Mental Health Initiative for South Asians

Name

Mental Health Initiative for South Asians

Legal name

Mental Health Initiative for South Asians Inc.

Website

https://mhisa.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Mental Health Services

NAICS

Other Individual and Family Services (624190), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813), Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (54172)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Health Services (8000)

akta.pro primary industry

Behavioral Health & MTSS/RTI Tiered SEL Supports (EDAKAMAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) & Emotional Regulation Programs (EDAMAIAC), Mindfulness, Meditation & Stress Management Education (EDAAAHAD)

Keywords

• Community mental health education
• Culturally concordant providers
• Mental health research
• Peer support programming
• Nonprofit mental health

Headquarters

HQ city

Austin

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations: 100% of donations go directly to MHISA programs with zero spent on staff salaries. Accepts one-time gifts and monthly recurring donations from individual donors.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

MHISA is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that delivers culturally tailored mental health education, research, and resources to the South Asian-American community through community workshops, university chapters, a national provider database, multilingual family toolkits, and IRB-approved research. All programming is volunteer-run and funded entirely by donations, with 100% of contributions going directly to programs. The organization also operates technology-enabled tools, including an ML disaggregation algorithm and an AI-enabled decision tree, to surface South Asian-specific mental health data and personalize resource recommendations.

Product overview

MHISA operates as a nonprofit mental health organization rather than a commercial software company. Its core offerings form an integrated ecosystem centered on education, research, and community resource delivery. The centerpiece is the South Asian Mental Health Provider Database — the largest searchable directory of culturally concordant mental health providers in the country. This is complemented by the Heal Forward Campaign, a national outreach initiative that reaches 500,000+ people through social media, the multilingual Conversation Kit card game, and family workshops. Technology offerings include an AI-Enabled Decision Tree for personalized resource recommendations and an ML disaggregation tool that identifies South Asian respondents in public datasets with 94% accuracy. Print and digital publications include the Spice Up Your Mind Magazine (two issues published) and culturally tailored safety guides for domestic violence/sexual assault survivors. Programming is delivered through university chapters at UT Austin, UT Dallas, Stanford, and UC Berkeley, Mental Health First Aid training, a 10-session mental health curriculum, and an interactive mental health video game in development. All offerings are entirely volunteer-run with zero paid staff.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Spice Up Your Mind: MHISA's flagship magazine exploring mental health through South Asian voices, research, and lived experience. Two issues published to date (Breaking the Silence in January 2025 and Breaking Barriers in 2025).

Products and services

• South Asian Mental Health Provider Database The largest South Asian mental health provider database in the country, a free, searchable directory of mental health providers with South Asian cultural competency that helps community members find culturally concordant care.
• Heal Forward Campaign MHISA's national social media and community outreach campaign reaching over 500,000 people through social media content, the Conversation Kit card game, community workshops, and multilingual resource guides.
• Conversation Kit A card game designed for South Asian families to facilitate mental health conversations at the dinner table, available in 4 languages as part of the Heal Forward campaign.
• AI-Enabled Decision Tree An adaptive, AI-powered tool that guides South Asian individuals through a personalized mental health resource pathway, recommending services, providers, and coping strategies based on their situation, cultural background, and preferences. Jointly developed by MHISA UC Berkeley and MHISA Stanford.
• DV/SA Safety Guide — Austin A culturally tailored safety resource for South Asian survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault in the Austin area, with local provider listings, culturally sensitive language, and community-specific pathways to support.
• DV/SA Safety Guide — Bay Area A culturally tailored safety resource for South Asian survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault in the San Francisco Bay Area, with local provider listings, culturally sensitive navigation, and multilingual support pathways.
• Spice Up Your Mind Magazine MHISA's flagship nationally distributed digital publication featuring South Asian voices, lived experience essays, wellness research, and cultural storytelling. Two issues published to date: Breaking the Silence (January 2025) and Breaking Barriers (2025).
• South Asian Children's Book A culturally grounded children's book designed to introduce mental health concepts — emotional expression, help-seeking, and family dialogue — to South Asian children ages 6-12, written and illustrated in collaboration with South Asian students from UC Berkeley and Stanford.
• Mental Health First Aid Training Culturally adapted Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) certification training that trains South Asian students, faculty, and community members to recognize and respond to mental health crises, including culturally rooted help-seeking pathways and intervention scripts.
• Mental Health Video Game An interactive, narrative-driven video game designed to teach mental health literacy to South Asian youth through culturally embedded storytelling, in development at MHISA UT Austin.
• Mental Health Curriculum (10-Session) MHISA's structured 10-session mental health curriculum covering stigma, intergenerational communication, help-seeking, and culturally adapted coping strategies, delivered at temples, cultural organizations, and community centers nationwide.
• University Chapters Student-led campus chapters at UT Austin, UT Dallas, Stanford, and UC Berkeley that deliver peer-led mental health programming, conduct research, and build community partnerships. 200+ student members across 6 universities. Harvard and UConn launching Spring 2026.

