Hi,
we're
Mentra.
We're a proactive mental wellbeing platform that empowers people to live better.
Born from a physician who became
a patient and never forgot what that felt like.
Mentra was born from two things happening at the same time a deeply personal experience, and over a decade of watching the same pattern repeat in medicine.
Dr. Adenike Dairo had spent years practising as a physician across three continents. She understood mental health clinically. Then she went through a deeply personal period in her own life and sought therapy herself.
Sitting on the other side of the consultation room gave her a completely different perspective. She experienced first-hand how valuable the right support can be but also became acutely aware of how many barriers exist. Therapy is expensive. It is difficult to access. And for many people, it still carries a great deal of stigma.
Back in her practice, the same truth kept surfacing. Every day, she saw patients whose physical illnesses were deeply connected to their mental wellbeing yet mental health was often treated as an afterthought.
"Two experiences. One question that wouldn't go away."
— Dr. Adenike Dairo, Founder & CEO
That question how do we reach people before the crisis? is what became Mentra. Not after years of careful market analysis. Not from a gap in a spreadsheet. From lived experience, clinical truth, and a refusal to accept that the system had to stay broken.
The journey from a question to a movement.
Dubai. Blank pages. One obsessive question.
The idea first took shape inside in5 TECOM Group's entrepreneurship incubator. It began with curiosity countless pages of notes, research papers, and long conversations with psychologists, AI researchers, and students. All circling one question: "If we were designing mental healthcare from scratch today, what would it look like?"
First version ships.
AI-powered text conversations grounded in CBT and DBT. Immediate support. Zero waitlist. Zero stigma. The goal was never to replace therapists it was to give people somewhere to turn before things unravelled.
The pivot that changed everything.
Real user feedback and clinical insight reshaped the mission. People didn't just want a chatbot they wanted mental health to be part of how they lived every day. Mentra transformed from a reactive AI tool into a proactive daily mental wellbeing platform.
App goes live on iOS & Android.
Mentra launches to the public. Free to download. Built to feel calm, focused, and judgment-free from day one.
University of Birmingham Dubai a defining moment.
On 1 July 2025, Mentra signs a Memorandum of Understanding focused on AI-enabled mental health research for 33,500+ students across Dubai International Academic City and Dubai Knowledge Park. Contributing directly to the UAE's National Strategy for Wellbeing 2031.
Expanding. Deepening. Building a movement.
From Dubai, going global. Expanding access, deepening research partnerships, and working toward a world where proactive mental wellbeing is as normal as going to the gym.
Mental health should be built every day not reached for only when things fall apart.
As the platform was tested with real users and refined alongside clinical psychologists, something unexpected emerged. People didn't just want a chatbot. They wanted something that genuinely understood them. And they didn't only want support when things were already falling apart.
Just as healthy nutrition and exercise are woven into daily life, building mental agility should become part of everyday living not something we reach for only when we're anxious, burned out, or in crisis.
That realisation transformed Mentra into a proactive mental wellbeing platform one that helps people develop mental agility, emotional resilience, and healthier habits before problems become overwhelming.
Three ways Mentra supports your mental wellbeing every single day.
Mentra Chat
Talk or type to Mentra Chat grounded in CBT and DBT, available around the clock. Whether it's 2pm or 2am. Compassionate, immediate, and always there.
Personalised Journaling
Build self-awareness and track your emotional growth with tailored prompts designed to help you understand your own patterns over time.
Licensed Human Therapists
When you're ready to go deeper, connect with certified, licensed professionals directly inside the app. AI availability with real, qualified human care.
There are other mental health apps.
Here is what sets Mentra apart.
Built by a clinician, not just a technologist
Mentra was founded by a practising physician with over a decade of clinical experience. The product thinking starts from medicine, not just software. That distinction matters.
Proactive by design
Most mental health tools respond to crisis. Mentra is built to prevent it embedding mental agility into daily life the same way fitness is embedded into physical health.
AI and human, together
Not a chatbot that replaces a therapist. Not a therapy platform that ignores technology. Mentra is the bridge AI support 24/7, with licensed human therapists inside the same app.
Research-backed and regionally relevant
Our partnership with the University of Birmingham Dubai ensures Mentra's AI interventions are evaluated for effectiveness and cultural sensitivity for the UAE's diverse, multicultural community.
Our proudest milestone validated the vision and marked the beginning of something much bigger.
July
2025 MoU signed with University of Birmingham Dubai
Dr. Adenike Dairo
1 July 2025 · University of Birmingham Dubai
Replace with actual photoDirectly contributing to UAE's National Strategy for Wellbeing 2031 and Dubai Economic Agenda D33.
