HVMN Ketone IQ vs Sprint: 5 Nootropic Alternatives

HVMN Discontinued Sprint and Pivoted to Ketones: 5 Modern Cognitive Performance Alternatives

HVMN started as Nootrobox in 2014, a nootropics company built on the promise of better focus through smarter supplementation. Sprint was the flagship: a capsule combining caffeine, L-theanine, and panax ginseng, designed for fast-acting mental clarity. If you're searching for HVMN Ketone-IQ expecting a nootropic, you'll find something very different. The company rebranded as Ketone-IQ in May 2024, and the entire product line now revolves around exogenous ketones, not cognitive focus stacks.

Sprint's old product URL (hvmn.com/products/sprint) now redirects to the Ketone-IQ homepage. The nootropic era is over. So what should former Sprint users, and anyone looking for an HVMN alternative, actually buy?

That depends on what you're optimizing for. Below is a side-by-side of five modern cognitive performance products, plus Ketone-IQ itself for context.

HVMN Alternatives: Quick Comparison

Product	Key Actives (per serving)	Format	$/Serving	Best For
Roon	80 mg caffeine, 60 mg L-theanine, 25 mg methylliberine (Dynamine), 5 mg theacrine (TeaCrine)	Sublingual pouch	~$1.67	Fast-onset focus without jitters or tolerance buildup
Mind Lab Pro	Citicoline 250 mg, lion's mane 500 mg, bacopa 150 mg, L-theanine 100 mg, phosphatidylserine 100 mg + 6 more	Capsule (2/day)	~$2.30	Long-term memory and neuroprotection
NooCube	Bacopa 250 mg, L-theanine 100 mg, L-tyrosine 250 mg, VitaCholine, huperzine A, Lutemax 2020 + more	Capsule (2/day)	~$2.17	Stimulant-free daily cognitive support
Vyvamind	Caffeine 75 mg, L-theanine 150 mg, citicoline 200 mg, L-tyrosine 300 mg, B6, B12	Capsule (2/day)	~$2.50	Caffeinated focus with a clean 2:1 theanine-to-caffeine ratio
Onnit Alpha BRAIN	Proprietary blends (L-theanine, oat straw, alpha-GPC, huperzine A, bacopa, L-tyrosine, phosphatidylserine)	Capsule (2/day)	~$1.78	Caffeine-free flow state support
Ketone-IQ	10 g R-1,3-butanediol (exogenous ketone)	Liquid shot (2 oz)	~$3.60	Endurance athletes and metabolic energy (not a nootropic stack)

Prices reflect current retail or subscription rates from each brand's website and Amazon listings. Now, the details.

The HVMN Sprint Story: From Nootropics to Ketones

Nootrobox appeared on Shark Tank in Season 8, pitching chewable coffee cubes and nootropic capsules. The founders, Geoffrey Woo and Michael Brandt, rebranded as HVMN (Health Via Modern Nutrition) in June 2017 and reformulated their supplement line. Sprint became the attention product: 200 mg caffeine, 200 mg L-theanine, and 400 mg panax ginseng in its final iteration.

But the company's interest was already shifting. In 2018, HVMN products were tested with United States Special Operations Command as part of Operation Tech Warrior. That work centered on ketone esters, not nootropics. By 2019, HVMN phased out its Go Cubes to focus on Ketone Ester. Sprint and the rest of the nootropic line quietly disappeared from the catalog.

Today, the company operates as Ketone-IQ. It secured a $6 million contract with the U.S. Department of Defense, launched in Sprouts Farmers Market nationwide in 2023, and signed a three-year partnership with Visma-Lease a Bike, a top UCI WorldTour cycling team. The pivot is complete. Ketones are the business.

What HVMN Ketone-IQ Actually Does (and Doesn't Do)

Ketone-IQ delivers 10 g of R-1,3-butanediol per shot, a ketone precursor your liver converts to beta-hydroxybutyrate (BHB). This provides an alternative fuel source for your brain and muscles, bypassing glucose metabolism.

The research on exogenous ketones and cognition is real but specific. A 2025 systematic review and meta-analysis covering 29 studies found that exogenous ketone bodies may support cognitive function, though most positive results appeared in populations with mild cognitive impairment or Alzheimer's disease, not healthy adults looking for sharper focus during a workday.

For endurance athletes, the value proposition is clearer. Ketones provide a sustained metabolic fuel source during prolonged exercise, which is why cycling teams and military units use them.

The takeaway: Ketone-IQ is a metabolic energy product. It's not a nootropic stack. If you want what Sprint was trying to deliver, faster reaction time, sustained attention, reduced mental fatigue, you need a different category of product entirely.

5 HVMN Sprint Alternatives Worth Considering

1. Roon

Roon is the closest modern analog to what Sprint was trying to be: fast-onset cognitive performance in a portable, single-serving format. But the formula takes a different approach.

