Who owns BetterUp Inc? Prince Harry lands swish new job at Silicon Valley startup as chief impact officer
Prince Harry has joined Silicon Valley start-up 'BetterUp Inc.' as its chief impact officer, after stepping back from Britain’s royal family and moving to California with his wife Meghan Markle.
The Silicon Valley startup was founded in 2013, BetterUp Inc. is a coaching and mental health platform. The company was most recently valued at $1.73 billion following a $125 million investment round. It’s his first official role at a private company since he stepped down from being a working member of the royal family. Harry and Meghan recently opened up in an interview with Oprah Winfrey about why they left Britain and stepped away from their royal duties. During the interview, broadcast earlier this month, Meghan made shocking allegations of racism and revealed about the lack of support by the royal family for her mental health issues.
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In his new role, the Duke of Sussex will focus on driving advocacy and awareness for mental fitness, guiding BetterUp’s mission, and expanding the company’s community.
Welcoming Harry, Alexi Robichaux, CEO of BetterUp wrote, "it is with great pleasure and excitement that we welcome our first Chief Impact Officer: Prince Harry, The Duke of Sussex. We are energized by his model of inspiration and impact through action. As a true citizen of the world, he has dedicated his life’s work to bringing attention to the diverse needs of people everywhere and advocating for mental health initiatives: from founding the Invictus Games, a platform for service personnel to use sport as part of their psychological and physical rehabilitation, to launching Sentebale, which supports the mental health and wellbeing of young people affected by HIV in Lesotho and Botswana." He further added: "As a member of the BetterUp executive team, Prince Harry will expand on the work he’s been doing for years, as he educates and inspires our community and champions the importance of focusing on preventative mental fitness and human potential worldwide."
On joining the team Harry said, "When I first met Alexi, we instantly recognized a shared passion for helping others realize their full potential. As our conversations continued, it became even more clear that we hold a similar philosophy on mental health: that we must proactively take care of our minds. In addition to this shared philosophy, what caught my attention about BetterUp was that the company’s mission to unlock the potential in people everywhere necessitates innovation, impact, and integrity. Their team has been delivering on that work for years. I was also impressed by the scale and opportunity for impact – the ability to change millions of people’s lives for the better, through a combination of human connection, leading technology, and behavioral science." Sharing his goal and hope for the company he further added: "As BetterUp’s first Chief Impact Officer, my goal is to lift up critical dialogues around mental health, build supportive and compassionate communities, and foster an environment for honest and vulnerable conversations. And my hope is to help people develop their inner strength, resilience, and confidence."
Who owns BetterUp Inc?
Alexi Robichaux and Eduardo Medina are the founders of the company.
Alexi Robichaux
Alexi Robichaux is the CEO and Co-founder of the company. Before coming up with to BetterUp, Robichaux was working as the Director of Product Management at VMware. He managed product and design teams to create enterprise collaboration software that earned Gartner’s “best in class” style. He also witnessed the changing relationship between employees and employers that’ll be key to future human flourishing and innovation.
Robichaux is Chairman of Youth Leadership America (YLA), a nonprofit organization that he co-founded in 2003, to foster peer-to-peer leadership development and civic engagement in high school students. The organization has collaborated with leading companies including Disney, Google, and Hilton Hotels to coach and mentor future leaders. Robichaux has done a B.A. in political science and non-profit management with summa cum laude distinction from the University of Southern California.
Eduardo Medina
Eduardo is the co-founder and COO at BetterUp. As the COO of the company, he leads work in coaching, business operations, and is responsible for the delivery and impact of BetterUp’s products and programs to its fast-growing customer base. Before BetterUp, Eduardo worked in various policy, investing, and operational roles at Altamont Capital Partners and Bain & Company.
He is a strong advocate for education, economic access, and equity in the workplace, areas where he actively coaches and advises emerging leaders. Eduardo holds a B.S. degree in Business, summa cum laude, from the University of Southern California.