Kaia Health turned your phone camera into a physical therapist — the app watches your movements and corrects your form in real time using AI. That is a genuinely novel use of existing smartphone hardware, and it is why they landed SoftBank Vision Fund 2 as the lead in their $75M Series C. The B2B model (selling to employers and health insurers) means they have recurring revenue and real distribution without having to acquire each patient individually. Musculoskeletal conditions cost US employers $200 billion a year, so the market is massive and mostly untapped by digital-first solutions.
Founded
2016
HQ
Munich, Germany
Total Raised
$125 million
Founder
Konstantin Mehl and Manuel Thurner
Status
Private
Website
www.kaiahealth.comTHE ORIGIN STORY
Konstantin Mehl was dealing with chronic back pain and frustrated by how inaccessible and expensive traditional physical therapy was. He and Manuel Thurner — who had a background in health economics — started Kaia to build a digital physiotherapy product that could deliver clinical-grade outcomes at a fraction of the cost.
The original focus was back pain using evidence-based exercise and education, delivered via app. They got clinical validation early, which was the unlock for partnerships with major health insurers.
WHAT THEY ACTUALLY DO
B2B2C — Kaia sells access to its app through employers and health insurers who offer it as a benefit to their employees and members. Revenue comes from per-member-per-month contracts.
The app delivers AI-guided exercise therapy for musculoskeletal conditions including back pain, hip and knee osteoarthritis. The AI uses the phone camera to track patient movement and provide real-time feedback on exercise form.
THE PRODUCTS
["Kaia Back Pain App \u2014 FDA De Novo authorized AI-guided therapy for chronic low back pain", "Kaia Hip and Knee App \u2014 digital musculoskeletal therapy for osteoarthritis using the same AI movement analysis platform", "Employer and Insurer Integration Suite \u2014 white-label integration for health benefit platforms"]
HOW THEY GREW
Land large enterprise contracts (employers with 500+ employees and health insurers) rather than going direct-to-consumer. Get clinical evidence first — peer-reviewed studies on efficacy — then use that evidence to unlock payor contracts.
Expand condition coverage from back pain into hip and knee OA, and eventually into other musculoskeletal conditions. Geographic expansion from Europe into the US, where the employer health benefit market is the largest in the world.
THE HARD PART
Converting clinical evidence into payor reimbursement at scale. Health insurers are notoriously slow to add new digital health benefits, and the sales cycle can run 12-18 months.
The FDA De Novo authorization Kaia received in 2021 for its back pain therapy helped, but payor adoption still requires relentless enterprise sales effort.
MONEY TRAIL
Series A
2018 · Led by Balderton Capital
$9M raised
Series B
2020 · Led by Optum Ventures
$26M raised
Series C
2021 · Led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2
$75M raised
WHO BACKED THEM
SoftBank Vision Fund 2 led the $75M Series C in 2021. Optum Ventures (the venture arm of UnitedHealth Group) led the $26M Series B in 2020.
Balderton Capital has been involved since the Series A. Other backers include AlleyCorp and existing investors.
Related Profiles
Companies
Lyra Health
Both are digital health companies targeting employer benefit programs with clinical-grade mental and physical health solutions. Lyra focuses on mental health, Kaia on musculoskeletal conditions — together they represent the full scope of what employer digital health benefits will look like in five years.
Spring Health
Spring Health and Kaia Health are both B2B digital health companies selling through employer health benefit programs. Spring went after mental health first, Kaia went after physical therapy. The distribution model is identical even if the clinical focus differs.
Head-to-Head
Compare Kaia Health vs another company.