26, co-founder & CEO of Intellect
Many teenagers are clueless about their careers and aspirations, but Theodoric Chew knew early on that he was going to be an entrepreneur. After completing his O-levels at Raffles Institution, Theodoric chose not to further his education and instead went on to set up a global online media publishing platform, which was acquired in 2016.
Back in secondary school, Theodoric battled anxiety and underwent therapy. He benefitted from it, but also saw barriers in the mental healthcare industry such as high costs, accessibility and social stigma. To overcome these, he started Intellect, Asia Pacific’s largest and fastest growing mental health benefits company that provides technology-enabled mental healthcare for the world’s leading workforces. The app provides care not only through self-guided programmes and live professionals virtually, but also offers in-person care for higher-touch needs.
Today, Intellect serves over three million members globally and counts some of Asia’s largest employers, like Foodpanda, SingTel and Shopee, as its corporate customers. It was also named as one of Google’s Best Apps of 2020.
Art Direction: AUDREY CHAN; Photography: JOEL LOW; Hair: BENEDICT CHOO; Make-up: TG GOH; Photography Assistance: EDDIE TEO