Selena Gomez denies defrauding investors in mental health startup
What's the story
Selena Gomez has denied allegations of defrauding investors in Wondermind, a mental health startup she co-founded with her mother Mandy Teefey and former business partner Daniella Pierson. The denial comes after two companies, Wondermind SRS 44 LLC and Bespoke Wondermind SPV 1, LLC, filed a federal lawsuit in Delaware against the trio and Wondermind itself. They claim to have invested nearly $1.2 million into Wondermind but were "falsely represented" about the company's details.
Legal response
'Completely meritless' claims: Gomez's attorney
Gomez's attorney, Mathew S. Rosengart, has called the allegations "completely meritless, both factually and legally."
He said in a statement to Page Six, "We will vigorously defend these false allegations and indeed are filing a motion to dismiss the baseless claims against her."
The lawsuit alleges that Gomez "ignored" her contractual obligation to "actively build Wondermind as its head of marketing" using her star power.
Allegations
Investors allegedly misled about the platform's profitability
The lawsuit claims that investors were misled into believing that Wondermind had the necessary "infrastructure, leadership, and resources" for a profitable mental health platform.
They allege that "partnerships did not exist, the initiatives never materialized, the app was never built."
The companies accuse Gomez, Teefey, and Pierson of hiding the reality from investors while Wondermind "quietly collapsed" for three years.
Information discovery
Investors learned about issues through a news article
The investors claim they only discovered the company's struggles when The Cut published an article in September 2025.
This article revealed alleged "utter financial and operational disarray" within Wondermind.
Before this, the company had laid off 60% of its staff after employees complained about not being paid for weeks, per Forbes.
A spokesperson for Wondermind had then blamed "growing pains" for these issues.
Co-founders accused
Teefey accused of substance abuse problem
Teefey, 50, was accused of a "long-running substance abuse problem" which allegedly impeded her capacity to run Wondermind, per The Cut article.
The lawsuit also claims she tried to blame Pierson for the company's downfall when investors approached her.
Meanwhile, Pierson is the only defendant named in one count of alleged securities fraud for making "misstatements or omissions" to investors during stock purchases.
She has denied these allegations.