A commercial-stage company, Akili develops digital therapeutics that combine science and technology to address cognitive impairments in patients, representing a new category of software-based medicine that is designed to directly target brain function and is delivered through engaging consumer entertainment. Cognitive impairments – including inattention, poor concentration, memory loss, difficulties learning new skills, and difficulties with decision making – are in aggregate among the largest unmet medical needs and are increasingly recognized as contributing to or associated with dozens of chronic diseases and acute illnesses.
Scheduled for U.S. launch in the fourth quarter of 2022, EndeavorRx is the first-ever prescription video game and the first-ever FDA-cleared digital therapeutic indicated to improve attention function in children with ADHD (see full indication below). In addition, the company’s patented and clinically validated Selective Stimulus Management Engine (SSMETM) has demonstrated proof-of-concept efficacy in controlled trials targeting attention and cognitive dysfunction in ASD, MS, and MDD.
Akili CEO and co-founder Eddie Martucci will continue to lead Akili’s management team and serve on Akili’s board. Chamath Palihapitiya, Chairman and CEO of SCS, will chair Akili’s board. Akili’s board also includes William (“BJ”) Jones, Jr., Chief Commercial Officer of Biohaven Pharmaceuticals Holding Company Ltd.; Christine Lemke, Co-Chief Executive Officer and Director of Evidation Health, Inc.; Kenneth Ehlert, former Chief Scientific Officer of UnitedHealth Group; Bharatt Chowrira, Ph.D., J.D., president of PureTech Health plc.; and Adam Gazzaley, M.D., Ph.D., Akili co-founder, David Dolby Distinguished Professor of Neurology, Physiology, and Psychiatry and the Founder & Executive Director of Neuroscape at the University of California, San Francisco.
Advisors
Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC (“Morgan Stanley”) and Cowen and Company, LLC (“Cowen”) served as financial advisors to Akili. Morgan Stanley, Credit Suisse, and Cowen served as co-placement agents to SCS with respect to the portion of the PIPE financing raised from non-insider qualified institutional buyers and institutional accredited investors. Morgan Stanley, Credit Suisse, and Cowen did not act as agents or participate in any role with respect to, and did not earn any fees from, the portion of the PIPE financing raised from insiders and individual investors. Credit Suisse and Cowen served as capital markets advisors to Akili. BofA Securities, Inc. served as capital markets advisor to SCS. Goodwin Procter LLP served as legal counsel to Akili. Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz served as legal counsel to SCS. Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP served as legal advisor to the PIPE placement agents.
EndeavorRx Indication and Overview
EndeavorRx is the first-and-only FDA-cleared treatment delivered through a video game experience. EndeavorRx is indicated to improve attention function as measured by computer-based testing in children ages 8 to 12 years old with primarily inattentive or combined-type ADHD, who have a demonstrated attention issue. Patients who engage with EndeavorRx demonstrate improvements in a digitally assessed measure Test of Variables of Attention (TOVA®) of sustained and selective attention and may not display benefits in typical behavioral symptoms, such as hyperactivity. EndeavorRx should be considered for use