The American Psychological Association (APA) brought together psychologists, innovators, healthcare leaders, investors and policymakers for its Inside the Lab conference in Austin, Texas, on 14–15 October 2026. Centred on the theme “Where psychology meets innovation – live and in action”, the event provided an opportunity to explore the challenges and opportunities shaping the future of digital mental health.
Representing the eMental Health International Collaborative (eMHIC), we were honoured to contribute to APA’s Spark Session, which showcases new ideas and emerging approaches. Our presentation, “Getting It Right by Design: Policy, Strategy and the Future of Scalable Digital Mental Health”, explored the importance of identifying and addressing blind spots in the rapidly evolving digital mental health landscape.
Advancing Quality and Trust in Digital Mental Health
One of the highlights of the conference was learning more about the APA Digital Badge programme and the clinical and technical assurance work underpinning the initiative. As digital mental health services continue to expand, initiatives that support quality, safety and trust have an important role to play in strengthening confidence among clinicians, health systems and the people using these services.
It was particularly encouraging to hear from colleagues at Soluna by Kooth, PlaySpace and Cora, who have successfully navigated the badge programme, and to see their pride in achieving this recognition.
The conference also explored several important tensions facing the sector: Evidence vs. Speed, Scale vs. Personalisation, Innovation vs. Trust, and Access vs. Quality. These considerations are central to the development and implementation of digital mental health solutions, particularly as organisations seek to expand access while maintaining clinical quality and responding to diverse individual needs.
The discussions reinforced the value of bringing together expertise from across psychology, technology, healthcare, policy and investment to inform how these challenges are approached in practice.
Leadership and Cross-Sector Collaboration
A particularly strong takeaway was the active participation of APA board members throughout the event. Their engagement demonstrated APA’s commitment to innovation at the governance level and the importance of leadership in guiding the responsible development of digital mental health.
The depth and quality of discussion among participants was equally encouraging, particularly the engagement with these issues from a clinical practice perspective. Inside the Lab created space for different sectors to share experiences, examine assumptions and consider how emerging approaches can be implemented responsibly and at scale.
For eMHIC, these conversations closely align with our commitment to advancing digitally enabled mental health through international collaboration, knowledge exchange and shared learning.
We extend our sincere thanks to Tanya Carlson, MBA, and the APA team for their leadership and dedication in bringing together such an engaged and diverse community.
The insights and connections from Inside the Lab provide valuable momentum for continued dialogue on the policy, strategy, governance and collaboration needed to shape the future of digital mental health.
