In 2021, Selena Gomez, her mother Mandy Teefey, and The Newsette founder, Daniella Pierson, launched Wondermind with the goal of making costly mental health tools more accessible.
The media platform’s website, which has a sign-up for its newsletter, describes its origins: “One day, we were all talking about it and realized there was no easy, inclusive space where people could come together to explore, discuss, and navigate their feelings. So we thought, why not make it happen? And Wondermind was born.”
Now, five years after it began, Wondermind and its founders are being sued by investors who claim they pumped nearly nearly $1.2 million into Wondermind Global Inc. after they were fed false promises about the company’s infrastructure, leadership, and resources.
According to a new lawsuit filed on Wednesday, investors were led to believe that a groundbreaking Wondermind app would be made, advertising deals would be struck, and celebrity cover stories were already underway. Instead, the complaint alleges, “for three years, while the Company quietly collapsed around them, not one of its founders, officers, or directors said a word to the investors whose money was funding the collapse.”
The trio and Wondermind are being sued for securities fraud, common law fraud, and breach of contract. The plaintiffs are seeking rescission of their investments in Wondermind, along with damages and costs.
Pierson is the sole defendant in another securities fraud claim, which alleges she made misstatements to investors to encourage their purchases of stock, and is also accused of conversion and unjust enrichment.
Representatives for Wondermind, Gomez, Teefey, and Pierson did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
