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Headspace (company)

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This article is about the UK-US healthcare company. For the Australian youth mental health organization, see Headspace (organisation). For the now-defunct audio technology company formerly named Headspace, see Beatnik (company). For the web design agency formerly known as Head-Space, see Head New Media.
Headspace
Company typePrivate
IndustryHealthcare
GenreMental Health
FoundedMay 2010; 15 years ago (2010-05) in London, England
Headquarters2415 Michigan Avenue,
Santa Monica, California
,
United States
Number of locations
3 (2024)
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
  • Tom Pickett (CEO, Board Member)
  • Andy Puddicombe (Headspace Co-Founder)
  • Karan Singh (COO, Ginger Co-Founder)
  • Rich Pierson (Headspace Co-Founder)
ServicesOnline therapy
Mental health coaching
Guided meditation and mindfulness
Revenue100+ million
Number of employees
1000+
ParentHeadspace Health
Websitewww.headspace.com
Headspace
Available inEnglish, French, German, Portuguese and Spanish[1]

Headspace is a digital mental health company that provides guided meditation, mindfulness, and online therapy services. Founded in May 2010 by Andy Puddicombe and Richard Pierson, the company is headquartered in Santa Monica, California, with additional offices in San Francisco and London. It operates as a subsidiary of Headspace Health and offers services through its mobile app and online platform on a subscription basis.

History

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Andy Puddicombe, co-founder of Headspace.

Founding and Early Years

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Headspace was founded by Richard Pierson, a marketing professional, and Andy Puddicombe, a former Buddhist monk, who began by hosting live meditation events in London and New York in 2009. These group sessions often sold out, and attendees were given USB sticks containing meditation content.[2] Audience interest led the pair to pursue a business together, ultimately culminating in the creation of the Headspace app in 2010.[2]

Initially, the company organized mindfulness events before launching its mobile application in 2012. By 2017, Headspace employed over 1,000 staff across its offices in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and London. In June 2017, Ross Hoffman joined as Chief Business Officer.[3]

Headspace Health and Clinical Initiatives

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In 2018, Headspace introduced Headspace Health, a subsidiary aimed at developing FDA-approved meditation tools for clinical use. The company began clinical trials with the goal of obtaining FDA approval for its first digital health product by 2020.[4]

Merger with Ginger

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In August 2021, Headspace merged with Ginger, an online mental health platform, creating a combined entity valued at $3 billion. The merger aimed to provide comprehensive mental health services, including therapy and coaching[5]

Leadership Changes

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In January 2021, Puddicombe and Pierson stepped back from day-to-day leadership while remaining on the Board. In May 2022, they left the Board entirely. In August 2024, Tom Pickett was appointed as CEO, bringing experience from his previous role as Chief Revenue Officer at DoorDash.[6]

Products

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Meditation and Mindfulness

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Headspace offers guided meditation sessions through its mobile app and website. The app provides content in areas such as health, performance, relationships, and sleep. Notable collaborations include:

  • Star Wars Mindfulness Series (April 2022): A series featuring characters from the Star Wars franchise, guided by Headspace instructor Samantha Snowden.[7][8]
  • Shine Acquisition (September 2022): Headspace acquired Shine, a mental health and wellness platform focused on inclusive mental healthcare, integrating its content into the Headspace platform.
  • The Mindful Adventures of Unicorn Island (September 2023): An animated series for children, co-created with Lilly Singh and YouTube TV, teaching mindfulness-based emotional regulation skills.[9]
  • Headspace XR (March 2024): A virtual reality mindfulness game for Meta Quest, developed in collaboration with Nexus Studios.[10][11]

Coaching and Therapy

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Following the merger with Ginger, Headspace offers mental health coaching and therapy services under the brand Headspace Care. In November 2023, the platform introduced its first clinically focused program, Finding Your Best Sleep, which incorporates Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I)[12]

Research

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See also: Research on meditation

Headspace has been used in several of clinical trials investigating the effects of mindfulness training. In one such study, researchers from UCL,[13] funded by the British Heart Foundation, examined the impact of mindfulness on workplace stress in two major multinational corporations, using the Headspace app as the intervention. The study reported improvements in several measures, including well-being, anxiety, depressive symptoms, blood pressure, perceived job control, and sleep quality among participants who used the app.[citation needed]

A study from 2018 found a significant increase in well-being, reductions in anxiety and depressive symptoms, significant reductions in diastolic blood pressures, significant increases in perceived job control, as well as a significant reduction in sleeping problems.[14]

Publications

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Three books by Headspace founder Andy Puddicombe are published by Hodder & Stoughton.[15]

  • Get Some Headspace (2011)
  • The Headspace Diet (2013)
  • The Headspace Guide to... a Mindful Pregnancy (2015)

Netflix shows

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Poster for Headspace Guide to Meditation.