Each sublingual pouch contains 80 mg caffeine, 60 mg L-theanine, 25 mg methylliberine (Dynamine), and 5 mg theacrine (TeaCrine). The caffeine and L-theanine pairing is well-established. A 2008 study published in Nutritional Neuroscience found that L-theanine combined with caffeine improved both speed and accuracy on attention-switching tasks at 60 minutes and reduced susceptibility to distracting information in memory tasks.

What separates Roon from Sprint's old formula is the addition of methylliberine and theacrine, two purine alkaloids structurally related to caffeine. A 2021 study in Cureus found that the combination of caffeine, TeaCrine, and Dynamine increased cognitive performance and reaction time in adult male e-gamers without interfering with mood. And theacrine specifically shows resistance to tolerance. An 8-week clinical trial found no evidence of habituation at doses up to 300 mg/day, meaning it kept working at the same level throughout the study.

The sublingual delivery format matters, too. Compounds absorbed through oral mucosa skip first-pass liver metabolism, reaching the bloodstream faster than capsules that need to dissolve in your stomach.

Price: ~$1.67 per pouch (takeroon.com).

2. Mind Lab Pro

Mind Lab Pro is the opposite design philosophy from Sprint. Where Sprint was a quick-hit focus tool, Mind Lab Pro is a daily-driver capsule with 11 ingredients aimed at long-term brain health.

The formula includes 250 mg citicoline (as Cognizin), 500 mg lion's mane, 150 mg bacopa monnieri (24% bacosides), 100 mg L-theanine, and 100 mg phosphatidylserine, among others. There's no caffeine. The pitch is cumulative cognitive support that builds over weeks, not acute focus you feel in 10 minutes.

At $69 per bottle (30 servings), it's a premium option. It's genuinely good at what it does, but it doesn't replace Sprint's use case. You won't feel a noticeable onset. You'll notice, maybe after a month, that recall is a bit sharper and mental stamina holds up better through long days.

Best for: People who want a long-term neuroprotective stack and don't need acute stimulation.

3. NooCube (Brain Productivity 3.0)

NooCube is another stimulant-free capsule, built around acetylcholine support. The formula includes 250 mg bacopa monnieri, 250 mg L-tyrosine, 100 mg L-theanine, VitaCholine (a bioavailable choline source replacing alpha-GPC in the v3.0 formula), huperzine A, and Lutemax 2020 for visual processing.

At ~$2.17 per serving, it sits in the middle of the price range. The ingredient list is solid for memory and general cognitive clarity. Like Mind Lab Pro, it's not trying to give you an immediate energy hit. The huperzine A inclusion is interesting; it was also in HVMN's original Sprint formula before the reformulation, where it was dropped in favor of ginseng.

Best for: Users who want stimulant-free daily support with an emphasis on memory and visual clarity.

4. Vyvamind

Vyvamind is the most Sprint-like capsule on this list. It combines 75 mg caffeine with 150 mg L-theanine (a 2:1 theanine-to-caffeine ratio), plus 200 mg citicoline, 300 mg L-tyrosine, and vitamins B6 and B12.

The formula is clean and transparent, with no proprietary blends. At $74.99 for 60 capsules (30 servings), it runs about $2.50 per day. The caffeine content is moderate, and the theanine dose is generous enough to smooth out any jitteriness. L-tyrosine at 300 mg supports dopamine production under stress.

The downside compared to Sprint's original intent: it's still a capsule, so onset takes 30-45 minutes. And at $2.50 per serving, it's one of the pricier options on this list.

Best for: People who liked Sprint's caffeinated approach but want a more complete formula with choline and tyrosine support.

5. Onnit Alpha BRAIN

Alpha BRAIN is probably the most recognized nootropic brand in the U.S., partly because of Joe Rogan's long-running endorsement. The formula uses three proprietary blends (Onnit Flow Blend, Focus Blend, and Fuel Blend) containing L-theanine, oat straw, alpha-GPC, huperzine A, bacopa, L-tyrosine, and phosphatidylserine.

The biggest criticism: those proprietary blends hide individual ingredient doses. You know the total blend weight but not how much L-theanine or alpha-GPC you're actually getting. A 90-count bottle lasts 45 days at $79.95 retail, putting it at roughly $1.78 per serving.

Alpha BRAIN does have one published clinical trial showing improvements in verbal memory in healthy adults, which is more than many nootropics can claim. But the lack of dose transparency makes it hard to evaluate whether you're getting clinically relevant amounts of each ingredient.

Best for: People who want a caffeine-free, brand-name nootropic and are comfortable with proprietary blends.

Ketones vs. Nootropics: Different Tools for Different Jobs

The question "Is Ketone-IQ a good HVMN alternative?" depends on what you were buying HVMN products for.

