Kanika is the Founder & CEO of MindPeers – a mental wellbeing platform. She is a serial entrepreneur and scaled her first business to a multimillion in Singapore by age of 26. She goes through anxiety which helped her appreciate mental health. Recently recognized for getting on LinkedIn’s Top 20 Companies and also getting four shark deal with double investment in Shark Tank India, she herself is also an active Angel Investor in startups like Boba Bhai, ZuAI, Leap Club etc. She currently flip flops between her home in Bir, Himachal & Singapore.
We are delighted that Kanika will be speaking in Singapore as part of our Asia summit. We caught up with her to see how she’s feeling in the runup to the event.
Hi Kanika, we are thrilled that you will be speaking at the Wellbeing at Work Asia Summit in March. Our first and most important question is, how are you doing today?
I’m grateful , every chance to share, learn, and connect is a privilege. Entrepreneurial life is tiring but we wake up everyday saying we won’t have it any other way. Looking forward to the conversations ahead and sharing the innovations we’re driving in workplace mental well-being at the innovation panel.
As a leader based in the region, what are the main challenges you are facing when it comes to employee wellbeing and mental health?
Increasing generation gap where Gen Z and millennials are in pursuit of self actualization, there is greater competition, greater burnout, more self esteem issues and more mental confusion.
Secondly, balance has become a myth and greater work flexibility is expected. Real challenge lies in how organizations and leaders become more empathetic and accustomed to changing work culture.
Employee wellbeing has always been seen with a reactive lens. Mental health is affecting hormonal, behaviorial and emotional health. We need more outcome led preventive approach to show its reality, repercussions and personalization When I was diagnosed with anxiety, I had no idea what was happening. It felt confusing, frustrating, and honestly, pretty lonely. That journey—of trying to make sense of it all—is what led to MindPeers. I didn’t just want to talk about mental health; I wanted to create something that actually helps people close the gap between struggling and real, lasting change.
What strategies have you seen developing over the past 6 months, both internally and externally, that are moving the dial on wellbeing in the workplace?
At MindPeers, we’re seeing a major shift towards proactive workplace well-being strategies, moving beyond awareness to real, measurable impact.
Internally, we prioritize employee mental health with burnout leave, free therapy sessions, and a Slack bot that nudges employees with well-being check-ins and mental health resources. Supporting our own team allows us to build a culture that truly values mental well-being.
Most importantly we thrive on a culture of empathy. I as the founder can cry my heart out and we share the same space of vulnerability from each other Externally, we’ve expanded our offerings with an outcome based approach wherein employees are able to see how change in mental health is changing biomarkers(HBA1c, HRV etc) physiological ( sleep cycle etc) parameters as well as cognitive measures to see real improvement.
CogniArt tool—a fusion of cognitive and art therapy for better executive functioning
Greater accessibility by having a slack bot, whatsapp bot and outlook bot
Companies now seek solutions that are personalized, data-driven, and embedded into everyday work culture—that’s where we see real change happening.
Why is employee wellbeing so important to you personally?
Employee well-being is personal to me because I’ve lived through the struggles of mental health firsthand.
While running my first startup (now acquired), I was operating with fear, pressure to succeed and almost no sleep. I went through series of hyperventilation episodes and finally got diagnosed with anxiety, I struggled to understand what was happening—it felt foreign, overwhelming, and isolating. That experience made me realize how critical it is to move beyond just awareness and actually bridge the gap between knowing and truly understanding mental health.
That’s why I built MindPeers—not just as a platform, but as a movement to make mental health accessible, engaging, and measurable in workplaces. Employees are the backbone of any company, and if we don’t prioritize their well-being, we’re failing both them and the business. A healthy mind fuels productivity, creativity, and resilience—well-being isn’t a perk, it’s a necessity.
What impact is AI having in your organization and how are you managing that?
AI is at the core of how we scale personalized, data-driven mental health solutions at MindPeers. We use AI to analyze behavioral patterns, track biomarkers like HRV and stress levels, and personalize therapy interventions—moving beyond generic mental health support to truly individualized care.
One of our key AI-driven innovations is CogniArt, which blends cognitive and art therapy for engaging self-reflection.
Managing AI responsibly is crucial—we ensure human oversight, data privacy, and ethical AI use to maintain trust and effectiveness. AI is a tool to enhance, not replace human connection in mental health, and that balance is key to how we integrate it at MindPeers.
Other than AI, are there any challenges that you are seeing for the first time and how are you addressing them?
Making mental health improvements tangible was a challenge, but we’re taking that head on. Mental wellness has traditionally been difficult to measure and demonstrate concrete progress, unlike physical health where metrics like weight or blood pressure provide clear indicators.
At MindPeers, we’ve developed innovative assessment tools and progress tracking systems that help users visualize their mental health journey.
We’ve found that when people can see tangible evidence of their improvement, it dramatically increases motivation and commitment to their mental health practices.
What areas do you think employers should be focused on over the next 12 months?
Over the next year, employers need to move beyond check-the-box wellness initiatives and focus on real, sustainable well-being. It’s not about offering more yoga sessions or mental health days—it’s about changing how work actually happens so burnout isn’t inevitable.
Here’s where the focus needs to be:
- Burnout prevention, not just recovery. That means rethinking workload distribution, equipping managers with the right training, and using smart workload management tools to catch burnout before it spirals.
- Well-being as a daily practice. Mental health shouldn’t be an extra thing employees have to opt into—it should be woven into the work culture. Whether it’s through built-in breaks, flexible schedules, or Slack nudges, well-being should feel natural, not forced.
- Personalization over one-size-fits-all. Everyone experiences stress differently. What works for one person might not work for another. Employers need to invest in customizable support, whether that’s therapy options that reflect cultural backgrounds, self-paced mental health resources, or AI-driven nudges that adapt to individual needs.
The future of workplace well-being isn’t just about offering solutions—it’s about making sure they actually work for the people who need them.
Do you feel that investment in employee wellbeing in the region is increasing or decreasing and is that a direct reflection on HR leaders’ increasing ability to demonstrate effective returns of their strategies to leadership?
Investment in employee well-being is definitely increasing, but what’s really changing is the way companies are investing. It’s no longer just about having a wellness budget—it’s about spending smarter and proving impact.
HR leaders are becoming more data-driven, and that’s shifting the conversation from well-being as a perk to well-being as a business strategy.
The ability to measure burnout risk, productivity impact, and engagement levels has given leadership clear evidence that mental health initiatives aren’t just “nice to have”—they drive real ROI.
How has your organisation been leading the way?
At MindPeers, we’ve been pioneering a new approach to mental wellbeing in the digital We’ve led the way by creating a data-driven platform that makes mental health support more accessible, affordable, and stigma-free. Our proprietary assessment tools and personalized intervention strategies have helped thousands of individuals understand their mental health needs better and take proactive steps toward improvement.
What truly sets us apart is our focus on measurable outcomes. We’ve developed unique metrics that allow organizations to quantify the impact of mental health initiatives on workforce productivity and wellbeing – transforming mental health from a nebulous concept to a tangible business priority.
We’re also proud of our work in bringing mental health conversations into mainstream corporate culture. Through our partnerships with leading organizations, we’ve helped create psychologically safer workplaces and demonstrated that investing in employee mental health isn’t just the right thing to do – it delivers significant returns on investment.
Kanika will be speaking in Singapore at the Wellbeing at Work Summit Asia. Further details on the Summit can be found here.
