sensory bridges
Investor Brief — Pre-Seed $500K — March 2026

Brooks Band™: The First Wearable Platform for Neurodivergent Self-Awareness & Compliance Documentation

Built on Samsung Galaxy Watch with Knox Manage security. Designed with OTs, SLPs, SpEd directors, teachers, PhD researchers, and autistic individuals. See live demo →

1 in 31
U.S. children with autism (CDC, 2025)
$15.5B
Annual IDEA Federal Funding
$9B+
Wasted on SpEd paperwork yearly
$32.3K
Grants & awards received
Real Voices

The People Who Inspired This

Real people from 300+ discovery interviews. Their words shaped every feature.

“My teacher would say ‘Warren, use your inside voice.’ But I thought I was. I couldn’t tell that I wasn’t. It made me not want to talk to people.”
— Warren, 20-year-old autistic adult
“My 15-year-old son struggles with social cues, especially voice volume. It’s isolating for him, and heartbreaking for me. A device that could gently cue him in real time could be a game changer.”
— Shelly, parent of a 10th grader
“Thank you for creating a solution for a challenge I’ve faced my entire life.”
— College student at UTC Pitch Event
“The Brooks Band has the potential to fill a critical gap — empowering individuals to communicate more effectively.”
— Saskia Splane, CCC-SLP
Who This Is For

Meet Jennifer and Marcus

Jennifer — School-Based SLP

12 years · 48 students · Public school

“I know he’s getting better. I can see it. But I can’t prove it on paper.”

Spends 12+ hrs/week on IEP docs and Medicaid billing. Notes say “emerging” because she lacks objective data. Medicaid claims rejected for insufficient specificity.

Gap costs her: $28K/yr non-billable time. Her district leaves ~$1M Medicaid unclaimed annually.

Marcus — Autistic Adult, 24

Distribution center · Diagnosed age 7 · Lives independently

“I know I’m loud. I just can’t feel when it’s too much. By the time I see it on someone’s face, it’s already happened.”

Searched for a voice monitor — found decibel meters and noise apps. Nothing that tells only him, privately, in real time.

Gap costs him: $8K–$12K/yr in lost career advancement (Drexel National Autism Indicators Report).

The Parent — Getting an IEP Before a Diagnosis

Your child’s teacher says “something seems off” but can’t explain what. Nobody has data. A wearable captures what you see but can’t prove — biometric patterns showing how your child responds to transitions and environments. For the first time, you walk into the IEP meeting with objective baseline data.

The Problem

A $9 Billion Paperwork Crisis

8.4M
Students under IDEA
U.S. Dept. of Education, 2023
3.2%
Of 8-year-olds with autism — up 5x
CDC ADDM, April 2025
$4–6B
School Medicaid left unclaimed
CMS / MACPAC 2024
📋 What is an IEP? What is a 504? Why should investors care?
An IEP is a personalized learning contract. Every child with a disability in a U.S. public school gets one. A team creates it — SpEd teacher, general ed teacher, SLP, OT, school psychologist, administrator, and parent. It sets measurable goals and requires evidence of progress.

A 504 Plan is simpler — accommodations (extra time, assistive tech) without full SpEd services. Often the first step before an IEP.

Assistive technology is any device helping a student access education. Under IDEA, the team must consider AT for every student. If AT is in the IEP, the school must provide it at no cost to families, funded by IDEA Part B ($15.5B/yr). (adayinourshoes.com, U.S. Dept. of Ed)

The gap: Progress tracking is almost entirely manual. No widely adopted objective measurement tool exists for the behavioral and sensory goals in most IEPs. That’s what Brooks Band fills.
🧩 What does “neurodivergent” mean? What is “atypical prosody”?
Neurodivergent = a brain that works differently — autism, ADHD, sensory processing differences, apraxia. About 1 in 5 people. Atypical prosody = difficulty regulating voice volume/tone. Over 70% of autistic individuals experience it. Some speak too loudly; others too softly. Not a behavior problem — a neurological difference.