The partnership focuses on advancing research into AI-enabled mental health interventions tailored to the cultural sensitivities of the UAE's diverse student community spanning more than 33,500 students across Dubai International Academic City and Dubai Knowledge Park.
The agreement was signed by Professor Yusra Mouzughi, Provost at University of Birmingham Dubai, and Dr. Adenike Dairo, Founder and CEO of Mentra in the presence of Dr. Afsana Faheem, Assistant Professor in Psychology, and Marwan Abdulaziz Janahi, Senior Vice President of Dubai Knowledge Park, TECOM Group PJSC.
"This partnership marks a defining moment for Mentra not just as a startup, but as a mission. We're proud to be part of a movement that places student wellbeing, innovation, and accessibility at its core."
— Dr. Adenike Dairo, Founder & CEO, Mentra
Professor Yusra Mouzughi reflected the broader significance: "While mental health challenges are increasingly prevalent in our digital age, advances in AI have unlocked powerful tools to support young people."
Built in Dubai. Recognised beyond it.
Semifinalist
One of the UK's most competitive early-stage AI pitch competitions, spanning the Oxford and Cambridge startup ecosystems. Mentra represented by Dr. Adenike Dairo.
Featured Speaker
Dr. Adenike Dairo spoke on AI innovation in mental health at one of the largest AI conferences in the Middle East and North Africa region, Dubai, UAE.
From Dubai's innovation ecosystem to the world's leading technology companies.
Mentra is built with serious support behind it.
A small team. Deep conviction. One mission.
Mentra is built by a focused team united by a single purpose making mental healthcare accessible to everyone.
Dr. Adenike Dairo
Founder & CEOA physician with over a decade of clinical experience...
"We're building far more than an app we're building the future of proactive mental wellbeing."
Joshua Ajieh
Product ManagerTranslates vision into lived experience. Every feature Mentra ships has to solve a real human problem — not just a technical one. Every screen is designed to feel calm, intuitive, and genuinely useful.
Rasha Shaikh
Head of Clinical AffairsEnsuring every intervention Mentra delivers meets the highest standards of clinical rigour. The bridge between evidence-based therapy and the everyday people who need it.
A few things we won't compromise on.
Proactive over reactive
Mental wellbeing is not only for when things fall apart. We build for every day so people are stronger when the hard moments arrive.
Your privacy is non-negotiable
What you share with Mentra stays with Mentra. No data sold. No profiles built for advertisers. A safe space is only safe if your trust is protected completely.
AI with a human backbone
The AI is powerful. The clinicians, researchers, and licensed therapists behind it are what make it trustworthy.
Evidence, not assumptions
CBT, DBT, and a research partnership with the University of Birmingham Dubai. The science is the foundation not the decoration.
Stigma stops here
Everything in Mentra the design, the language, the experience is built to make seeking support feel as normal as going for a walk.
Complement, don't replace
Mentra's AI is a daily companion for reflection and resilience, and a clear bridge to licensed human therapists when deeper support is needed.
Mentra, in the words of the people who use it.
I've tried a few AI chat apps before but Mentra feels different. It actually remembers what we talked about before instead of making me repeat myself every time. That alone makes the conversations feel more real.
Didn't expect much tbh 😅 but the AI is actually smart. It asks follow-up questions that make sense and doesn't just throw random advice at me.
What impressed me most wasn't just the AI, it was how it knew when I needed more than an AI conversation. It encouraged me to speak with a licensed therapist without making it feel forced. Booking the session was easy and the therapist was kind, patient, and very understanding. I honestly felt heard.
I've been using Mentra for a couple of weeks now. The AI conversations feel natural and it remembers details from previous chats, so I don't have to keep explaining myself. When things got a bit overwhelming, it suggested talking to a therapist and explained why. That felt really thoughtful instead of robotic.
Love it. Fast responses, good memory and no judgement. Been using it almost every day.
The licensed therapist I matched with was amazing. I was nervous before the session but she made me feel comfortable within minutes. I left feeling lighter and with actual steps I could work on. Definitely worth it.
One thing I noticed is that the AI doesn't pretend to have all the answers. When my situation became more serious, it recommended a therapist instead of trying to keep chatting. I actually appreciated that. It felt responsible.
I like how simple everything is. I can chat with the AI when I just need to clear my head, and if I need more support I can book a therapist in the same app. It's nice having both options instead of downloading different apps.
Honestly one of the best wellness apps I've used. The AI doesn't rush the conversation or give generic replies. It pays attention, remembers context, and when I mentioned things that sounded more serious, it gently encouraged me to speak with a licensed therapist. That balance between AI support and knowing when to escalate made me trust the app even more.
Read more on the App Store and Google Play