Calm.com, Inc., doing business as Calm, is a software company based in San Francisco, California. It produces meditation products, including guided meditations and Sleep Stories on its subscription-based app.[2][3][4][5][6]
 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Founded | May 4, 2012; 12 years ago (2012-05-04) |
| Founders |
|
| Headquarters |
,
United States
|
Area served | Worldwide |
| Products |
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Number of employees | 310 (2022)[1] |
| Website | calm |
Calm was founded on May 4, 2012 by Michael Acton Smith and Alex Tew.[7] Tamara Levitt became the Head of Mindfulness in November 2014 and is one of the app's primary narrators.[8]
The company generated $22 million in revenue in 2017 and reached an annual revenue run rate of $75 million.[9] As of 2017[update], Calm had raised $1.5M in angel investments.[10]
As of February 2019, the company was valued at $1 billion and had raised $116 million, with contributions from existing investors, including Insight Venture Partners, Ashton Kutcher's Sound Ventures, and Creative Artists Agency.[11]
Calm was Apple's "App of the Year" in 2017,[10] and was ranked by Inc. as one of the fastest-growing private companies in America in 2018.[12]
In February 2022, Calm acquired Ripple Health Group, a technology company that connects users with proper healthcare options.[13] The acquisition focused on building Calm Health,[14][15] which was released in October 2022 and offered through traditional healthcare providers, payers, and self-insured employers.[16] It was initially offered to patients suffering from anxiety or depression. The company planned to add mental health programs for those with other physical conditions.[6]
In August 2022, Calm laid off 20% of its employees, roughly 90 of 400 employees.[1]
In November 2022, Calm had four million paid subscribers.[13]
Calm produces meditation products, including guided meditations, a book, narrated Sleep Stories, and health and meditation videos. Their primary product is the meditation app, available on iPhone and Android devices.[17][18]
The app features both meditation tools and sleep aids.
The meditation area offers breathing exercises, a daily meditation, several multi-day programs, and unguided and guided meditation sessions.[19][20]
The company also produced a nature documentary series for HBO Max.[21][22]
The app also hosts Alanis Morissette's 2022 ambient album The Storm Before the Calm.[23]
Jay Shetty, the company's chief purpose officer, hosts a short mindfulness message called "The Daily Jay."[13]
On December 1, 2016, Calm launched an initial range of 23 Sleep Stories, with the aim of helping adult listeners sleep.[24]
Sleep Stories include archival recordings of Bob Ross,[25] classical and ambient music including compositions by Johannes Brahms, Sigur Rós, deadmau5, and Moby. The series also included original stories and public domain fiction read by narrators including:
In 2018, singer Leona Lewis contributed narration to the sleep stories in support of (RED)'s Global Fund to end AIDS.[31]
In December 2023, Calm announced that it had used AI voice-cloning technology to create a Christmas-themed original story "It's a Wonderful Sleep Story" narrated by American actor James Stewart, 25 years after the actor's death in 1997.[32]