Music For Psychedelic Therapy - Mendel Kaelen, Founder and CEO of Wavepaths

Mendel Kaelen is the CEO of Wavepaths.  Prior to founding Wavepaths, Mendel Kaelen worked as a PhD and postdoctoral neuroscientist at Imperial College London since 2012, where his research was the one of the first to demonstrate music’s central role in psychedelic therapies. Wavepaths is a software platform that generates personalized, optimal music for psychedelic therapy.

0:00 - Why work on music and psychedelics?

3:30 - Highlights of Mendel’s academic career.

7:30 - Is there a universal “best” music for psychedelic therapy?  How to design a psychedelic therapy playlist.

11:30 - What does the importance of music personalization mean for group psychedelic sessions?

16:00 - Should music for psychedelics be “familiar” to the patient, or novel?

20:00 - Vocals vs no vocals?  It’s not that simple.

23:00 - Directive vs non-directive and concrete vs fluid music.

25:00 - Is the “right” music for psychedelics consistent across different drugs?

28:00 - How did Mendel switch from academia to startup founder.

30:30 - What is Wavepaths?

35:30 - Who is Wavepaths for?

37:00 - How do you sell music for psychedelic therapy?

39:00 - Surprising insights from Wavepaths customers?

43:30 - How does Wavepaths use biofeedback?

46:00 - Wavepaths direct to consumer.

49:45 - Startup life vs academia.

51:00 - Virtual reality and psychedelic therapy.