‘Music as medicine’ startup secures £1.2m investment with support from Finance Yorkshire

A medical technology startup that uses “soothing” music to help patients combat pain, anxiety and stress is to scale up following a £200k seedcorn investment from Finance Yorkshire.

Hull based MediMusic uses artificial intelligence to compile personalised playlists that have been proven in NHS trials to ease stress in dementia patients. The firm has created an app and streaming device called MediBeat that dispenses personalised playlists.

The technology can be used in hospitals, dental surgeries and care homes to manage chronic pain or support patients before and after operations.

Initial clinical NHS trials at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust found the use of MediMusic led to a reduction in heart rate of up to 22 per cent in patients with dementia during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The investment is part of a wider £1.2m funding package that also includes investment from the University of Hull, Sauce Consultants Limited and private investors.

MediMusic CEO and co-founder Gary Jones is an entrepreneur with 30 years’ experience in content management and music. He has spent seven years developing MediMusic and MediBeat.

He said: “This investment will take MediMusic to the next level. We passionately believe this will be a real game-changer in how we treat dementia patients and people suffering from pain, anxiety and stress.

“MediMusic has managed to digitally fingerprint the DNA of music so we can deliver the right songs as medicine. You could say it’s a musical pharmaceutical. Our initial clinical trials prove it has a very encouraging future in the treatment of patients.”

Alex McWhirter, chief executive of Finance Yorkshire, added: “MediMusic has developed highly innovative healthcare technology that could transform the way we treat people.

“Our new fund is designed to support innovative and disruptive start-ups like MediMusic to scale up, realise their potential and create jobs in Yorkshire and the Humber. We look forward to supporting the MediMusic team on the next stage of this exciting journey.”

Finance Yorkshire’s new fund is expected to provide £50m to SMEs over five years. It has been structured to provide a range of support through Seedcorn and Growth Fund (primarily equity) investments, along with large and small Business Loans.

By Matthew Neville – Correspondent, Bdaily

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