With the shroom boom in full force, there seems to be an endless stream of psychedelic and psilocybin therapy, research, and advocacy companies.
It can be hard to keep track of who is who.
That's why we put together this profile of the top 10 companies leading the way in psychedelic research and innovation.
So, whether you're interested in learning more about psilocybin, advocating for access and legislation reform, or are an investor in psychedelic therapy, this list is a great place to start.
Just click on a link to jump to that section --
The top companies leading psychedelic research & therapy:
- John's Hopkins
- Usona Institute
- Compass Pathways
- Cybin
- Mindmed
- MAPS
- Eleusis
- Centre of Psychedelic Research
- Tryp Therapeutics
- Delix Therapeutics
1. John’s Hopkins
John’s Hopkins has been a leader in the medical field around the world, educating students, scientists, doctors and the general public as well as conducting medical research, clinical trials, and working with patients, always seeking out new treatments for a variety of conditions.
So, it makes sense that given the potential use of psilocybin for multiple mental health conditions, John’s Hopkins was one of the early innovators.
Let's dive into their timeline:
- In 2000, 30 years since psilocybin and psychedelic drugs were classified as Schedule 1, John’s Hopkins was the first to receive approval to resume research.
- 2006 marked a milestone, publishing a research report on the effects of a psychedelic, mystical experience from the use of psilocybin.
- In 2014, they released results from a small study done on longtime smokers to see if psilocybin could help them quit after failed attempts and with other treatments. The results stated that, “abstinence rate for study participants was 80 percent after six months” which really began to spark the interest of the public and regulatory agencies. Could it be? A compound that was ruled out for any medicinal benefits for over 30 years, could help addiction? John’s Hopkins paved the way for this research to continue.
- In 2016, another breakthrough in a study with psilocybin on people with advance-stage, life threatening cancer, stating, “a substantial majority of people suffering cancer-related anxiety or depression found considerable relief for up to six months from a single large dose of psilocybin.” Crazy, right? Just ONE dose changed everything.
- In 2018, they went a step further, understanding that psilocybin has medicinal properties, and proposed that if it clears phase 3 trials, which demonstrate whether or not a product offers a treatment benefit to a specific population, then it should no longer be a schedule 1 drug, but should be a schedule 4 drug, “such as prescription sleep aids, but with tighter control.”
And in the past two to three years, things have significantly heated up.
- In 2019, they conducted a study that suggested psilocybin and psychedelics may help treat alcohol addiction. That same year, the Center for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research was launched by John’s Hopkins and received $17 million in funding.
- In 2020, research continued, offering insight into the way that psilocybin can alter the brain and its role in cognitive health, as well as its ability to relieve major depression.
- And in 2021, they were awarded the first federal grant from the National Institute of Health for the research into psilocybin and its effects on tobacco addiction.
John’s Hopkins has fueled the “shroom boom” as it has made significant advancements in the medical field with the use of psilocybin.
In February of 2022, they released an additional follow up study on the work with psilocybin and major depression, stating that, “psilocybin treatment for major depression effective for up to a year for most patients.”
John's Hopkins releases a seasonal newsletter with insight into their research, industry insights, and more. We highly recommend subscribing for awesome information straight to your inbox.
The long-term effects continue to be evaluated as studies continue, and John’s Hopkins is helping pave the way for alternative treatments for mental health with the use of psilocybin.
2. Usona Institute
The Usona Institute is a non-profit, medical research, organization that conducts and provides support to research and clinical trials to understand the medical and therapeutic effects of psilocybin. The Usona Institute was given breakthrough therapy designation by the FDA in 2019 for its psilocybin program for major depressive disorder.
Usona is unique in that it offers an open-source of information, solidifying its role to truly help new treatments with psilocybin come to light and for others to use their information and research to help propel their own further. It’s most notable with the institute’s Psilocybin Investigator’s Brochure, which details (at great length) their study of psilocybin.
The Institute is currently sponsoring a clinical trial and is in phase 2 for psilocybin and its potential as a treatment for major depressive disorder. The estimated study completion date is stated as June of 2022.
