77. OK Positive

Founder: Charlie Winton
Year founded: 2019
Website: okpositive.org

While some companies are using machine learning and AI to generate bigger profits, others are using these tools to help make life better for the vulnerable.  This is what founder Charlie Winton, and his Scotland-based startup OK Positive, is striving to achieve.

OK Positive aims to make preventative mental health support easily accessible to all, through the power of tech. Through AI and machine learning, OK Positive identities and preempts the triggers that can cause mental illness, allowing individuals and organisations to intervene early.

The platform gives users access to a wide range of resources, including personalised mental health plans, self-help tools, and mental health professionals.

The cause is one close to Winton’s heart.  The startup came about after his own lived-through experience of daily panic attacks and the realisation that most current mental health solutions relied on addressing issues after they had happened. Through OK Positive, his aim is to catch signs of mental health struggles early on, mitigating the potential harm and anguish they can cause by providing easily accessible solutions. 

There’s no doubting Winton’s investment in OK Positive. Literally. Created just before the pandemic, Winton poured his life savings into the platform, and worked two jobs, to make it reality. 

To date, the wellness platform has helped over 3,000 individuals with mental health support, launched research projects with universities, created jobs in Scotland, and built key relationships with over 40 content partners. The platform’s key clients include universities, enterprises, and over 30 SMEs and charities. 

There’s already a lot to celebrate, and there’s more on the way too. Next up, Winton plans to create new resources on the platform for the public healthcare, education and recruitment sectors. 

It’s clear that this is just the beginning for Winton and OK Positive, which is why we’re proud to include it in our Startups 100 this year.