Money Left on the Table

$9B+
SpEd doc burden/yr
BLS · ASHA 2024
$1M+
Unclaimed Medicaid per district
CMS/MACPAC
$28K
Non-billable per SLP/yr
$44.89/hr × 12hr/wk
$20–31K
Lost billing per therapist/yr
$80–120/session × 5/wk

Autism Prevalence Is Accelerating

CDC data for 8-year-olds. Each bar = surveillance year.
2000
6.7
1 in 149
2004
8.0
1 in 125
2008
11.3
1 in 88
2012
14.6
1 in 68
2016
18.5
1 in 54
2020
27.6
1 in 36
2022
32.3
1 in 31
Per 1,000 children. Source: CDC ADDM Network, 2000–2025

Where a School SLP’s Time Goes

Only 48% goes to students. 78.5% of SLPs report more openings than applicants. (ASHA 2024)
Student services
48%
IEP documentation
28%
Medicaid billing
12%
IEP meetings
8%
Other admin
4%
The Solution

Brooks Band™ — A Platform, Not Just a Device

The BrooksClip (built by UTC College of Engineering) is the primary voice-capturing device — detecting both voice too loud AND too soft, covering the full spectrum of atypical prosody. The Samsung Galaxy Watch provides the biometric sensor suite, haptic feedback, and user interface. No audio is ever recorded, stored, or transmitted.

Closed-Loop System: Listen (BrooksClip captures voice amplitude) → Process (on-device edge computing against personalized baselines) → Cue (private haptic vibration) → Document (auto-exports to compliance dashboards). See live demo →
Full Biometric Suite: Voice is the entry point, but the platform captures continuous biometric patterns — creating baselines IEP teams have never had access to. Multi-use IEP tool.
Calming Features: When escalation is detected, activates personalized protocols — guided box breathing or a partner regulation app customized to the user.
Open Platform: Partner apps plug in via API — system output can trigger another app, expanding ecosystem value and creating partnership revenue.
Innovation

Why This Has Never Existed Before

Measured by one standard: does this create something that has never existed, for people who have never had it, in a way that is immediately, measurably useful?

Technical

Proprietary adaptive monitoring of self-generated voice output on a wrist-worn device — novel in the patent literature. No prior art covers this approach for self-regulation. On-device processing = privacy-first. Multiple patents filed.

Sources: USPTO search; FTO analysis vs. Phoeb-X US11,779,275 B2, US12,208,213 B2

Market

New product category: Closed-Loop Adaptive Self-Regulation System — bridging assistive tech, clinical documentation, and compliance into one wearable. Not incremental improvement. Category creation.

Sources: Competitive analysis of Revibe, Mightier, Floreo, Empatica, Brain Power

Impact

50 years of IDEA (1975–present) served by subjective documentation. Brooks Band introduces objective, device-generated data into IEP and Medicaid workflows for the first time.

Sources: IDEA P.L. 94-142; 34 CFR §300.320; ASHA 2024 Schools Survey

Competitive Analysis

Brooks Band vs. The Alternatives

Revibe generates attention charts. Brooks Band generates legal documents.

FeatureBrooks Band™Revibe (Pearson)Noise AppsManual Docs
MeasuresVoice output + biometricsFidgetingRoom noiseObservation
FeedbackPrivate adaptive hapticsTimed vibrationPublic alarmsVerbal correction
DocumentationAuto IEP + SOAP notesAttention chartsNoneHandwritten
ComplianceFERPA + HIPAA dualNo HIPAAConsumerVaries
Voice too softYes (BrooksClip)NoNoSubjective
Year 1 Cost~$308$848Free–$10$28K+ staff
SecuritySamsung Knox (DoD)StandardNonePaper
Validation

300+ Interviews. 150+ Waitlist. Zero Marketing.

Customer Discovery Results

NSF I-Corps + Vanderbilt I-Corps SXSW + Builder Program + independent surveys.
Teachers: disrupts learning
88%
Would purchase
86%
Want private tool
85%
Speak louder than intended
77%
Social challenges
77%
Voice is primary challenge
68%
Source: Sensory Bridges surveys (n=168) + I-Corps (n=155+)
Business Model

Hardware + Recurring SaaS + Data Licensing

Published at sensorybridges.com/business-model

School & District

$249 device

+ $59/student/year

IEP portal · SpEd dashboard · FERPA DUA

Year 2: $99/yr managed rental

Funded: 100% via IDEA Part B. Zero cost to families.

