About Us

Life happens – the good and the bad. It is filled with times that delight us and times that leave us wanting for more. And while it can seem like we’ll always have time to achieve our next big thing, what about the moments we know we’re not making the most of? The times we find ourselves weighed down by our thoughts, or only pushing to get through today for whatever comes next? Equa is a scientific method that can change stress psychology in ways to help you get the most out of the moments you’re living in – teaching you how to find relief from discomfort, emotional regulation in times of stress, and increased pleasure across your life.

The story of a person’s life is about so much more than the places they get stuck. Our lives are rich with history, memories, emotions, challenges and good times. So, what blocks our sense of clarity, enjoyment, and that spontaneous nature that allows us to deeply connect? Big and small resistances in your lived experience can build up. Things like minor disagreements, unmet expectations, or major life disruptions can block your ability to find meaning in the small moments, or fulfillment from the things you love most. Equa’s science has shown us how to systematically clear up those mental and emotional blockages.

Equa is not a place to chill out. It is a clinically proven method that teaches you to break through friction and bring out the best version of you.

Equa’s training method was developed over 15 years of research at Carnegie Mellon University by Dr. David Creswell, a psychologist and global authority in the science of meditation, Julianna Raye, a pioneer in mindfulness coaching. Together they built a clinically validated and digitally integrated program that, through a combination of personalized training, live coaching, and interactive learning, helps its users build mental resilience and mindfulness skills that can be deployed anytime, anywhere.

Equa feels like a coach that has your back, but you’re at the wheel. As you steer your way through your own transformative [MP2] journey, it helps you meet your challenges with skill and get more out of the important moments that always seem to pass in the blink of an eye. It teaches you skills to bring yourself fully and completely into the moments playing out right in front of your eyes, so that you can free your best.

Our History

When Carnegie Mellon professor David Creswell, Unified Mindfulness CEO and Head Coach Julianna Raye, and design-innovation student Mathew Polowitz first came together, one thing was certain: A true mindfulness coaching app didn’t exist, and the world needed it more than ever. The idea had formed when David and Julianna were on retreat. What if everyone could have a Coach Julianna in their pockets? Not just to read them scripts – that part was easy – but to ask questions, to get to know her students, and to guide them in ways that would expedite their learning process? Equa started out as a vision to marry science, technique and learning experience design – all to make mindfulness coaching accessible to the world. There were plenty of meditation apps in existence at the time, but what we knew was that one-way MP3’s do not embrace the nuances of teaching that make the biggest impact on students. Like working out, mindfulness practice is inherently challenging. The results are almost intuitively clear. But to get there, learners need motivation, a support system, and constant feedback to help them understand the nuances of how their mental resilience skills are improving through training.

Our Team

Dr. Creswell serves as a tenured associate professor in the Department of Psychology at Carnegie Mellon University. He is also the director of the Health & Human Performance Laboratory at Carnegie Mellon University.

Dr. Creswell’s research focuses broadly on understanding what makes people resilient under stress. Specifically, he conducts community intervention studies, laboratory studies of stress and coping, and neuroimaging studies to understand how various stress management strategies alter coping and stress resilience. For example, he is currently working on studies that test how mindfulness meditation training impacts the brain, peripheral-stress physiological responses, and stress-related disease outcomes in at-risk community samples.

Dr. Creswell’s work has been published in general science, health psychology, social psychology, neuroscience, and medical journals. He was recognized in 2011 as a Rising Star by the Association for Psychological Science, and in 2014 received the American Psychological Association Early Career Award for his scientific contributions to psychology.

Dr. Creswell utilizes the Unified Mindfulness system in his research.

Julianna is founder and head trainer of the Unified Mindfulness Organization, the official teacher training for the evidence-based curriculum that is being leveraged in Equa’s technology. She has over 22 years experience training students privately and in groups, and nearly a decade training coaches in the Unified Mindfulness system to do the same. In a former life, this voice of Equa was a professional singer/songwriter, opening for such notables as Don Henley and Stevie Nicks. She has always loved using her voice and words to help people feel better.

Mathew is an Innovation Fellow at Carnegie Mellon University, where he holds an M.B.A. and an M.S. in Public Policy. He has taught experiential meditation classes for nearly a decade, and has experience building strategic channel partnerships in the high growth tech sector – supporting his former company, Lucid Design Group, to acquisition by the technologies division of Acuity Brands (NYSE: AYI). Outside of Equa, he is lead guitarist and singer for the band Labor Dog.

Ian is a product-minded manager and engineer with 20+ years experience using computer software and hardware to solve problems across the autonomy, consumer, commercial, non-profit, and research markets. Prior to Equa, Ian spent 11+ years leading engineering efforts at Apple, Uber (ATG), and Improbable.

Shawn is a senior software engineer with 8+ years in the entrepreneurial world developing web and mobile applications based on human-centric design. In academia, Shawn taught and/or established a curriculum for weekly workshops pertaining to AI, knowledge technologies, programming, IT project management, and innovation service and design. Shawn specializes in React Native mobile applications, software project management, and product ownership.

About Us

Our History

Our Team

Dr. David Creswell

Julianna Raye

Mathew Polowitz

Ian McCullough

Shawn Fallon

Investors

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