Senior’s Mental Health Venture Is Named a Top Disruptive Startup

Poets & Quants has named Cura, the project of Texas McCombs senior Aakriti Kamal, one of the 29 Most Disruptive Business School Startups of 2024. Cura is AI-enabled software designed to support family caregivers of people with mental illness by providing personalized treatment and enabling effortless care management.

Kamal, a double major in business analytics and psychology, was inspired by her family’s experience in India. When her grandmother developed  schizophrenia, her mother became the primary caregiver. Kamal’s mother knew little about how to care for the mentally ill, and the responsibilities took a toll on her. “It’s a role that’s consumed her life, affecting her health both physically and mentally, and showing the intense, and overwhelming amounts of stress and anxiety caregivers face on a daily basis,” Kamal told Poets & Quants.

At UT, she wanted to combine her passions for psychology and business and started a venture to help the millions of people who have made and will make the same sacrifices her mother did, Kamal told the website about Cura.

“We make it easier for caregivers to manage their daily tasks, improve their loved one’s recovery, and access useful resources,” she said.