🫠 This Week in Psychedelics

Welcome to Tricycle Day. We’re the psychedelics newsletter that likes to check our email in phases. Phase 1: delete all the junk. Phase 2: read the important stuff. Phase 3: send gushing love notes to everyone who replies to our newsletter. 😘

Here’s what we got this week.

• Compass Pathways hits its primary endpoint 🎯

• Natural Medicine Alaska submits ballot initiative 🗳️

• Colorado governor pardons psilocybin crimes ⛓️‍💥

• Unlocking creative thinking with psychedelics 💡 

FROM OUR SPONSORS

Still buzzing from Psychedelic Science?

PsyCon Las Vegas is coming this October. If you thought Denver was wild, wait till you see what happens when the psychedelic community descends on Sin City.

Like last year, there will be 100+ speakers sharing breakthrough research, innovative treatment protocols, and practical business advice.

That’s why PsyCon attracts the pioneers who are actually building this movement, not just talking about it.

Early birds get the best rates, so book now before the FOMO sets in.

Take 25% off tickets with code TRICYCLE25.

MICRODOSES

🔬 Research

Longevity medicine: LSD extends lifespan in preclinical studies.
Grindset mindset: Psychedelic therapy can help entrepreneurs manage the mental health challenges of running a company.
Synthetic love: In line with studies of traditional ayahuasca, “pharmahuasca” can enhance mindfulness and compassion.
Crisis management: People who used psychedelics throughout the COVID-19 pandemic actually experienced improvements in mental health.
We’re so early: Less than 30% of survey respondents considered themselves “very” or even “somewhat” familiar with psychedelics’ potential as mental health treatments.

🏛️ Policy

It’s all so tiresome: Despite challenges from advocates, a DEA judge has formally recommended placing research chemicals DOI and DOC on Schedule I.
Follow the money: Whistleblowers claim the 2024 Massachusetts ballot initiative to legalize psychedelics violated campaign finance laws.
Home is where the mushrooms are: The future of psychedelic regulation is local.
Try it before you prescribe it: A federal judge has ruled that Health Canada’s refusal to let healthcare professionals participate in experiential training with psilocybin was unreasonable.
Sweet as: New Zealand has approved the medical use of psilocybin for depression.

📈 Business

The businessman’s trip: Psychedelic biotechs are racing to turn 5-MeO-DMT into a pharmaceutical.
A little on the nose: Filament Health has obtained the data and IP rights from a clinical study of psilocybin for cocaine use disorder.
Harm reduction reduction: A drug testing company issued a cease-and-desist letter to the founder of DanceSafe for distributing purity test kits with similar tech to its own.
G’day, mate: Australia’s largest private health insurer has committed $10 million to fund MDMA-assisted therapy.
Dying to make a difference: Healing Hearts Changing Minds launched a $500,000 fund to support psychedelic end-of-life care and is now accepting applications.

🫠 Just for fun

I spy: Colorado Public Radio snapped some photos from Psychedelic Science 2025.
Banned on Instagram? It may have been an inside job.
It’s only fair: The founder of Telegram says he’ll split his $13.9 billion fortune evenly among his more than 100 children.
Not-so-pale blue dot: Courtesy of the European Space Agency, enjoy ten stunning images of our home planet.
Meme of the week: When you go back to your corporate job after PS2025…

THE PEAK EXPERIENCE

Light at the endpoint of the tunnel

It’s the moment you’ve* all been waiting for, Cyclists.

(*By “you,” we mean fellow psychedelic medicine nerds who refresh their news feeds for data readouts like kids tracking Santa on Christmas Eve.)

After years of delays, Compass Pathways just released the first positive Phase 3 results for any classical psychedelic. And investors responded by *checks notes* selling off 36% of the stock…?

Apparently, hitting your primary endpoint isn’t everything these days. Hmm.

On Monday, the British biotech announced that its synthetic psilocybin treatment, COMP360, successfully separated from placebo in treatment-resistant depression, which is exactly what they’d hoped for.

Here's what their 258-patient trial showed.