Clinical & Medicaid

$249 device

+ $49–$149/mo/practice

Unlimited clients · Auto SOAP notes · Medicaid routing

ROI: Pays for itself in 3 weeks of saved SLP time.

Consumer & Family

$279 device

+ $149–$249/year

Daily dashboards · Weekly summaries · IEP export

Value: Saves hundreds vs. private therapy.
Est. COGS: Galaxy Watch ~$120–$150/unit · Knox ~$5/device/mo · Cloud ~$20–$30/student/yr · Software gross margin: 50–70%

How the Business Evolves

Phase 1 — Paid Pilots (2026)

5–8 school pilots + 8–10 OT trials. Low-cost to prove fit.

$17K
Month 6 ARR
$112K
Month 12 ARR
3+3+50
Districts/Clinics/Consumers

Phase 2 — Scale (2027)

15 districts + 10 clinics + 200 consumers. SaaS primary revenue.

$620K
Year 2 ARR
130%+
Net Revenue Retention
80 districts
Year 2 target

Phase 3 — Clinical (2028)

Major autism centers. Medical advisory board. Data licensing.

$2.5M+
Year 3 ARR
Series A
$6M–$10M
2,500
Devices to centers

Phase 4+ — Medical (2029+)

Medicaid EPSDT. Cost to families: $0. Prescriber network. Flywheel.

$10–20M
Year 5 ARR
6:1–11:1
LTV:CAC
$50–150M+
Revenue ceiling

Revenue Growth Trajectory

Conservative Year 1, scaling with institutional adoption.
Month 6
$17K
Month 12
$112K
Year 2
$620K
Year 3
$2.5M
Year 4
$7M
Year 5
$10–20M
How projections are calculated: Bottom-up from (1) pilot commitments/pipeline, (2) published pricing × devices-per-account, (3) NRR 120–130%. Year 1 = signed commitments. No Medicaid until 2029.
The Transition

The Path from Education to Medical

Full roadmap: sensorybridges.com/roadmap

Why Education First

Schools buy with IDEA money. No FDA needed. FERPA (simpler than HIPAA). Every deployment generates outcome data clinical partners demand before signing.

Why Clinical Is Already Planned

OT/therapy sales start Year 1. Medicaid research Year 2. Full reimbursement pathway Year 4. Education builds evidence; clinical scales revenue.

The Pivot Point

By Year 2: peer-reviewed outcome data, proprietary behavioral metric in IEP documents, 40+ accounts. This makes autism center partnerships viable — not aspirational.

Compliance bridge: Schools → FERPA via DUA. Clinics → HIPAA via BAA. FERPA and HIPAA never apply to same data. Strict digital firewall.

Five-Phase Roadmap

1
2026
Pilots
$112K
2
2027
Districts
$620K
3
2028
Centers
$2.5M+
4
2029
Medicaid
$10M+
5
2030+
National
$50M+
Market Size

A Massive, Underserved Market

$26B+
TAM — Global AT (10.2% CAGR)
Grand View Research
$3–5B
SAM — U.S. voice/sensory tools
NCES, CDC, BLS
$50–75M
SOM — Year 5 SE U.S.
Sensory Bridges

Adjacent: 22M OSHA workers · 795K post-stroke · 6.9M Alzheimer’s · 28.8M hearing loss

The Team

Lived Experience + Technical Execution

Megan Cales
Founder & CEO · Neurodivergent founder and mom who experienced these challenges personally · Career Coordinator, Rollins College of Business at UTC · NSF I-Corps, Vanderbilt Builder, Life TN SciPreneur, CodeLaunch alum · Currently in NEC Project Healthcare & Life Science TN Accelerators
LinkedIn →
Zachary Beker
Data Analytics & Autism Advocate · Autistic individual bringing lived-experience perspective to product design and community engagement
LinkedIn →
Dr. Vijayalakshmi Kumarasamy
AI Specialist · PhD Computer Science, UTC · ChaTech TechX Awards finalist (AI Innovation, Tech for Good, Early Innovator)
LinkedIn →
UTC College of Engineering
Building the BrooksClip — primary voice-capturing device (too-loud + too-soft) · Biomechatronics & Assistive Tech Lab
UTC OT & Psychology
IRB-approved research (Protocol #2025-0084) · Clinical validation
Clinical Partner — COTA/L
Certified OT Assistant at a leading children’s rehab institute · Developer of proprietary regulation protocol
Traction

Grants, Awards & Recognition

$32,250 in non-dilutive funding. Finalist: ChaTech TechX Early Innovator Award 2025 (Kenco Group).