If you were a Sprint user looking for focus and reaction time, Ketone-IQ is not a replacement. Exogenous ketones provide metabolic fuel. Nootropic stacks modulate neurotransmitter activity, attention, and alertness. They're fundamentally different mechanisms.

That said, they're not mutually exclusive. You could stack a ketone shot with a nootropic pouch or capsule. Ketones for sustained metabolic energy during a long training session or fasted morning; a nootropic for the cognitive sharpness you need at your desk. The research on ketones and brain metabolism supports their role as an alternative fuel source, while the research on caffeine-theanine combinations supports their role in attention and task performance. Complementary, not competitive.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why was HVMN Sprint discontinued?

HVMN (originally Nootrobox) gradually shifted its focus from nootropic supplements to exogenous ketones after partnering with the U.S. Department of Defense on ketone ester research. By 2019, the company had phased out its nootropic line, including Sprint, Rise, Kado, and Yawn. The company rebranded entirely as Ketone-IQ in 2024, making the pivot official.

Is Ketone-IQ a nootropic?

No. Ketone-IQ contains 10 g of R-1,3-butanediol, an exogenous ketone precursor. It provides metabolic energy by offering your brain and muscles an alternative fuel to glucose. It does not contain neurotransmitter modulators like L-theanine, caffeine, or alpha-GPC. The research on ketones and cognition is most promising in populations with cognitive impairment, not as an acute focus tool for healthy adults.

What is the best HVMN Sprint replacement?

For the closest match to Sprint's original purpose (fast-acting focus with caffeine and L-theanine), Roon and Vyvamind are the strongest options. Roon adds methylliberine and theacrine for extended duration and delivers sublingually for faster onset. Vyvamind adds citicoline and L-tyrosine in capsule form. Both outperform Sprint's final formula in ingredient diversity.

Can I stack Roon with Ketone-IQ?

Yes. Ketone-IQ provides metabolic fuel (exogenous ketones), while Roon provides neurotransmitter-level cognitive support (caffeine, L-theanine, methylliberine, theacrine). They operate through different mechanisms and are complementary. If you're training fasted or need both physical endurance and mental sharpness, using both makes sense.

Does theacrine cause tolerance like caffeine?

Evidence suggests it does not. An 8-week clinical trial of TeaCrine at doses up to 300 mg/day found no evidence of tachyphylaxis (diminishing response over time). This is one of the key differences between theacrine and caffeine, which produces measurable tolerance within days of regular use.

How does sublingual delivery compare to capsules?

Sublingual absorption bypasses the digestive tract and first-pass liver metabolism, delivering active compounds directly into the bloodstream through the oral mucosa. This typically results in faster onset (minutes vs. 30-60 minutes for capsules) and can improve bioavailability for certain compounds. It's the same delivery route used in clinical settings for medications where speed matters.

Is Alpha BRAIN better than Mind Lab Pro?

They target different outcomes. Alpha BRAIN uses proprietary blends (undisclosed individual doses) and focuses on flow state and verbal memory. Mind Lab Pro discloses all 11 ingredient doses and emphasizes long-term neuroprotection. Mind Lab Pro is generally considered more transparent and evidence-based, but Alpha BRAIN has a published clinical trial supporting its specific formula.

Related from Roon

The Modern Evolution of What Sprint Started

Sprint had the right idea in 2017: portable, fast-acting cognitive performance with a clean ingredient list. The execution was limited by the format (capsules are slow) and the formula (caffeine plus L-theanine is a good start, but it's only two active mechanisms).

The products that have emerged since Sprint's discontinuation reflect five more years of research: more active mechanisms, more transparent dosing, and delivery formats that actually match the speed users were looking for. Whether that means a sublingual pouch, a capsule with choline and tyrosine support, or a stimulant-free daily stack depends on what you were optimizing for in the first place.

For former HVMN customers wondering where the nootropic side of the brand went: it did not disappear. It fragmented into a more competitive category, with more options and higher ingredient standards than Sprint ever had.

Where Sprint's Formula Ends and Roon's Begins

Sprint was a two-mechanism product: caffeine for alertness, L-theanine to soften the edge. That combination works, and the research behind it is solid. But it leaves a gap in duration and tolerance resistance that a two-ingredient stack can't close on its own.

Roon was built to close that gap. The sublingual pouch delivers 80 mg caffeine, 60 mg L-theanine, 25 mg methylliberine, and 5 mg theacrine through the oral mucosa, bypassing the digestive delay that made capsule-based nootropics feel slow. Methylliberine accelerates onset. Theacrine extends duration without the tolerance curve caffeine builds within days. The result is 6 to 8 hours of focus that doesn't require dose escalation to maintain.

Roon is not a substitute for Ketone-IQ, and it is not a long-term neuroprotective stack like Mind Lab Pro. It is a fast-acting cognitive performance tool for people who need to be sharp at a desk, not just fueled for a training session. If that is what you were buying Sprint for, Roon is worth a look.