• 🎯 Nailed it: 3.6-point improvement on depression scores vs placebo at 6 weeks

• 📊 Stats don't lie: Highly significant results with a p-value under 0.001

• 🛡 Safety first: Clean safety profile with no concerning suicide signals

• 💊 One and done: Single-dose treatment that could fit into existing clinic workflows

3.6 points might not sound like a lot, but that’s right in line with the data that got Spravato approved back in 2019. And remember, we’re talking about treatment-resistant depression—i.e., people who've already tried (and been failed by) multiple antidepressants. That's a notoriously tough population to move the needle on.

Wall Street's lukewarm reaction probably reflects the limited nature of the readout. Compass only shared the primary endpoint data, choosing to keep the juicier details under wraps until their larger COMP006 trial completes in late 2026.

Still, for an industry that's been holding its breath since the FDA rejected MDMA therapy last year, any Phase 3 win feels like progress.

Not sure what investors were hoping for… actual magic? 🫠

AFTERGLOW

The last next(?) frontier

Alaska is officially done watching the Lower 48 use psychedelics from the sidelines. Natural Medicine Alaska just submitted their ballot initiative to legalize psilocybin and certain other psychedelics for the 2026 election. The group officially began gathering signatures last week and needs just 100 to kick off the certification process.

Alaska's approach builds on Colorado's model but goes a bit further. The initiative would create a "grow, gather, gift" framework for personal use and allow practitioners to provide therapy in their offices and homes (not just healing centers). It also establishes protections for Indigenous medicine practices and requires facilities to be majority Alaska-owned. Ibogaine, with its safety risks, is specifically excluded from personal use; the initiative instead calls for specialized treatment centers.

Sure, it’s still early, but Alaskans do seem on board with the proposal. A 2023 poll found that 49% of Alaskans support decriminalization, and that figure jumped to 65% when psychedelics were framed as a mental health treatment. By 2026, voters will have seen how other states' programs play out, so for America's wildest state, voting 'yes' might just be the tamest choice on the ballot.

Go now, you are forgiven

Justice is a dish best served cold warm, with love and compassion. On that note, Colorado Governor Jared Polis announced at Psychedelic Science 2025 last week that he's pardoning all state-level convictions for psilocybin possession. Makes sense, since these crimes would be perfectly legal today under Colorado's natural medicine program.

The pardons apply to a whopping four Coloradans. The surprisingly low number must reflect the narrow scope of the Executive Order, which covers only state-level simple possession cases for adults 21 and older. (Most psilocybin cases were probably handled at the local level or bundled into other charges.) Nevertheless, Polis's office worked to identify everyone who qualified, and the pardons are automatic.

Even though we’re only talking about a handful of people, this is still more than a symbolic gesture. The pardons remove real barriers to employment and housing for people punished under laws that voters later rejected. And Polis hinted that more could come as Colorado tags on ibogaine, DMT, and mescaline regulations. Cool, now can POTUS do the same?

CYCLISTS’ PICKS

• 🎨 Creative workshop: Next Tuesday, Laura Dawn is leading a free workshop with DoubleBlind on psychedelics and creative cognition, so you can learn how to dream bigger and think sharper.

• 🎧 Psychedelic therapy tool: PsySonics’ new sound healing kit, designed for clinicians and psychedelic practitioners, is 75% off (for life) until July 1.

• ☕️ Mushroom gummies: Mojo’s microdose gummies won’t make you trip, but they do promote focus, energy, immunity, and gut health. Take an extra $5 off an already mega-discounted Starter Kit with code TRYMUSH5.

• 🪞 Art book: Fans of Alex Grey (or visionary states in general) ought to flip through Sacred Mirrors every now and then. Never hurts to brush up on your spiritual anatomy.

UNTIL NEXT TIME

That’s all for today, Cyclists! Whenever you’re ready, here’s how we can help.

ONE CYCLIST’S REVIEW

Forwarded this email? Subscribe here.

DISCLAIMER: This newsletter is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for professional medical advice. The use, possession, and distribution of psychedelic drugs are illegal in most countries and may result in criminal prosecution.