This update originally circulated to investors in January 2024. Shorter updates go out every 4-8 weeks.
Our vision for accessible, transformative meditation relies on two pillars: groundbreaking tech and world-class instruction. In H1, we demonstrated technical feasibility. In H2, we demonstrated teaching effectiveness, achieving 70% success on week-long retreats with compelling user testimonials, 80%+ NPS, meaningful revenue, podcast appearances, and early word-of-mouth traction. In 2024, we plan to integrate these elements.
Our immediate strategy prioritizes expanding retreat offerings, which simultaneously create a sustainable business model, facilitate talent recruitment and investor engagement, and accelerate research advancement.
Unexpected Success in H2
In H1 2023, we built relationships with jhana practitioners, collected what we believe is the largest EEG jhana dataset in the world, and developed offline models for detection in new subjects.
We then pursued adapting our technology for novices, which required numerous participants spending extended hours with specialized equipment. To incentivize participation, we experimented with multi-day retreats, aiming for 20-30% participant success rates.
Notably, we conducted these initial retreats without technology. This decision reflected both practical limitations and our recruitment of established teachers to provide feedback.
Results exceeded projections:
- 65-90%+ of participants, totaling over 40 people, reached jhana in less than 40 hours across all 4 retreats
- Success rates matched those of experienced teachers
- Online retreats demonstrated equivalent outcomes at reduced costs
- Evening workshops, weekend intensives, and cohort models showed 10-30% success rates
- User satisfaction reached 70-100% NPS scores
- Revenue extended our fundraising timeline
- Retreats attracted both talent and investor interest
Challenges in H2
Not all experiments succeeded. We invested three months developing a "jhana milestones" detector using consumer hardware rather than continuing research-grade equipment work. Technical considerations suggested potential short-term gains, but results disappointed. We discontinued this initiative in December, extracting lessons about milestone modeling challenges and hardware limitations.
H1 2024 Strategy and Priorities
Scaling jhana instruction to millions requires interventions teaching the skill reliably in under 10 hours, or ideally under 2 hours, necessitating technological solutions. However, expanding low-tech retreats presents immediate opportunities:
- Sustainable business operations provide development runway
- Recruitment and fundraising become more straightforward
- Teaching hundreds achieves 50 new people in jhanas per month by September
- Gradual technology integration creates research-accelerating feedback loops
Four strategic initiatives guide H1 2024:
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Go-to-market -- Converting organic customer acquisition to paid channels while optimizing customer acquisition costs
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Content universe -- Leveraging novel narratives through podcasts and multimedia to address extended decision timeframes
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Improving efficiency -- Shortening retreat duration and developing employment-compatible cohort models
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Technical advancement -- Open-sourcing datasets, publishing classification benchmarks, executing research "spikes," and recruiting experienced technical leadership