Quantifiable outcome

• 500,000+ people reached through #HealForward campaign
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles8 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability4 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• UT AustincoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFounding university partner and location of first chapter. MHISA UT Austin chapter leads flagship research studies and community programming. UT Austin provides academic resources and facilities for national operations.
• UT DallascoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSecond university chapter partner. MHISA UT Dallas chapter focuses on Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex community outreach and research collaboration with UT Austin.
• Stanford UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThird university chapter partner. Stanford chapter leads research initiatives and collaborates with UC Berkeley on joint Bay Area projects including AI decision tools and safety guides.
• UC BerkeleycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFourth university chapter partner. UC Berkeley chapter collaborates with Stanford on joint initiatives including children's books, AI tools, and Bay Area safety resources.
• Stanford CPHSmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerStanford Center for Population Health Sciences collaboration providing academic research infrastructure and methodological support for MHISA studies.
• Dr. Apurva BhattmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerClinical Assistant Professor at Stanford Medicine serving as faculty collaborator. Provides academic mentorship, research design guidance, and clinical expertise to ensure MHISA studies meet highest standards of rigor.
• Mann MuktiminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity organization partner focused on South Asian mental health awareness and destigmatization efforts.
• SAACminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSouth Asian community organization partner for community outreach and programming collaboration.
• Brown Man TherapyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMental health organization partner addressing South Asian mental health through culturally relevant content and resources.
• peers.netminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPeer support network partner contributing to community engagement and peer-led mental health initiatives.
• UT Austin CMHCmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversity counseling center partnership providing clinical resources, referral pathways, and campus mental health infrastructure for UT Austin chapter.
• Children's HealthminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHealthcare system partnership providing clinical expertise and community health resources for pediatric and family mental health programming.
• MeadowsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHealthcare provider partnership contributing clinical expertise to mental health education and resource development.
• WayhavenminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHealth and wellness organization partner supporting mental health initiatives and resource development.
• Crisis Text LinemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCrisis support partnership providing immediate mental health crisis resources for South Asian community members in distress. Listed as emergency resource on MHISA website.
• Kevin Love FundminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMental health advocacy organization partnership amplifying message and supporting mental health awareness initiatives in sports and broader communities.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• JED Foundation: National nonprofit protecting emotional health and preventing suicide among teens and young adults, with deep university partnerships. Broad incumbent because MHISA's university chapter model overlaps directly with JED's campus mental health programming, and both target the same college-aged demographic at scale.
• National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI): Largest US grassroots mental health nonprofit delivering public education, support groups, and advocacy across all conditions and populations. Broad incumbent because NAMI provides overlapping mental health education and family support services nationally, with sufficient scale to outcompete niche players should it launch South Asian-tailored programming.
• Crisis Text Line: National 24/7 text-based crisis intervention service and MHISA crisis partner. Broad incumbent because it provides the emergency mental health crisis resource that MHISA refers users to, and operates at national scale with overlapping mental health crisis support for the same end users.

Direct peers

• Brown Man Therapy: Mental health platform addressing South Asian mental health through culturally relevant content and provider resources, and an MHISA partner organization. Direct peer because it targets the same South Asian population for culturally tailored mental health content and provider access.
• SAAC (South Asian American Coalition): South Asian community organization partner for community outreach and programming collaboration with MHISA. Direct peer given overlapping South Asian community focus and shared mental health program delivery to similar community segments.
• AAKOMA Project: AANHPI adolescent and young adult mental health nonprofit focused on stigma reduction, provider access, and culturally relevant research. Direct peer because it addresses Asian-American youth mental health — the same core demographic as MHISA's university chapter model — with overlapping research, education, and advocacy activities.
• Asian Mental Health Collective: AANHPI-focused mental health nonprofit offering culturally responsive resources, therapist directories, and community programming for Asian-American mental health. Direct peer because it serves overlapping AANHPI populations with culturally competent mental health resources, education, and provider access — the same architectural model MHISA is building, but at broader Asian-American scope.
• South Asian Therapist: Directory and resource hub specifically connecting South Asian individuals with culturally attuned mental health providers. Direct peer because MHISA's provider database and South Asian Therapist both address the same culturally concordant provider access gap for the same population segment.
• Mann Mukti: South Asian-focused mental health awareness and destigmatization nonprofit listed as an MHISA partner. Direct peer because it operates in the same South Asian mental health education and advocacy niche with overlapping population and content focus.

Emerging players

• peers.net: Peer support network partner contributing to MHISA's community engagement and peer-led mental health initiatives. Emerging player because it provides peer support infrastructure for young adult mental health — adjacent to MHISA's core chapter model — at smaller scale than mainstream incumbents.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mental-health-initiative-for-south-asians
• Instagraminstagram.com/mhisa.national

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Mental Health Initiative for South Asians