10 Startups Addressing Domestic Violence

Person holding purple ribbon for domestic violence.

Domestic violence has always been a problem, but instances increased substantially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Under the best of circumstances, victims often have a hard time leaving their abusers for many reasons. 

Thankfully, countless startup companies have been addressing domestic violence with technology, AI, and more to help abuse victims. From legal advice to temporary housing, these are the top startups addressing domestic violence. 

Disclaimer: With so many exciting startups launching and growing worldwide, we aren’t able to cover them all. Furthermore, the startups that are listed below are not officially ranked and are listed in no particular order.

Companies Addressing Domestic Violence

1. FreeFrom

Location: Los Angeles, California
Funding: Grant, $150,000

FreeFrom founder and CEO Sonya Passi has been a domestic violence activist since she was 16 years old. She launched her startup in 2016 to transform the domestic violence movement, paying particular attention to financial security and long-term safety for survivors. To help survivors support themselves and their families, FreeFrom provides them with entrepreneurship training. Participants receive pro bono legal advice, marketing advice, mentoring, and website and logo help.

2. LadyDriver

Location: São Paulo, Brazil
Funding: Seed, $500,000

Gabriela Corrêa created São Paulo startup LadyDriver after a cab driver harassed her outside a bar. Terrified and unsure what to do, she knew she wanted to protect other women from the same fear. In response, she created LadyDriver, a Brazilian car-hailing app that only accepts women passengers and only has women drivers. With hundreds of thousands of users, it’s clear the ladies appreciate the app. 

3. Paladin

Location: New York, New York
Funding: Series A, $9.9 Million

While justice tech company Paladin wasn’t created specifically to help survivors of domestic violence, it is helping them significantly. Paladin is a portal that brings together legal teams looking to help vulnerable communities gain legal representation through pro bono work. According to co-founder Kristen Sonday, the program was beneficial for victims of domestic violence who had to isolate themselves with their abusers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

4. SANEsuite

Location: Albuquerque, New Mexico
Funding: Unknown

Domestic abuse can happen in many ways, including physical, emotional, sexual, and financial. No matter the circumstances, survivors almost always suffer mental pain after the incident. Albuquerque startup SANEsuite provides technological solutions to help empower survivors of domestic abuse and better equip the professionals who serve them. In addition, SANEchart provides a cloud-based no-cost solution for healthcare professionals documenting patients’ conditions following sexual assault. 

5. Hello Cass

Location:  Melbourne, Australia
Funding: Self-Funded

Australian startup Hello Cass is a short message service (SMS) chatbot that provides domestic abuse survivors with discreet access to information and support. The non-profit offers guidance on safety planning, counseling, the legal system, and more. Further, the app allows victims of abuse to ask questions anonymously and receive relevant information in an empathetic manner. 

Feeling inspired? Learn how to launch your company with our guide on How to Start a Startup.

6. VictimsVoice

Location: Princeton, New Jersey
Funding: Unknown

Social impact startup VictimsVoice is making it easier to process domestic violence incidents. The Princeton-based company provides a simple, legally admissible way for victims to document incidents in a complete, consistent, secure, and private manner. Their app, “VictimsVoice Progressive Web App,” guides users through a series of questions to collect pertinent information and make it admissible in a US court of law. Victims may also upload videos and images if they choose. 

7. GuardDV, Inc.

Location: San Juan, Puerto Rico
Funding: Unknown

Security app GuardDV is a proximity detection device for homeless survivors of domestic violence. The app allows for automated enforcement of protection orders, warning the potential victim and the appropriate law enforcement agencies of the physical proximity of an aggressor. The company aims to increase situational awareness for survivors, allowing them to avoid high-risk situations that may result in physical or emotional harm.

8. Safelet

Location: Amsterdam, Netherlands
Funding: $42,000, Crowdfunding

Created by Dutch company Everfind, Safelet is a safety bracelet that allows the wearer to send out an alert whenever they feel they’re in danger. It can be activated much faster than a mobile phone and offers essential information to those on the receiving end of the emergency alert. Users must download the Safelet app, which pairs the bracelet with their smartphone, and choose who to alert (friends and family or the police). When the bracelet is activated, it sends a message with the user’s exact location to their “guardians” and starts recording audio data. 

9. Bisoxual

Location: Fayetteville, North Carolina
Funding: Unknown

Fayetteville startup Bisoxual sells socks—mismatched socks, to be exact. The socks come in sets of three, each with its own unique pattern so that you can wear them in three different combinations. Founder Jen Adair started the company to honor her best friend, a domestic abuse warrior, who died in 2020. The company donates a portion of every sale to the Northwest Arkansas Women’s Shelter.

10. BestyBnB

Location: Kansas City, Missouri
Funding: Seed, $2 Million

Midwest startup BestyBnB is helping domestic violence survivors across the country find temporary housing for their fur babies while they seek shelter from an abusive relationship. The company allows partnered domestic abuse shelters and other charitable organizations to search for animal caregivers in their network. They currently work with numerous shelters in Missouri and are working on expanding across the US. 

Recommended: Check out our full list of the top startups to watch!