Dubai startup taps VR to tackle global health crisis

Arabian Business

02-05-2025

Dubai-based startup X-Technology is launching a virtual reality platform aimed at delivering scalable emotional and cognitive healthcare, targeting a fast-growing global market for digital mental health solutions.
Founded by entrepreneur Nargiz Noimann, the company is piloting its VR-based therapy tools in the UAE, with plans to expand across the MENA region and Europe.
VR revolutionising mental healthcare
The platform, designed in collaboration with medical specialists, addresses conditions such as Alzheimer's, cancer-related stress, and trauma recovery — tapping into a mental health market projected to surpass $38 billion by 2025. X-Technology also sees growing demand from insurers and employers seeking scalable, AI-powered tools for preventive and rehabilitative care.
'We are not just launching a business – we are delivering a system solution to a field that urgently needs an update,' Noimann told Arabian Business in an exclusive interview.
'Emotional health remains underserved, especially when it comes to scalable, technology-based support,' she said.
Noimann said they believe and are confident that there is great 'need and opportunity' for such an idea at a time when healthcare systems across the globe seek scalable, human-centred innovations.
She said their venture uses virtual reality (VR) to support emotional recovery, trauma rehabilitation, and cognitive resilience for patients facing serious health challenges.
Experts believe the venture, if able to prove scientifically effective and tech-based scalability, could turn out to be a big success amidst the rising pool of patients and individuals facing major medical and mental conditions.
Mental health market revenue is projected to reach over $38 billion in 2025, with average per-person revenues estimated at $65, according to Statista.
According to Alzheimer's Disease International, the number of people living with dementia worldwide is projected to reach 78 million by 2030 and 139 million by 2050, with the fastest growth occurring in developing regions.
Platform designed in collaboration with psychologists, medical specialists
X-Technology's AI-powered VR platforms are aimed at supporting patients with cancer, Alzheimer's disease, and mental health conditions where emotional and cognitive care are critical but often under-resourced.
Besides, the platforms are designed in collaboration with psychologists and medical specialists to make it highly effective and fool-proof.
The platform programmes include guided memory exercises and cognitive stimulation programmes for Alzheimer's patients, stress and anxiety management tools for cancer patients undergoing treatment and trauma recovery environments for individuals recovering from emotional distress.
Noimann said many healthcare systems still rely on traditional one-on-one therapy models, which can be costly, inconsistent, and difficult to scale – particularly for aging populations and post-trauma recovery.
'We are facing a mismatch between need and delivery. Healthcare systems are strained, and emotional health is too important to be sidelined,' she said.
The X-Technology founder said immersive VR can offer patients structured support and a greater sense of agency, even when human resources are limited.
Accessibility, emotional immersion, scalability
Noimann said X-Technology's model is built around three core principles – accessibility, emotional immersion and scalability.
The startup will deploy VR programmes at scale in hospitals, rehabilitation centres and home care settings for wider accessibility, while its platforms are designed to create VR environments that drive deep engagement and accelerate learning, cognitive stimulation, and emotional regulation.
The venture uses AI integration to adapt programmes to individual users and extend therapy beyond traditional settings for faster scalability.
Noimann said beyond its healthcare applications, X-Technology also sees opportunities for innovation in the insurance industry, where digital therapies are increasingly integrated into policies.
She said with insurance programmes that include digital therapy growing at 20–25 per cent annually, X-Technology is positioning itself to align with the next generation of preventive health models.
'Our technologies are not just clinical – they are becoming part of how organisations think about employee health, insurance offerings, and proactive care.'
Besides expansion across the UAE, X-Technology plans to enter major markets in the region, such as Saudi Arabia and also Germany or Switzerland over the next few years.
Palliative care and oncology rehabilitation are projected to make up 25–30 per cent of the company's portfolio.
The startup also plans to build a portfolio of 5–7 partnerships with insurance companies and medical networks.
'We are scaling thoughtfully,' Noimann said, adding that 'our priority is to build meaningful, sustainable partnerships that align with long-term improvements in cognitive and emotional healthcare delivery.'
She said technologies like VR, once seen as futuristic, are now vital tools for human-centred healthcare innovation as the global population ages and mental health challenges continue to rise, creating the need for flexible, evidence-based solutions.
'We are just at the beginning… the question for the next decade is not whether digital tools will be part of healthcare – but how thoughtfully and humanely they will be designed.
'Our work is about keeping emotional wellbeing and cognitive health at the centre of that future,' Noimann said.
Meanwhile, X-Technology's efforts to position itself at the forefront of a new era in mental health, education, and emotional resilience, also adds to the UAE's ambitious plans to emerge as a major global hub for talents, investments and innovations.