From left: Orygen Digital AI Research Fellow Dr Isabelle Scott and Chief of Orygen Digital Professor Mario Alvarez-Jimenez.
The next generation of personalised and collaborative mental health care for young people has been given a major boost this week, with the announcement of major new funding from Wellcome for an Orygen Digital supported project to make AI-enhanced youth mental health care a reality.
AI4You(th) will be led by Dr Isabelle Scott from Orygen and the University of Melbourne, in close partnership with Orygen Digital researchers and engineers, and will develop and evaluate a new AI system called SensAI designed to support both young people and clinicians with more personalised and collaborative mental healthcare.
Chief of Orygen Digital, Professor Mario Alvarez-Jimenez, said the new funding was a prime example of how Orygen continues to lead the world in shaping the future of youth mental health care.
“Wellcome is one of the world’s most prestigious health research funders, and this grant positions Orygen and Orygen Digital at the forefront of global research on generative AI in youth mental health,” Professor Alvarez-Jimenez said.
“This work will help build the AI capabilities we need to power the next generation of Orygen’s digital services, including MOST – our flagship digital mental health platform – and future service models.
“And importantly, as always this work will be co-designed with young people and grounded in real services – staying true to Orygen’s long tradition of combining research, innovation and clinical care.”
Dr Scott said that in a world where AI has enormous potential but also raises legitimate concerns, particularly for young people, it is both exciting and important to be at the forefront of work focused on ensuring these technologies can be leveraged safely and effectively for youth mental health.
“We often hear negative stories about AI and its impacts on the next generation, but at the same time young people are already using these technologies, and we're seeing enormous potential across healthcare and more broadly,” Dr Scott said.
“With this project, we're focused on getting that balance right: improving AI so it can be genuinely safe and effective for young people.
"We will develop and test novel methods to improve generative AI itself, enhancing its capacity for personalisation, agency, transparency, safety and collaboration – qualities that young people have told us are essential if AI is to genuinely benefit them in mental health settings.
“These methods will be embodied in SensAI, an AI collaborator designed to support both young people and their clinicians, providing personalised, continuous support between clinical contacts.”
The project will develop and test SensAI over a 2-year period, laying the groundwork to explore how safe, ethical and effective generative AI methods can be integrated into Orygen Digital's suite of sector-leading care innovations such as MOST.
About Wellcome: Wellcome supports science to solve the urgent health challenges facing everyone. They support discovery research into life, health and wellbeing, and they're taking on three worldwide health challenges: mental health, infectious disease and climate and health.