatric care guidelines. The platform will include best-in-class research and guidelines as part of a portal that includes care management, medication support, and access to a community of medical experts and other parents.  

Moreover, Periapt will help parents manage pharmacological treatment. The platform will include a tracking tool for medications, personalized information, coaching, and support. The goal is to ensure that children are receiving the right medication, while helping to lower costs for payers and employers.

An important component of Periapt’s monthly subscription-based model is the use of artificial intelligence to support personalized engagement with parents. Periapt develops a closed-loop, AI-based, learning system that allows clinicians to monitor a child's symptoms and side effects continuously. By implementing behavioral change techniques, the Periapt app maximizes positive outcomes and treatment adherence, while also collecting valuable data for its monitoring system.

The use of technology to support virtual and self-care promises to resonate with consumers, healthcare providers, payers, and employers. We think transforming a trial-and-error process into a data-based management platform to help parents and clinicians treat children with ADHD is a winning strategy.

Jonathan Machado is a Managing Director for Samsung Next. Samsung Next's investment strategy is limited to its own views and does not reflect the vision or strategy of any other Samsung business unit, including, but not limited to, Samsung Electronics.

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