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Paola Telfer

Our passion is for technology-assisted brain training and personal development.

To feel their best and live their best life, people need to train their brains and control their state (their way of being). Sens.ai provides the technology and training that people need to make it happen faster.

Tell us about yourself?

I am a serial tech entrepreneur with a passion for harnessing technology for human performance, resilience, and longevity. I am the CEO and Founder of Sens.ai, a neurotechnology company with the mission of making mental thriving a part of everyone’s every day. After a motor vehicle accident, I experienced the power of neurofeedback and recognized how it not only helped me recover but also enhanced peak performance and deepened meditation. I discovered that advanced brain training was extremely impactful and made it my mission to make it accessible to everyone.

I have an Electrical Engineering degree from the University of British Columbia and an MBA in the Management of Technology from Simon Fraser University.

If you could go back in time a year or two, what piece of advice would you give yourself?

Each step of the creation process is beautiful. Enjoy!

What is the inspiration behind your business?

One of the best-kept secrets amongst elite performers, biohackers, and personal growth enthusiasts is that personalized neurofeedback brain training can accelerate the development of a brain that is flexible and optimally functioning. To access this type of training, you would previously need to visit a neurofeedback clinic (usually 20 plus times) and/or pay $15,000 for a five-day neurofeedback intensive. It was expensive, necessitated travel, involved the tedious application of sticky paste to the scalp, and required people to take time away from their everyday routine to access it. But for many, the positive, life-enhancing gains from this type of brain training were worth it. Typical anecdotal reports included greater focus, cognitive performance, enhanced well-being, emotional stability, and new levels of resilience and inner confidence. Over the last 50 years, hundreds of research studies have been conducted using neurofeedback and have found it to help improve the quality of life and symptoms in people with a variety of health conditions, including traumatic brain injury, OCD, ADHD, and anxiety.

Until now, personalized neurofeedback has been inaccessible and unaffordable to the majority of people. As an electrical engineer and someone who has had a meditation practice from a very young age, once I saw how the brainwaves reflected the various meditation styles, I was hooked!

Sens.ai aims to democratize ‘unshakeable happiness’, what some might call ‘enlightenment’, with neurotechnology. Our fulsome technology stack is catalyzed by neurofeedback, which leverages how humans naturally learn. The bar we have set for ourselves is a scientific vehicle for unshakeable happiness that is reproducible, measurable, and scalable. We have embedded subjective and objective metrics for continuous progress. We are excited for the journey towards this ultimate goal, which will undoubtedly yield an increase in mental well-being, creative insight, and social harmony for those willing to invest the minimum of 20 minutes three times per week.

What is your magic sauce?

In 2018, my co-founder and I, supported by leading neurofeedback experts, including Jay Gunkelman, one of the most highly respected pioneers of neurofeedback, embarked on a mission to design and build the world’s first home-use, high-integrity, four-in-one brain training system that integrates not just neurofeedback but three other innovative neuromodulation technologies: transcranial photo biomodulation (light stimulation), heart coherence training, and event-related potentials (ERPs). After thousands of hours of development, refinement and testing, what emerged is the Sens.ai headset, App, and brain performance assessment device, GeniusPulse. It doesn’t compromise on signal fidelity or ease of use. We are bringing many firsts to market and have a healthy patent family to match.

What is the plan for the next 5 years?

Sens.ai envisions a community of people passionately dedicated to training their brains to enhance their life. For those willing to complete the deeper missions and levels of training, the possibilities are truly extraordinary, as these are designed to unlock the superconscious mind – an aware state of being suffused with well-being, wholeness, and wisdom. Not only is this a source of extraordinary happiness, but it is a dimension of human beings that is innately compassionate. People living super consciously, thriving, and doing good; this is our highest vision for the world.

What is the biggest challenge you’ve faced so far?

Focus. A common trait I see in those starting out is founders being unfocused and just doing too many things, burning lots of hours, often with little or no return. We have developed technology that is different to many for many different purposes. We cannot do everything. Sometimes it is hard to say no. But we have to focus on our mission and getting it right. When I was starting out, I thought I could do everything and hedge my bets! When leaders don’t focus, they will inevitably lead their team into stress and even burnout. It takes confidence to say no.

How can people get involved?

To learn more about Sens.ai, head to our website, www.sens.ai. Delivery on pre-orders is just around the corner.