They are also currently recruiting for a clinical trial to explore the effects that psilocybin may have on healthcare practitioners who are suffering from depression or are “burnt out”. This study sparks our interest, as it should everyone, to help provide relief for the work that has been done by healthcare personnel, especially in the wake of the global pandemic.
They are also collaborating on and supporting other clinical trials in the psilocybin field that you can view here.
You can also stay up to date with all clinical trials on Remeday!
3. Compass Pathways
Compass Pathways is a publicly-traded company whose mission is to help find treatments for mental health conditions, largely with the use of psilocybin. Many would say that they were innovators in psilocybin therapy which combines what you may think of as a traditional therapy session, but the patient also goes through a guided/supported session with a dose of psilocybin and then discusses the experience with a licensed professional.
The company has paved the way for a new professional opportunity in the field of mental health, specializing in clinical research, therapist training, and preclinical research.
In 2018, a year before Usona, Compass Pathways was awarded breakthrough therapy designation from the FDA to investigate the use of psilocybin therapy for the treatment-resistant depression.
Most notably to this point is Compass Pathways’ COMP360, a psilocybin therapy that was done on 233 patients in European and North American countries to investigate the effects that it had on treatment-resistant depression. They released Phase 2b data in November of 2021, stating that, “the topline results show rapid and sustained response for patients receiving a single 25mg dose of COMP360 psilocybin with psychological support.”
It was the largest psilocybin therapy study to date and it announced plans to conduct Phase 3 trials in 2022 to focus on larger-scale trials, prior to application for marketing approval and commercial adoption.
There have been a lot of positives for Compass Pathways, though it’s important to understand that drug approval takes a long time. Luckily, the company is ahead of others and we can only hope for continued research to be conducted and more positive outcomes as the hope for psilocybin therapy for depression and mental health begins to become adopted.
They are also currently recruiting for a clinical trial to investigate the effects of COMP360 in patients with post-traumatic stress disorder. We expect this category to break out as it’s estimated that 6% of people will suffer from a form of PTSD in their lifetime, and veterans alone, are often left dealing with this mental health disorder without any means of treatment, which can be the basis for substance abuse, anger, and suicide.
4. Cybin
Cybin is a publicly traded company that is working on a diverse pipeline of psychedelics, exploring psilocybin for the treatment of mental distress in healthcare workers, major depressive disorder, and alcohol use disorder.
EMBARK is their therapeutic model for all clinical trials involving factors consisting of:
- Existential-spiritual
- Mindfulness
- Body-aware
- Affective-cognitive
- Relational
- Keeping Momentum
The company researched 22 different psychedelic-assisted psychotherapies and created EMBARK to be sure to cover all facets of the patient experience during the session in order to provide the best guidance and support possible.
In June of 2021, they announced that they are co-sponsoring a trial with psilocybin-assissted therapy and its effects on healthcare workers, from depression, anxiety, PTSD, and burn out. It is currently in Phase 1.
They are in preclinical and beginning to start Phase 1 trials for their psilocybin based treatment, CBY003, for the use in treating major depressive disorder and alcohol use disorder.
In preclinical trials, CBY003 showed promising results per the company, but the following stages will take time to work through as heavier research begins to be conducted to evaluate its potential as a commercial treatment.
5. Mindmed
Mindmed is another publicly traded company focusing on psychedelics and their use for anxiety, substance abuse, and ADHD. The company is currently investigating different entheogens, like LSD, but is also working with Liechti Labs to further understand the use of psilocybin. Their ongoing work has also discussed the dosing equivalence in LSD and psilocybin and the comparative effects.
Currently, they have no psilocybin-based clinical trials in the works but are in Phase 2a of their “Project Lucy” program which is exploring the effects of hallucinogenic dosing of LSD on anxiety, under the guidance and support of a therapist.
You’ll see this as a common theme. The act of treating mental illness with psychedelics is almost always accompanied by a licensed therapist to further explore the interpersonal feelings that the patients have during the session.
6. Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS)
MAPS was founded in 1986. Their work consists of providing extensive research into the field of psychedelics and the potential for medical use. They have previously done some work designing and funding clinical trials for psilocybin and LSD to help create prescription-based medication for end-of-life anxiety, but now their research is centered most around:
- MDMA
- Marijuana
- LSD
- Ibogaine
- Ayahuasca
They are also avidly training people in the field of psychedelic-assisted therapy, most notably with the administration of MDMA.
MAPS is a true advocate for the use of psychedelics and their research should not go unnoticed. General acceptance by the public can only happen when people are thoroughly educated and MAPS aims to do just that.
7. Eleusis
Eleusis is a company working on its lead drug candidate, ELE-Psilo. Unlike other companies focusing on oral administration of psilocybin, Eleusis is focusing on infusion. Rather than waiting for the human body to metabolize the compound, the infusion of ELE-Psilo is designed to deliver psilocin directly. The company stated that, “as part of the development of ELE-Psilo, we devised a method of stabilizing psilocin in a drug formulation.”
The main goal is to produce a consistent, convenient, and affordable treatment for those that are suffering with major depressive disorder.
The drug is currently in pre-clinical development and looking to move into clinical trials.
8. Centre of Psychedelic Research - Imperial College of London
The Centre of Psychedelic Research provides research on the use of psychedelics in mental health care; and as tools to probe the brain’s basis of consciousness. It’s also looking into other conditions that they may help, like anorexia.
To date, it has led a clinical trial that was monumental in helping to propel the use of psilocybin therapy for the treatment of depression.
9. Tryp Therapeutics
The studies for psilocybin have primarily centered around mental health, but Tryp Therapeutics, a public company listed on the OTC market, is taking a different route, aiming to lead psilocybin drug development for fibromyalgia, phantom limb pain, complex regional pain syndrome, and even binge eating disorder and hypothalamic obesity.
The company’s leading drug, TRP-8802 is a 25mg oral administration of synthetic psilocybin and is currently making its way into Phase 2 of the drug approval process.
Tryp announced in April of 2022 that the first patient in its Phase 2 trial for binge eating disorder has been dosed.
It’s an exciting company to keep track of. We are aware of the current research on psilocybin and mental health, but exploring other conditions is something that gives us even more hope for the compound. Could it be a universal treatment for multiple mental and physical conditions?
We’ll be tracking Tryp closely to see what the data says over the coming years.
10. Delix Therapeutics
Delix is an interesting company on the list. The company is in early stages of development, but is approaching the psychedelic market differently than others.
The company is developing synthetic versions of LSD and psilocybin, but without the hallucinogenic properties.
This will be an interesting company to attract as they want to steer clear of the side effects that patients have with psychedelics, but are hoping to find that even without the hallucinogenic properties, they can still be viable for treatment of various mental health conditions.
Currently, a lot of data does suggest that those that have a “mystical experience” seem to have better results, but until this type of product is tested, we just won’t know.
We look forward to the continued efforts of Delix and an alternative to other forms of psychedelic treatments.
11. The California Institute for Integral Studies Center for Psychedelic Therapies and Research (CPTR)
With all the work being done in the psychedelic space, we need institutions like the Center for Psychedelic Therapies and Research.
Much of the work being done requires the guidance of licensed therapists and psychedelic researchers. That’s exactly what the CPTR is helping with, among being an strong advocate for the industry.
“The goal of the Center's certificate program is to teach licensed psychotherapists and medical professionals and ordained clergy to become psychedelic researchers in the US and abroad. The certificate program has trained over 559 licensed and ordained professionals from 2016 to 2021.”
They are a leading academic provider for this growing industry.
How to stay in the loop
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Know of a company we missed? We'd be happy to profile them. Send us a note here.
Are you looking for a job at one of the leading psychedelic and psilocybin companies? Check out this incredible job posting site we discovered in our research: https://theconscious.fund/psychedelic-industry-jobs/
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