Somnee
As consumers move away from hustle culture and towards high performance, how you sleep is becoming just as important as how you eat or train.
The latest: StimScience, creators of an electronic sleep aid headband called Somnee, secured $8.3M in a seed round led by Khosla Ventures. The device delivers a 15-minute round of electrical stimulation that is said to improve sleep duration and reduce the time to fall asleep.
From melatonin to high-tech monitors, maximizing *quality* shuteye is becoming big business, with the global sleep aid market reaching $101B by 2023.
- Smart mattress company Eight Sleep raised $86M last year, expanded partnerships with Barry’s and Airbnb, and acquired coaching platform Span Health.
- Amazon’s Echo and Google’s Nest Hub are exploring sleep monitoring radar technology.
- Sleep soundscape company Endel secured a $15M Series B, while Therabody acquired acoustic therapy lounger So Sound.
Punchline: Peak performance is one thing. But Americans, in general, could use a boost with everyday activity. Between 10% and 30% of US adults have chronic insomnia, and those people are seven times more likely to have a workplace accident.
With insufficient sleep carrying an estimated economic impact of $411B each year, suddenly, a brain-shocking headband doesn’t seem so outrageous.
