Hull HealthTech MediMusic, which has developed AI technology to prescribe music as medication to ease pain, anxiety and stress for people living with dementia, has won Startup of the Year at a global music tech summit.
Finance Yorkshire-backed MediMusic, which has pioneered technology that digitally fingerprints music to develop relaxing playlists that in NHS trials reduced the heartrate of people living with dementia by a quarter, beat 140 firms from around the world to win the award at Wallifornia, the European Music Tech Accelerator & Summit program for startups at the intersection of Music, Technology, Health, and AI.
The technology is already being trialled in UK care homes and major music publisher Warner Music Group is helping MediMusic expand the trials into hospitals in the UK and US.
MediMusic has received £1.2m in funding so far from Finance Yorkshire, the University of Hull and private investors and is about to start on another-funding round with several VC and investment funds looking to contribute.
MediMusic’s algorithms extract the relevant features from the digital DNA of a piece of music, resulting in a “fingerprint” for healthcare use. MediMusic works with the patient’s age, gender, nationality, and ethnicity, and then in seconds compiles a 20-minute playlist of music to influence multiple areas of the human brain to help reduce anxiety and pain.
The playlists can be listened to on a streaming device, called the MediBeat, using a pair of headphones, or on other devices such as smartphones.
Initial clinical trials at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust found the use of MediMusic saw a reduction in heart rate in patients living with dementia by up to 25% and it is being successfully being trialled in UK care homes, including Orchard Court Care Home in Brigg, Lincolnshire
Warner Music Group, the global music and entertainment company, recently announced a partnership with MediMusic to help trial ‘music as medication’ in care homes and hospitals in the UK and US, as well as granting access to its music catalogue.
MediMusic has also secured music licensing deals with Universal Music Group and Sony Music Entertainment to access their vast music catalogues. To integrate these licensed music catalogues into its system, MediMusic uses the leading music backend provider, Tuned Global. Their B2B music and streaming platform and APIs facilitate access to the catalogue (assets and metadata), playlisting tools, rights management, and reporting to the rights holders, allowing MediMusic to focus on patient outcomes while ensuring compliance with music industry requirements.
The Wallifornia jury was composed of global music & tech professionals, innovators, and investors such as Dirk Reyn (R&S Consulting), Andy Lürling (Lumo Labs), Scott Cohen (JKBX), Lorraine de Silva (Best Nights VC), Rishi Patel (Plus8Equity), Takayuki Suzuki (MusicTech Japan), Patrick Clifton (Clifton Consults), Bertrand Polou (Sacem), Rachel Young (TikTok), Gareth Deakin (Sonorous Global) and Virginie Chelles (Tuned Global).
They selected MediMusic from among 140 firms worldwide to win the Wallifornia 2024 award following a two-day mentoring program.
Gary Jones, CEO and co-founder of MediMusic and a former music industry executive, developed the technology after trying to help the mother of a family friend who was living with dementia.
He said: “This win is fantastic news for our team and our global mission to use music as medication to ease pain, anxiety and stress.
“The transformative power of music to make us feel more relaxed and healthier is truly extraordinary. Our initial clinical trials have yielded highly promising results, signalling a groundbreaking future in patient treatment.
“The potential to dispense music as a therapeutic intervention will revolutionise the care of people grappling with pain and anxiety from people in care homes to patients in hospital.
“We believe we will eventually see music prescribed on the NHS. Musical medicine would help the NHS save money on costly medications treating anxiety and stress.”
Wallifornia’s Program and Partnership Manager Coralie Doyen added: “Congratulations to MediMusic on being the big winner of our Awards Ceremony.
“The judges were very impressed with this innovative UK start-up committed to using music to improve the health and well-being of patients. The potential impact of its technology around the world is huge, and that’s why they were worthy winners.
“At Wallifornia, we value startups that bridge different sectors, combining their strengths to create something remarkable. Bringing these diverse worlds together is at the heart of Wallifornia’s mission.”