10 Years of HelloBetter: Psychological AI Companion Marks First Step Toward Integrated Mental Health Care
Berlin, October 22, 2025 – HelloBetter, one of the world’s leading providers of evidence-based psychological care, celebrates its tenth anniversary and looks ahead to the future: with the launch of its new AI companion Ello, the company is creating an accessible, privacy-compliant, and evidence-based psychological support service for everyone. In the long term, HelloBetter aims to fundamentally rethink mental health care in Germany with its blended-care approach.
Since its founding, more than 140,000 people have used HelloBetter’s online therapy programmes to address burnout, panic attacks, sleep disorders, and other mental health challenges. Ello, the newly announced psychological AI companion, was developed by psychotherapists and offers preventive support for people dealing with everyday worries and stress. The official launch will take place on November 25 at the “Adopt AI International Summit” in Paris. At the same time, HelloBetter plans to announce its first partnership with a German health insurance provider.
Growing Care Gap and Rising Demand
Globally, more than one billion people are suffering from mental health conditions. Economic follow-up costs are projected to reach six trillion US dollars by 2030. In Germany, mental illnesses have become one of the leading causes of absenteeism: according to the DAK Psychoreport, the number of sick days reached 342 per 100 employees in 2024. A new record high.
The latest HelloBetter Mental Health Report 2025, conducted in collaboration with the market research institute Ipsos, reveals that on average, it takes nearly three years for individuals experiencing symptoms of depression, for example, to recognize that they need professional help. This highlights the urgent need for low-threshold support options. Even more concerning: after receiving a diagnosis, it takes another 17 months on average to secure a therapy appointment.
“Healthcare is about managing trade-offs. No system can be the safest, cheapest, fastest and most accessible all at once. What matters is that we set clear priorities and design solutions that meet the needs of most people,” says HelloBetter CEO Hannes Klöpper.
Blended Care as the Answer to the Mental Health Care Challenge
Mental health exists on a continuum from wellbeing to everyday stress to severe illness. Most people only find help after overcoming many bureaucratic hurdles and long waiting times.
Therefore, HelloBetter is pioneering a new blended care approach: the intelligent integration of prevention, digital mental health support offerings, and human care. The goal is to provide people with early, needs-based and personalised support, ensuring seamless transitions between low-threshold and intensive care.
“We often focus too much on potential risks and overlook the opportunities we miss by not seizing them,” says Elena Heber, Co-Founder of HelloBetter. Co-Founder Hanne Horvath adds: “That mindset has driven us since our founding ten years ago. Of course, we should evaluate new ideas critically, but we also need to recognize the risks of leaving things as they are.”
Psychological AI Companion Ello: Evidence-Based, Secure and Always Available
With Ello, HelloBetter introduces the first psychological AI companion built on 15 years of clinical and scientific expertise, setting new standards for data protection and clinical evidence. Developed by psychotherapists, Ello offers a safe and evidence-based entry point for individuals to engage with their mental health.
Aligned with the blended-care approach, Ello is not a replacement for therapists but a complement to existing care structures. It is designed to be used by employers and health insurers as part of preventive health programmes. The AI companion listens, helps users organise their thoughts, provides scientifically grounded insights, and connects them to HelloBetter’s team of psychologists when needed (“human in the loop” approach).
According to the HelloBetter Mental Health Report, one in four people can imagine using such an AI-based support app, provided it is evidence-based and complies with the highest data protection standards. Both Health insurers and companies already show strong interest in integrating Ello into their preventive care offerings.
10 Years of HelloBetter: Pioneering Mental Health Care
What began in 2015 as a university spin-off has grown into one of the world’s leading mental health companies.
For over a decade, HelloBetter has been providing easy access to mental health support programmes with no waiting times. To date, more than 20,000 prescribers have provided their patients with free access by prescribing HelloBetter’s online therapy programmes. The programmes’ effectiveness has been demonstrated in 30 randomised controlled trials and six have been officially approved as Digital Health Applications (DiGA) by the German Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (BfArM).
Today, more than 150 employees in Berlin and Hamburg are working to make evidence-based mental health support accessible to millions. HelloBetter has maintained long-standing partnerships with major health insurers and companies such as Allianz, Audi BKK, Generali and BARMER, improving care for their members.
In the coming years, HelloBetter will further integrate AI-based support, telemedicine, digital therapeutics and in-person care. The result: an integrated care system that provides people with mental health challenges with individualised, continuous and sustainable support – anytime, anywhere.
About HelloBetter
HelloBetter is a leader in the field of digital mental health care and a global pioneer in digital mental health research. Founded in 2015 by Prof. Dr. David Ebert, Dr. Hanne Horvath, and Dr. Elena Heber, the company has established itself as an innovation leader in digital therapeutics. HelloBetter offers ten online therapy programs, addressing both common mental health conditions such as depression, insomnia, and panic disorders, as well as underserved conditions including vaginismus and chronic pain. Six of these programmes have received approval from the German Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (BfArM) and are fully integrated into Germany’s standard healthcare system, available free of charge to all publicly insured adults as prescription digital therapeutics (PDTx), also known as DiGA. In 2022, HelloBetter expanded internationally with the launch of HelloGina in the US market, offering specialised sexual wellness support for individuals with vaginismus. The company’s innovation and potential were further validated in early 2023 with the prestigious ‘breakthrough device designation’ for Digital Therapeutic to treat Panic Disorder from the FDA. HelloBetter’s scientific excellence is demonstrated through its unparalleled evidence base, comprising 30 randomised controlled trials on its commercial products, with the majority published in peer-reviewed journals. Headquartered across Berlin, Potsdam, and Hamburg, HelloBetter employs over 150 professionals dedicated to advancing digital mental healthcare. For more information, visit https://hellobetter.de/.
Press contact:
presse@hellobetter.de
