Why Nightware is Crowdfunding
...and Why It Might Surprise You...a Frontier Psychiatrists Guest Post.
The Frontier Psychiatrists is a daily enough health-themed newsletter. Owen Muir, M.D., DFAACAP, is the editor of these parts, but I have close friends who join me these days to keep the great ideas flowing for my readers. One of those close friends is Matt Tucker, the CEO at Nightware. The co-founder of Nightware, Grady Hannah, the audience may recall, is also the co-founder of the Rapid Acting Mental Health Treatment (pronounced “Ram-pt”) series of events, and the next is January 12, 2025, in San Fransisco, 6-9 pm…right before JPM kicks off!
The event is free for clinicans using the code RAMHTCLINICIAN25. You must confirm membership in your relevant professional society (such as APA, ASKP3, CTMSS, etc), but that is it! Otherwise, the tickets aren’t too much.
The following article is about one of our partners, Nightware, and its novel decision to raise money via crowdfunding for its next fundraising round.
By way of introduction, Nightware is a medical device that detects physiological disturbances related to nightmares. Then, it uses the vibration of the dedicated Apple Watch/iPhone hardware to disrupt the nightmare without waking the user up. Robust peer-reviewed evidence has been published, like this sham-controlled study, for example.
This is an FDA breakthrough medical device. I’ve written before about the problems with nightmares and how they drive suicide. The best pharmacological treatment is prazosin, but that has myriad side effects. I have a whole book on how wildly ineffective psychopharmacology tends to be available on the Kindle store. Having an effective treatment for the treatment of nightmares that worked and had a robust effect size would be amazing. It exists. It’s called Nightware. Let’s look at the data, in brief. First, this is what the system looks like from the sham-controlled trial:
Here is the outcomes data:
And the graph of that data compared to Sham is below:
Patients are having improvements not just in their nightmares but in their depression and trauma symptoms. Larget trials validate these outcomes subsequently. Now that you know Nightware exists and works, why might a company crowdfund? Isn’t that for unserious companies? With that intro, I’ll hand it off…
Matt Tucker (CEO) writes the following about why they chose this path to fundraising.
Crowdfunding?!?
Crowdfunding doesn’t always get a fair shake. For many, it conjures images of consumer gadgets, drawings on a napkin, pie-in-the-sky ideas, or businesses that “couldn’t get real funding.” In healthcare, where breakthroughs are hard-won and credibility matters, the idea of raising funds through the crowd can feel, well… unconventional.
I felt the same way, too. As a 25 year in the industry medtechguy, I first turned my nose up at the idea. I’m fancy! Where is that Caviar I feel entitled to again?
Usually, we’re anything but conventional at NightWare. Our technology—an FDA-cleared, AI-driven digital therapeutic for PTSD nightmares—already works. It’s not a prototype. It’s not a theory. It’s a proven solution that helps over 1,500 patients reclaim their nights, improve their days, and regain control of their lives. We’ve generated over $7 million in revenue and are already making an impact on the Military Health System.
But we've been pretty traditional in getting the investment we need to support the right projects.
What changed our (and my) mind? Why crowdfunding?
Because this mission is essential, and the stakes are too high to rely solely on traditional funding models.
A Better Way to Fund Breakthroughs
Traditional private equity and venture capital have their place, but they come with strings: rapid growth for the sake of growth, pressure to compromise on mission, timelines that don’t always align with what’s best for patients or providers, and lots of questions from investors without a lot of background in the challenges. Those models often focus on the easiest to scale, not the most meaningful to fix.
NightWare isn’t just a business—it’s a solution to a problem that’s been ignored for too long. We chose crowdfunding because it allows us to build a coalition of people who care. People who believe that veterans, trauma survivors, and those living with PTSD deserve better. People who want to support a device already changing lives while helping us take the following steps toward an even more significant impact.
Crowdfunding gives us the freedom to raise capital in a way that reflects who we are: a company committed to solving problems, listening to patients, and building a solution that works for everyone—patients, providers, and payers alike.
Where We’re Headed—and Why It Matters
NightWare has been delivering results. Our FDA-cleared device disrupts PTSD-related nightmares in real-time, giving patients restful, restorative sleep—without drugs or side effects. But we’re not done yet.
We’re raising funds to:
1. Complete Our Clinical Trial: We’re just six patients away from finalizing critical data that will strengthen our case for payers and providers.
2. Build Clinical and Economic Evidence: Insurers need proof of value. We’re delivering that proof to ensure NightWare is covered and accessible to all who need it.
3. Launch the VA Pathfinder Innovation Pilot: This pilot will expand our presence in Veterans Affairs healthcare systems, directly reaching the patients who need us most.
These are targeted, near-term initiatives that will make a lasting impact. And because NightWare is already a revenue-generating device, this isn’t a risky “early-stage” gamble—it’s an opportunity to invest in a proven technology with room to grow.
The Opportunity to Be Part of Something Bigger
Crowdfunding isn’t a fallback for us—it’s a choice. It’s a way to invite individuals who believe in NightWare’s mission to join us. Instead of relying solely on big institutions, we’re creating a broader, more inclusive community of supporters who see the potential to do good and do well.
So, if you’re skeptical of crowdfunding, I get it—I’ve been there. But I also believe that the right opportunities can challenge expectations. NightWare is more than a device. It’s a lifeline for people who have been suffering in silence for far too long.
Explore what we’re building. Learn why NightWare matters. And discover how, together, we can transform the way PTSD-related nightmares are treated.
We’re just getting started.
—Matt Tucker, Nightware.
Disclaimer: This Reg CF offering is made available through StartEngine Primary, LLC. This investment is speculative, illiquid, and involves a high degree of risk, including the possible loss of your entire investment.
Thanks for reading, and join us for innovative devices, treatments, and conversations at RAMHT SF 2025.
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