Kiva (100 supporters / 3 days)$8,000
UTC Mocs Innovate (2 × $4,000)$8,000
Project Healthcare Accelerator$6,000
NSF Mid-South Hub Pitch$2,750
Vanderbilt Builder Micro Grant$2,500
UTC FLY Pitch Competition$2,000
LaunchTN Travel Grant$1,500
UTC Travel Grant$1,000
LifeScience TN Grant$500
TOTAL$32,250

Partners: NSF · I-Corps Mid-South · UTC · NEC Project Healthcare · Life Science TN · Launch TN

The Ask

Pre-Seed: $500,000

Takes Sensory Bridges from pilots to institutional scale.

Use of Funds ($500K)

Reaches $112K ARR (Mo 12) and $620K ARR (Yr 2).
Samsung Hardware
$100K
Software Engineer
$100K
CEO Salary
$75K
Working Capital
$50K
Marketing
$30K
Patents & Legal
$30K
Business Ops
$25K
Contingency
$25K
QA & Testing
$20K
UTC Engineering
$15K
Insurance/Travel
$15K
Clinical Advisors
$15K

Milestones

Mo 6: 3 districts, 3 clinics, 50 consumers. $17K ARR.

Mo 12: 15 districts, 10 clinics, 200 consumers. $112K ARR.

Yr 2: 80 districts, 50 clinics, 1,000 consumers. $620K ARR.

Baseline Data Value

Clinical trials average $36,500/participant (SoFProMed, 2025). Brooks Band generates longitudinal datasets as a byproduct. At 2,000 participants: $1M–$4M/yr data licensing potential.

FAQ

What Investors Ask

Is this an FDA-regulated medical device?
No. Assistive technology (IDEA) and general wellness under FDA Jan 2026 guidance. Does not diagnose or treat. FDA clearance becomes a strategic option in Phase 4+ from a position of revenue strength.
How does student privacy work?
On-device processing. No audio recorded/stored/transmitted. Schools: FERPA via DUA. Clinics: HIPAA via BAA. Strict digital firewall. COPPA compliant. Policies: sensorybridges.com/privacy1 & app-privacy
Why Samsung and Knox Manage?
DoD-level security. Freestanding Mode locks device to Brooks Band app only. No classroom distractions. Samsung Health Sensor SDK for raw biometric data. No proprietary hardware risk.
Who pays in schools?
IDEA Part B federal funds ($15.5B/yr). If AT is in the IEP, school must provide at no cost to families. Platform also unlocks Medicaid revenue — often paying for itself.
What about IP protection?
Multiple patents filed. FTO analysis: low risk vs Phoeb-X (inbound sensory, not outbound voice). Additional filings in development.
How does partner integration work?
Platform API allows partner apps to plug in. System output triggers third-party actions (calming apps, therapy tools). Creates ecosystem value and partnership revenue.
Can the BrooksClip detect voice too soft?
Yes. BrooksClip is the primary voice-capturing device — detects both too loud AND too soft. Covers the full atypical prosody spectrum. Built by UTC College of Engineering.
What’s the competitive landscape?
Revibe (Pearson, Oct 2025) — measures fidgeting, not voice; no IEP/SOAP gen; no HIPAA. Market penetration for wearable voice self-regulation: 0%. Real competitor = manual paper documentation failing for 50 years.
Privacy & Compliance: All audio processed on-device and discarded. No audio recorded/stored/transmitted. Only numeric metrics transmitted. FERPA (schools, DUA) · HIPAA (clinics, BAA) · COPPA compliant · General wellness (FDA) · No data sold for marketing. Privacy Policy · App Privacy

The Opportunity

Building the category-defining platform at the intersection of assistive technology, education compliance, and clinical data — in a market with zero direct competitors.

Pre-seed $500K · Chattanooga, TN · Multiple patents · Samsung partnership · 300+ interviews · 150+ waitlist · $32K+ grants
“With the Brooks Band, we’re not just helping people speak — we are helping them be heard.”