Empathy, a new platform designed to help families navigate the journey they face after losing a loved one, has launched its application on iOS and Android for users across the United States, the company announced Tuesday.
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At least 3 million Americans die each year, leaving many grieving families in distress. Not only must the families confront their own loss, but also what is often a logistical nightmare.
Bereaved families spend an average of 500 hours dealing with funeral arrangements and wills, as well as longer-term processes such as cancelling bank accounts, administering estates, claiming benefits, and cleaning out property. Empathy believes that technology makes this bureaucracy more efficient, allowing families more time to support each other emotionally.
Ron Gura, co-founder and CEO of Empathy, explains that "the inherent optimism of human nature causes us to avoid talking about death."
But because we do not discuss it ahead of time, he says, "We miss out on important opportunities to innovate and provide families with technology that can help them manage some of life's most challenging moments – and this leaves families overwhelmed and underserved.
"Logistics are made hard by grief, and grief is made harder by logistics. Software can and will play a huge role in helping families deal with loss and will hopefully drive a much needed change in the industry at large," Gura says.
Empathy provides a digital companion to streamline end-of-life bureaucracy, minimize tedious tasks, and automate processes involved in the administration of an estate. Simplified steps help families complete action items, make informed decisions, and avoid common mistakes. The experience is personalized for each user to ensure families are not overwhelmed by an excess of information. Human support is available to provide users both emotional and practical assistance.
Empathy was founded by Gura and Yonatan Bergman, entrepreneurs with experience innovating a wide array of fintech and consumer sectors. The Empathy team consists of a multidisciplinary lineup of professionals from the legal, accounting, product design, engineering, and cybersecurity sectors, as well as experts in grief.
"The end-of-life industry is a large sector that has been untouched by the wave of digital transformation occurring in every other industry," said Joel Cutler, Co-Founder and Managing Director at General Catalyst, one of the leading investors in Empathy's $13 million seed round. "Empathy is unique in that it addresses both the emotional and logistical anguish of loss. We believe this is the technology and experience that can greatly benefit every family."
Michael Eisenberg, Co-Founder and Equal Partner at Aleph, the second lead seed investor, said, "By combining financial technology and emotional understanding, Empathy has built a product for the next-of kin with compassion at its core."
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