Neolexon develops speech therapy apps. More than 50 health insurance companies already reimburse the costs of these applications, which are approved as medical devices. The founders tell us about the current status of their medtech startup.
Munich Startup: Who are you and what do you do? Please briefly introduce yourself and your product!
Neolexon: We develop medical apps for speech therapy. Patients who have lost their speech after a stroke, for example, or children with impaired speech development, can practice independently on a tablet using our digital solutions. Our training is individually tailored to each patient by the treating speech therapist, ensuring maximum effectiveness. Our apps are certified as medical devices.
We are four founders: Dr. Hanna Jakob and Dr. Mona Späth studied speech therapy and received their doctorates in phonetics and speech processing from the Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich (LMU). Swaroop Nunna and Jakob Pfab are responsible for technical development in the Neolexon founding team.
Expertise, ambition and perseverance
Munich Startup: But that's been around for a long time!
Neolexon: Our Neolexon apps are the first to offer fully personalized therapy on a tablet or smartphone. Other early speech therapy apps lack sufficient adaptation to the individual patient. Such rigid exercise programs can quickly overwhelm or underwhelm a patient. Furthermore, the exercise content should be relevant to the patient's personal everyday life; for example, a hobby gardener might want to practice words like "daffodil" and "lawnmower."
Munich Startup: What are the three main ingredients for your recipe for success?
Neolexon: In-depth expertise through our scientific work and practical experience as therapists, the highest standards for the user-friendliness of our apps, and a great deal of perseverance in negotiations with health insurance companies.
Health insurance companies reimburse costs for the Neolexon app
Munich Startup: Let’s get to the point: How is business going?
Neolexon: Neolexon has been on the market since 2017 and has seen a huge influx of therapists, clinics, and patients. In spring 2019, we launched our second product, aimed at preschool children with articulation disorders. Our apps are now reimbursed by over 50 health insurance companies, which cover the costs for patients.
Munich Startup: What does Munich mean to you?
Neolexon: Munich has been our home for many years, and we have been able to build a very good professional network of supportive therapists and scientists. Furthermore, we are very well integrated into the startup network through various incubator and mentoring programs. Our office is located in Plant1We also see the many excellent degree programs offered by Munich universities as an advantage when it comes to finding young, motivated employees.
Munich Startup: How can your startup become the next unicorn? Or will we see you soon at Epic Fail Night?
Neolexon: We are working hard to establish ourselves as a standard in speech therapy practices and clinics and see very good opportunities for this.
Munich Startup: Helles or Prosecco?
Neolexon: Light beer! And a special beer to keep you going for long workdays.
