7 Cups
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Mental health, Online therapy |
| Founded | July 2013 |
| Founder | Glen Moriarty |
| Products | Anonymous text and voice conversations, group sessions, paid therapy services |
7 Cups (originally known as 7 Cups of Tea) is a digital mental health service that provides anonymous text or voice conversations with trained "listeners" who offer active listening support. This platform caters to both teenagers and adults, featuring complimentary group sessions alongside paid therapy services. Nevertheless, an inquiry by Everyday Health highlighted that the training for listeners is brief and subject to limited oversight.
History
Established in July 2013 by psychologist Glen Moriarty as part of the Y Combinator accelerator, the company later shortened its name from 7 Cups of Tea to 7 Cups. The brand draws its inspiration from a poem by the 9th-century Chinese poet Lu Tong.
Reception and criticism
In April 2025, scrutiny arose when reports indicated that out of more than 130,000 therapist profiles on the platform, only 67 had been verified. A Mashable investigation uncovered that 7 Cups had fabricated therapist profiles without authorization, some featuring incorrect or deceptive details.
According to ChoosingTherapy.com, several profiles seemed to be created by extracting information from external sources and rewording it using AI technologies. Dr. Melissa Boudin, PsyD and Editor in Chief at ChoosingTherapy.com, discovered an unauthorized profile under her name where patient messages were redirected to 7 Cups’ peer support system rather than to her directly. This profile was removed after her intervention.
These discoveries raised significant questions regarding the transparency, ethical standards, and trustworthiness of 7 Cups' therapist listings, as well as potential dangers for users seeking authentic professional help.
Additional analysis by ChoosingTherapy.com showed that 7 Cups connects clients with therapists who are not licensed in the clients’ respective states, which may breach state licensing regulations and mislead users about the credentials of their care providers.