Headspace signed a three-series deal with Netflix, with each show being produced by Vox Media. The first series, Headspace Guide to Meditation was released in January 2021 with Headspace Guide to Sleep released in April 2021. The third title, Unwind Your Mind, was released in June 2021.[16]

Media attention

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Headspace has been featured on both UK and US television, appearing on The Today Show,[17] BBC Breakfast News,[18] ABC News, and The Dr. Oz Show.[19] It was also featured on the BBC Two science documentary Horizon, which tested the efficacy of mindfulness using the Headspace app over 8 weeks.[20] The product has also been mentioned on NPR[21] and in publications such as Martha Stewart[22] in the US.

In November 2012, Headspace founder Andy Puddicombe gave a TED Talk, entitled "All It Takes Is 10 Mindful Minutes",[23] outlining the benefits of taking time out each day to practice mindfulness.

Controversy

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In July 2023, former Headspace therapists affected by a round of layoffs accused the company of canceling patient appointments and severing relationships with clinicians without advanced notice, potentially violating ethical standards of care.[24][25]

References

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  1. ^ "Headspace: Meditation & Sleep". 18 July 2023.
  2. ^ a b Silverberg, David. "Scaling mindfulness: How the Headspace cofounders used the NBA, Delta Airlines, and The Guardian newspaper to bring meditation to 60 million users". Business Insider. Retrieved 2025-11-03.
  3. ^ Medeiros, João. "Finding your zen on a smartphone". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Retrieved 2025-10-01.
  4. ^ Brodwin, Erin. "A meditation app loved by Wall Street and Silicon Valley wants to unveil a prescription-strength version with FDA approval". Business Insider. Retrieved 2025-10-01.
  5. ^ Khandekar, Amruta (2021-08-25). "Digital mental health firms Ginger, Headspace to merge in $3 bln deal". Reuters. Retrieved 2025-10-01.
  6. ^ "Headspace Launches Direct-to-Consumer Mental Health Services". Archived from the original on 2025-07-17. Retrieved 2025-10-01.
  7. ^ Nakaya, Rion (2023-02-28). "Millennium Falcon Meltdown: Find your Force with Star Wars and Headspace". The Kid Should See This. Retrieved 2025-10-01.
  8. ^ "Headspace and Star Wars™ - The Shorty Awards". shortyawards.com. Retrieved 2025-10-01.
  9. ^ Fishman, Scott (2023-09-25). "Lilly Singh on What 'The Mindful Adventures of Unicorn Island' Says About Mental Health". TV Insider. Retrieved 2025-10-01.
  10. ^ Read, 4 Min (2018-06-06). "Headspace Announces "Headspace Health," Its New Digital Medicine Subsidiary". BioSpace. Retrieved 2025-10-01.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  11. ^ "Meditation App Strives to Become a Prescription Medication". Docwire News. Retrieved 2025-10-01.
  12. ^ Ruth Jones (2025-05-08). "You only need 10 minutes to improve your sleep and boost your mood with this 3-week practice, new study shows". Tom's Guide. Retrieved 2025-10-01.
  13. ^ "Clinical Trials application". Clinical Trials website. Retrieved March 19, 2014.
  14. ^ Bostock, Sophie; Crosswell, Alexandra D.; Prather, Aric A.; Steptoe, Andrew (2019). "Mindfulness on-the-go: Effects of a mindfulness meditation app on work stress and well-being". Journal of Occupational Health Psychology. 24 (1): 127–138. doi:10.1037/ocp0000118. PMC 6215525. PMID 29723001.
  15. ^ "Hodder & Stoughton". Hodder & Stoughton. Archived from the original on March 19, 2014. Retrieved March 19, 2014.
  16. ^ "'Unwind Your Mind' With Netflix's Latest Interactive Show". HYPEBEAST. 2021-06-04. Retrieved 2021-06-09.
  17. ^ "Monk turned circus performer reveals how to relax". TODAY.com. 2014-12-19. Retrieved 2024-05-30.
  18. ^ "Can we change the way the brain deals with stress? - BBC News". BBC News. Retrieved 2015-08-30.
  19. ^ "Web Exclusive: Guided Meditation With Andy Puddicombe". www.doctoroz.com. 2 December 2014. Archived from the original on 2015-09-01. Retrieved 2015-08-30.
  20. ^ "TV review: Horizon: The Truth about Personality, BBC2". The Independent. 2013-07-11. Archived from the original on 2022-05-09. Retrieved 2019-03-08.
  21. ^ Kurwa, Nishat (21 October 2014). "In Silicon Valley, Paying For Access To Peace Of Mind". NPR.org. Retrieved 2015-08-30.
  22. ^ "4 Meditation Techniques for Beginners to Try". marthastewart.com. Archived from the original on 2017-04-07. Retrieved 2017-04-06.
  23. ^ "Andy Puddicombe speaking at TED". TED. Retrieved March 19, 2014.
  24. ^ Torrence, Sonam Sheth, Rebecca. "A Headspace therapist says he was laid off a day after one of his patients came out for the first time. Now the patient can't contact him". Business Insider. Retrieved 2024-04-17.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  25. ^ "Santa Monica's Headspace Health laid off dozens of therapists. Their patients don't know where they went". Los Angeles Times. 2023-07-07. Retrieved 2024-04-17.
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