63. MYNDUP When Joel Gujral needed mental health support, he faced barriers. He created MYNDUP to offer easy access to a full spectrum of mental health support. Written by Helena Young Sponsored by Sage Published on January 12, 2026 About the Startups 100 Now in its 18th year, the Startups 100 is the definitive list of the most promising new UK businesses. There's no fee for entry or for inclusion in our index. The Startups team of new business experts judge all our top 100 entrants in collaboration with specialist industry consultants. See our guide to this year’s hottest new businesses and most exceptional founders in the complete 2026 Startups 100 index. Exceptional Founder Nominee In recognition of the entrepreneur who has turned their own personal struggles or challenges into a force-for-good, leading the way for industry change and innovation. Startups 100: Exceptional Founder Award Founder: Joel GujralYear founded: 2020Website: myndup.comIt was the terrifying experience of spending eight months in and out of hospital with an undiagnosed health condition that galvanised Joel Gujral into action. Despite working at the time for one of the world’s biggest accountancy firms, when he needed mental health support, he faced constant problems when accessing help.“I contacted my manager, who was unaware of what the company could offer and referred me to HR, through which I was signposted to occupational health,” he tells us. “However, I faced barriers to access, long wait times and complex signup processes, which involved disclosing my personal problems to more and more people.”Gujral hit rock bottom and admits he was suicidal when he took steps himself. He found a private counsellor but found the sessions were future-focussed or solutions-based. After research, he discovered what he needed was a life coach, and managed to find a perfect fit.Ultimately, a happy ending. But what the whole painful experience confirmed to him was that workplace support is seriously lacking and that we need to provide people with access to support across the entire mental health spectrum. This is why Gujral, who we nominated for our Exceptional Founder Award 2026, launched MYNDUP in February 2020.The venture is now the only online B2B provider to offer a full spectrum of mental support, including therapy, counselling, mindfulness, meditation, life coaching, career coaching and psychology. Users can access online appointments 24/7 and even on the same day, contrasting the average eight-day wait for Employee Assistance Programmes (EAPs).Clients include McCann, Savills, Monzo and Gordon Ramsay Restaurants, but MYNDUP has also run partnerships with the NHS. The firm says that 95% of users benefit from reduction in stress, anxiety and depression. The startup has also raised £4.4m in Series A funding and is backed by The London Stock Exchange, CVC, and angel investors from top international banks and investment firms.MYNDUP has now expanded into the UAE, where the government has identified mental health as a priority. In the next five years, the business will hopefully continue to go global as Gujral eyes worldwide expansion, so that more people can get the right help easily.View the full Startups 100 Index for 20261. Omnea2. HIVED3. MAGIC AI4. OXCCU5. Lightyear6. Neuranics 7. Hormona8. Burbank9. Better Dairy 10. Lenkie Technologies11. Userled12. Hoxton Farms13. Rensair14. PulpaTronics15. TradeKart16. 32Co17. Carmoola18. cheqd19. Sightline Analytics20. Adamo Foods21. Bold Bean Co22. Beams Renovation 23. Pan Galactic24. Capi Money25. Spotted Zebra26. ANTHROTEK 27. Unravel28. Perci Health29. Untap Health30. Hair Syrup31. Connect Earth 32. spacebands 33. Unfabled34. Lightning Reach35. STOCKED36. Embeddable37. XR Therapeutics38. Literal Labs39. Scooch40. Openr41. Fibe Limited42. Inicio AI43. Peachies44. Better Nature 45. Ctrl Alt46. Resting Reef47. Nila48. ROXFIT49. Finmile50. NavLive51. Volunteero52. Inntelo AI53. Zonova54. A&B Smart Materials55. Ethicronics56. Treeapp57. kennek58. Soil Benchmark59. Vox Aeris60. Asan Cup61. Nuuri62. Mindstone63. MYNDUP64. Enbiosis Biotechnology65. JUX Food66. Danu Robotics67. Wylde Market68. Air Aware Labs69. Mimicrete Ltd70. ALYVE71. Happl72. Living Things73. Grub Club Pets74. Mealia75. PetProov76. Lylo Products77. Chest78. ZIM Connections79. Uptime Labs80. Teal81. Zero Fintech82. Micro Thermal Energy 83. Kanjo 84. Merlin Cloud85. My Skin Feels86. Eleria87. Cashblack88. RevvedUp89. Cosysense90. SuperFi91. Loom92. Legacy Compass93. Meshed94. SWURF95. Main Squeeze96. Sampl Technologies97. Over the Moo98. Pioneering People99. Bikebook100. Recondition Share this post facebook twitter linkedin Tags 2026 Written by: Helena Young Deputy Editor Helena is Deputy Editor at Startups. She oversees all news and supporting content on Startups, and is also the author of the weekly Startups email newsletter, delivering must-know SME updates straight to their inbox. From interviewing Wetherspoon's boss Tim Martin to spotting data-led working from home trends, her insight has been featured by major trade publications including the ICAEW, and news outlets like the BBC, ITV News, Daily Express, and HuffPost UK. With a background in PR and marketing, Helena is particularly passionate about giving early-stage startups a platform to boost their brands. That's one reason she manages the Startups 100 Index, our annual ranking of new UK businesses. Sponsored by: Sage Startups 100 Index Sponsor 2026 Sage exists to knock down barriers so everyone can thrive, starting with the millions of Small and Mid-Sized Businesses served by us, our partners and accountants. Customers trust our finance, HR and payroll software to make work and money flow. By digitising business processes and relationships with customers, suppliers, employees, banks and governments, our digital network connects SMBs, removing friction and delivering insights. Knocking down barriers also means we use our time, technology and experience to tackle digital inequality, economic inequality and the climate crisis.