Sunny Ray talks with Antonio Almeida, founder and CEO of Therify, a company using virtual reality and artificial intelligence to help clinicians treat autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders. Antonio explains how VR lets psychologists and speech therapists simulate real world environments inside a clinic, capturing behavioral data that is otherwise impossible to track. He describes how immersion increases focus and engagement, helping patients generalize skills faster from clinic to real life. The conversation covers the origin story of Therify, born from Antonio's VR arcade and his psychologist wife's interest in autism therapy, as well as practical concerns like motion sickness and session length. Antonio also introduces the idea of a behavioral data loop, where VR session data, clinician notes, and parent reported outcomes combine with AI to recommend better therapy activities. The episode closes with details on where to find Therify online. It is a grounded look at how emerging tech can support therapists with data they never had before.
A founder explains how VR and AI give therapists behavioral data on autism patients they could never capture before.
What are you building at Therify?
Therify is a virtual reality platform using AI to help people with autism and attention disorders develop skills. Psychologists and speech therapists use VR games to assess how clients behave, since the platform simulates real life inside the clinic. It also supports interventions for building new skills and generates reports and behavioral data that are otherwise impossible to track.
What made you start this company? Was there a specific moment?
I come from business management, not psychology, but I love advanced technology. Around 2020 I got excited about VR and opened my own VR arcade in my city. My wife, a health psychologist with autism experience, saw people's reactions and said this could really help people with autism. We researched, found lots of supporting studies, and decided to build something beyond entertainment.
Why VR rather than just an app or game? What does immersion actually unlock?
VR requires buying hardware, so an app would be more accessible, but VR tricks your senses in ways an app cannot. Research shows at least three times more focus in VR because there are no real world distractions. You see three dimensional space, hear 3D sound, and feel objects through controllers, which increases engagement and helps patients generalize skills faster from clinic to real life.
Do people get dizzy in these headsets, and has that been solved?
Some people experience motion sickness, especially first time users. We use ambience environments to help clients get comfortable, especially children, and keep sessions to 15 to 25 minutes since VR is intensive and that is enough time to learn a lot. We also have a step by step approach so professionals can ease patients in gradually if needed.
You said the headset isn't the whole story, that a behavioral data loop matters more. Can you unpack that?
VR alone is great for developing skills, but AI improves it by filling in missing data, especially generalization data, meaning how a client behaves outside the clinic. We are releasing an app for parents to report on real life behavior, which combines with clinician notes and VR session data so AI can recommend which activities actually produce results outside the clinic.
Where can people learn more about Therify and you?
You can find us on Instagram and LinkedIn under Therify, and our website is therify.com. All the information about the platform is there.
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