Health Strategy Lab 2026 Conference:
Developing Safe and High Quality AI for Mental Health
Where clinicians and technologists come together to improve Mental Health AI
Thanks to everyone who joined us — the 2026 conference has passed. We'd love to keep you in the loop for what's next.
How do we define a standard for responsible mental health AI?
AI is quickly being integrated into mental health care, yet the field is still working on defining norms and best practices. No single group can answer this alone. Clinicians, patients, AI technologists, and researchers each see part of the picture, and the best answers will come from working through it together.
Three conversations that matter
Three focused sessions on designing, evaluating, and maintaining mental health AI.
Designing Mental Health AI
What should clinicians expect from the systems they're being asked to adopt? What do builders need to understand about clinical workflows, therapeutic relationships, and the populations these tools serve? What makes an AI system actually work in a clinical context? This session covers what goes into building mental health AI that fits real workflows, respects therapeutic relationships, and serves diverse populations.
Dr. Steph Peters· Moderator
Evaluating Mental Health AI
How do you tell whether an AI tool is clinically effective, not just technically functional? What should clinicians look for, and what should developers be measuring? Technical performance metrics aren't enough, but clinical intuition isn't either. This session focuses on what it takes to rigorously assess whether an AI tool is clinically effective, safe and impactful.
Dr. Myra Altman· Moderator
Ongoing Quality Assurance
Once a system is live, who's watching? How do we catch drift, bias, and failure modes before patients are affected — and what role should clinicians play in that process? Launching is just the beginning. AI systems drift, populations change, and edge cases emerge. This session addresses how to monitor and maintain mental health AI over time, and why that process works best when clinical and technical perspectives work together.
Dr. Matt Scult· Moderator
Hosting the conversation
Dr. Myra Altman
Digital Health Advisor/Co-Founder
Health Strategy Lab
Dr. Steph Peters
Director of AscendRural Innovation Lab/Co-Founder
Health Strategy Lab
Dr. Matt Scult
Principal, Clinical AI, Grow Therapy/Co-Founder
Health Strategy Lab
Meet the experts
Each speaker brings expertise bridging clinical practice and technology innovation in mental health. Click "Read bio" to view a speaker's full bio.
Sarah Adler, PsyD
CEO/Founder
Wave Life
Shirali Nigam, MBA
CEO & Co-Founder
Circuit Breaker Labs
Ash Duncan, LCSW, AASW, CFSW
Clinical Product Specialist, AI & Quality
Grow Therapy
Jungsuk Jay Lee
Head of Product
ThroughLine
Dr. Kay Nikiforova
Co-Founder
Safer AI Use
Dr. Michelle Eisenberg
Head of Clinical
Throughline
Chris Hemphill
Head of Modular Feedback/Co-Founder
Safer AI Use
Maitreyee Joshi
Founder and CEO
Avon Health
Dr. Caitlin Stamatis
Head of Research
Slingshot AI
Health Strategy Lab was founded by three psychologists and technology builders who share a conviction that the most lasting progress in digital health happens when stakeholders across the ecosystem, including clinicians, researchers, engineers, and patients, come together in honest, evidence-driven conversation. Their mission is to bridge those communities and turn shared insight into tools and practices that meaningfully improve people's lives.