atai Life Sciences Launches atai Impact, a Philanthropic Program to Harness the Power of Innovative Mental Health Approaches for Positive Social Change
atai Impact is committed to advancing education, expanding access and supporting the wider ecosystem of mental health care
NEW YORK and BERLIN, Oct. 19, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — atai Life Sciences (Nasdaq: ATAI) (“atai”), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, today announced the launch of its new philanthropic program, atai Impact, in line with atai Life Sciences’ vision, to heal mental health disorders so that everyone, everywhere can live a more fulfilled life.
atai Impact has been developed to harness the power of innovative mental health approaches for positive social change, committed to advancing education, expanding access and supporting the wider ecosystem.
Its establishment is based on atai Life Sciences’ position that, while a for-profit model is the swiftest and most robust means of unlocking new modalities for patients in need, this model alone cannot address all aspects of the escalating global mental crisis.
Therefore, atai Life Sciences believes having harmonization among commercial and non-profit entities is the ideal way forward. The initial focus of atai Impact will be on the psychedelic sector, given its emerging potential in tackling the growing mental health crisis.
Supporting and collaborating with nonprofits and institutions that share its vision of healing mental health disorders, atai Impact will operate across three central pillars:
- Education: to help destigmatize mental health, promote better understanding of the potential of psychedelics in mental health care, and foster the next generation of neuro-innovators.
- Access: to support equal access to innovative and effective mental health support, for everyone, everywhere, regardless of geography or demographics.
- Ecosystem: to contribute to the sustainability of diverse stakeholder communities and environments, including indigenous resources.
“The launch of atai Impact is a very proud moment for everyone at atai Life Sciences and for me, personally. While we believe a for-profit model is the best way to get new treatments to patients in need, not all aspects of the global mental health crisis can be effectively addressed by this model alone,” said Florian Brand, Chief Executive Officer and Co-founder of atai Life Sciences.
“I’ve been moved by the huge volume of support, internally and externally, that we have had in bringing atai Impact to life and by the commitment of so many of our staff, founders and investors who’ve already joined me in contributing a portion of their own company equity to this important program. We are in active discussions with multiple stakeholders towards meaningful initiatives that we believe can help make a real difference to the future of psychedelic medicine and mental health care worldwide.”
The atai Impact program will be initially funded by 1% of the gross proceeds from atai Life Sciences’ June 2021 Initial Public Offering (NASDAQ) and founders’ contributions. In addition, atai Life Sciences has created a Volunteer Paid Time Off Policy, equal to 1% of employees’ time, and is working with the Equity for Impact initiative to encourage employees and investors to donate a portion of their equity to charitable endeavors.
About atai Life Sciences
atai is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company aiming to transform the treatment of mental health disorders. atai was founded in 2018 as a response to the significant unmet need and lack of innovation in the mental health treatment landscape. atai is dedicated to acquiring, incubating and efficiently developing innovative therapeutics to treat depression, anxiety, addiction, and other mental health disorders. atai’s business model combines funding, technology, scientific and regulatory expertise with a focus on psychedelic therapy and other drugs with differentiated safety profiles and therapeutic potential. By pooling resources and best practices, atai aims to responsibly accelerate the development of new medicines across its companies, seeking to effectively treat and ultimately heal mental health disorders. atai’s mission is to bridge the gap between what the mental healthcare system currently provides and what patients need. atai has offices in New York, London, and Berlin. For more information, please visit www.atai.life.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Any express or implied statements contained in this press release (including without limitation, the atai Impact program and any other future philanthropic endeavors by atai) that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are neither promises nor guarantees, but involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected, including, without limitation, the important factors discussed under the caption “Risk Factors” in atai’s prospectus pursuant to Rule 424(b) filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on June 21, 2021, as such factors may be updated from time to time in atai’s other filings with the SEC. atai disclaims any obligation or undertaking to update or revise any forward-looking statements contained in this press release, other than to the extent required by applicable law.
Contact Information
For atai:
Media Contact:
Camilla Dormer
VP, Communications, atai Life Sciences
Email: camilla@atai.life
Investor Contact:
Chad Messer
VP, Investor Relations, atai Life Sciences
Email: chad@atai.life