Calm

History

Calm was founded on May 4, 2012, by Michael Acton Smith and Alex Tew. The concept for Calm originated from an earlier project created by co-founder Alex Tew in 2011, titled "Do Nothing for 2 Minutes", a web-based experience that demonstrated a demand for digital mindfulness tools.The website was developed by Tew and Ben Dowling, cofounder of Geomium and later Calm's first CTO.

Tamara Levitt became the Head of Mindfulness in November 2014 and is one of the app's primary narrators.

The company generated $22 million in revenue in 2017 and reached an annual revenue run rate of $75 million. As of 2017, Calm had raised $1.5M in angel investments. Calm was Apple's "App of the Year" in 2017, and was ranked by Inc. as one of the fastest-growing private companies in America in 2018.

As of February 2019, the company was valued at $1 billion and had raised $116 million, with contributions from existing investors, including Insight Venture Partners, Ashton Kutcher's Sound Ventures, and Creative Artists Agency.

In February 2022, Calm acquired Ripple Health Group, a technology company that connects users with proper healthcare options. The acquisition focused on building Calm Health, which was released in October 2022 and offered through traditional healthcare providers, payers, and self-insured employers. It was initially offered to patients suffering from anxiety or depression. The company planned to add mental health programs for those with other physical conditions.