Mightier, a maker of a video game system intended to help children learn emotional regulation skills, scooped up $17 million in Series B funding.

The round was led by DigiTx Partners, with participation from the Sony Innovation Fund and PBJ Capital.

The Series B comes about two and half years after the Boston Children’s Hospital spin-out scooped up $6.6 million in Series A financing, followed by another $250,000 in September 2019.

The latest round brings Mightier’s total raise to $29 million, according to the company.

WHAT IT DOES

Mightier offers a series of video games that pair with a wearable heart-rate monitor, allowing children to practice calming down and taking a pause when upset.

The system is geared toward kids who have anxiety, tantrums or anger, but also those with diagnoses like attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

“Families need more options to support the emotional needs of their kids now more than ever. Mightier is the only evidence-based solution that can serve families anywhere in the country in the comfort of their homes with fun, engaging content and a community of kids, caregivers and experts who understand them,” Craig Lund, cofounder and CEO at Mightier, said in a statement.

“Our new investors bring valuable health care and gaming expertise to the company to help us scale our program to reach even more families and kids in need of support.”

MARKET SNAPSHOT

Launched in 2018, Mightier raised $2.4 million in seed funding in June that year. In 2020, the company began its partnership with managed care company Magellan Health to supply its members with autism or other behavioral health conditions with Mightier’s games.

Mightier also scored a $2 million grant earlier this year from the National Institute of Mental Health for a study conducted with Magellan on the impact of its system on kids with mental health disorders, including ADHD, anxiety and ODD.

Another company that uses video games to help children with ADHD is Akili Interactive, which announced a substantial $110 million in Series D funding plus an additional $50 million in debt financing in May. It earned an FDA De Novo clearance in June 2020 for its EndeavorRx digital therapeutic for children ages 8 to 12 with ADHD.

But there are a variety of digital health startups looking to tackle mental and behavioral health issues in kids and teens. Limbix, which is currently focused on treating depression in adolescents, raised $15 million last week. 

Others in the space include BeMe Health, which scored $7 million in seed funding last month, and Brightline, which plans to launch a program for children with ASD early next year.