Balancing AI Innovation and Privacy in Mental Health Therapy: A Case Study from Co-Opts

A key barrier to data handling in mental health care is the lack of baseline measurements. Unlike physical health, where vitals such as temperature and blood pressure have provided objective data points for at least a century, existing mental health assessments tend to rely on self-reported and potentially highly subjective questionnaires. To address this thorny challenge, healthtech company Co-Opts is building a trans-diagnostic, pan-treatment intervention for mental health and therapy. Their motivation is to use AI for user empowerment, giving patients ownership of their data.

In this case study, founder Kevin Flanagan, an Expert-in-Residence in The Turing Way Practitioners Hub, describes Sylvie, a digital assistant-sized listening and analysis AI device. The case study also provides insights into their data governance framework that incorporates ethical considerations into their product.

Acknowledgements

This case study is published under The Turing Way Practitioners Hub 2024-25 Cohort - case study series. The Practitioners Hub is The Turing Way project that works with experts from partnering organisations to promote data science best practices. In 2024, The Turing Way team welcomed Kevin Flanagan, founder of Co-Opts, as Experts in Residence to represent interests and opportunities in mental healthcare and EdgeAI. We thank them for their participation in the Practitioners Hub and for leading the development of this case study. 

This work is supported by Innovate UK BridgeAI. The Practitioners Hub has also received funding and support from the Ecosystem Leadership Award under the EPSRC Grant EP/X03870X/1 & The Alan Turing Institute.

The Turing Way Practitioners Hub’s 2024-25 Cohort was co-delivered by Dr Malvika Sharan, Senior Researcher - Open Research and Arielle Bennett, Senior Researcher - Open Source Practices. Stuart Gillespie is the technical editor for this case study. Léllé Demertzi is the Research Project Manager.

The Turing Way Practitioners Hub, designed and launched in 2023 by Dr Sharan, aims to accelerate the adoption of best practices. Through a six-month cohort-based program, the Hub facilitates knowledge sharing, skill exchange, case study co-creation, and the adoption of open science practices. It also fosters a network of 'Experts in Residence' across partnering organisations.

For any comments, questions or collaboration with The Turing Way, please email: turingway@turing.ac.uk.