Gijs Coppens
Dutch entrepreneur and clinical psychologist
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Gijs Coppens is a Dutch entrepreneur, engineer, and clinical psychologist who founded the mental health practice iPractice and the mental health technology company OpenUp.[1][2][3][4]
- Entrepreneur
- Psychologist
- Engineer
Gijs Coppens | |
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| Born | 1981 (age 44–45) |
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Education
Coppens initially studied engineering at Delft University of Technology before training to be a clinical psychologist at Tilburg University.[3][4]
Career
After graduating from Tilburg University, Coppens had his own psychology practice in Amsterdam.[4] He also served as a mental health psychologist at the hospital Onze Lieve Vrouwe Gasthuis (OLVG).[5]
In 2007, Coppens founded the LED lamp manufacturer Ledzworld in Malaysia.[4] The challenges he encountered while leading the company inspired him to pursue a degree in psychology at Tilburg University.
Next, Coppens founded the online mental health practice iPractice in 2019, enriching traditional therapy with chat therapy.[5][6][7][8][9]
He retained a minority stake after Smile Invest acquired a majority stake in the company in 2025.[6][10] Coppens also founded OpenUp in 2020 with as founding-investor Dutch entrepreneur Floris Rost van Tonningen.[1][2]
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Coppens appeared in a number of publications and interviews to provide his opinions, as an expert clinical psychologst.[11][12][13][14][15]
For his work with OpenUp, Coppens received the Entrepreneur of the Year Award from Ernst & Young in 2023.[16][17][14]