Can AI Fill the Void in Mental Health Services?

Q: You have previously discussed how Yana uses cognitive behavioral therapy techniques to help users identify and challenge negative thoughts. How has Yana’s approach to addressing these negative thoughts evolved over time?

A: While our core mission remains the same, our approach has evolved alongside technological advancements. From the start, Yana was designed as a chatbot—an uncommon choice at the time—using structured decision trees to help users work through negative thoughts.

With the integration of AI, Yana can now engage in more fluid, responsive, and personalized conversations, offering a deeper understanding of how users think and feel in the moment. Instead of following rigid, predefined pathways, Yana adapts to each user’s responses, recognizes patterns in their thinking, and helps them challenge cognitive distortions in a way that feels natural and intuitive.

This evolution allows for more tailored, real-time support, making it easier for users to break negative thought cycles and develop healthier perspectives in their daily lives. While cognitive behavioral therapy remains at the core of Yana’s approach, AI has made the experience far more engaging, adaptive, and effective.

Q: With the proliferation of AI assistants like ChatGPT, many people are seeking psychological advice from tools that are not designed for therapy. How does Yana compete against this trend?

A: A person can talk about their problems with their best friend or with a therapist. Someone who has the privilege and ability to pay for therapy chooses one because therapists have specialized training that a friend, acquaintance, or family member does not. A therapist is specifically trained to guide conversations in a way that facilitates meaningful progress. In other settings, the individual seeking support typically leads the conversation. In therapy, the ability to be guided through the process is essential. This is why Yana is designed to manage and facilitate such conversations, even when dealing with sensitive topics.

In contrast, ChatGPT is a general-purpose tool. While it excels in many areas, it is not specifically designed for mental health support. As long as this remains the case, companies like ours that apply AI to specific, purpose-driven solutions will have an advantage. Yana offers much more than just conversational experiences — it integrates additional elements tailored to its purpose. Unless general AI platforms pivot to a dedicated mental health focus, they will struggle to compete with specialized platforms built from the ground up with this objective in mind. Expertise, safety considerations, and a deep understanding of mental health dynamics make a significant difference in delivering meaningful and effective support.

Q: How has Yana’s user base evolved and how does it reflect changes in the approach to mental health?

A: We have reached a total of 16 million downloads since our launch. On average, about 30% of our monthly downloads come from returning users who are people who already have an account and are coming back to Yana to address a new issue.

The usage cycle has evolved but remains largely consistent. Users tend to seek help from Yana when facing a specific challenge. This explains the gap between total downloads and registered users, as we have about 12 million registered users.

We have observed changes in our user base since introducing a paid model in January 2024. Previously, the majority of our users were teenagers. Today, teenagers account for about 30% of our active users, while the remaining 70% are 18 and older. To us, this shift indicates that barriers to accessing mental health tools are gradually decreasing.

Q: What trends have you observed in the types of mental health issues that users are seeking support for through Yana?

A: In these matters, human nature remains the same: people continue to face stress, work-related issues, relationship challenges, and family conflicts. We have not noticed a significant shift in the types of concerns people bring to Yana now compared to five years ago. However, the concern that has consistently remained at the top is low self-esteem.

More than anxiety, depression, or stress, low self-esteem is the top reason users turn to Yana. From a broader perspective, this trend can also be linked to the increasing use and adoption of social media. There is a clear correlation between social media usage and the prevalence of self-esteem issues among our users due to the constant comparison and exposure to public judgement.

Q: What role do you foresee AI taking in the mental health sector in the coming decade?

A: There is a significant gap between the demand for mental health care and the resources available. Existing services are already overwhelmed, with too few therapists per capita. Even if there were enough therapists, many people would still be unable to afford or access care, as mental health is often not considered an essential service.

AI can help bridge this gap by providing support to those who need it, despite the shortage of human professionals or lack of resources. However, this does not mean that the role of therapists will disappear. Instead, their responsibilities may evolve.

Even individuals receiving professional therapy could benefit from AI-powered support alongside their sessions. At Yana, one of our long-term goals is to integrate AI into mental health care in a way that complements therapists' work. AI has certain advantages: it has perfect memory, remains emotionally neutral, and can identify trends and patterns more efficiently than a human. Meanwhile, therapists possess qualities that AI cannot yet replicate, though technology evolves rapidly, human interaction will likely always retain a unique value. 

Q: What would be the best approach when integrating this technology into mental health care services?

A: A hybrid approach could be highly effective. For example, a therapist might see a patient once a month or every two weeks, while AI provides ongoing support in between. This collaboration could help identify patterns more quickly, lead to faster diagnoses, and shorten treatment durations. Instead of requiring two years of therapy to achieve results, a combination of human and AI support might reduce that timeline to four months, making treatment more intensive and effective. 

Moreover, as AI systems learn from more interactions, they could further refine their capabilities, potentially reducing treatment times even further. This synergy between therapists and AI has the potential to improve mental health care accessibility and efficiency without replacing the human element — rather, it will enhance and expand the profession.

Q: What are Yana's primary goals for 2025 and what would you say to those who are hesitant to adopt AI?

A: Our global expansion remains a key priority. In 2025, one of our main goals is to establish a strong foothold in English, French, and Portuguese-speaking markets, ensuring that Yana is accessible and culturally relevant to a broader audience. We aim to increase adoption in the U.S., Canada, France, Brazil, and other key regions where mental health awareness is growing, but access to support remains limited.

Beyond expansion, we are focused on deepening user engagement and enhancing Yana’s capabilities. We plan to introduce new features that foster not just individual mental health support but also collective well-being, reinforcing the idea that mental health is not only personal but also social. Our recently launched Support Circle feature is just the beginning of this shift toward community-driven mental health care.

We are also committed to advancing Yana’s personalization, ensuring that users receive more meaningful, relevant interactions tailored to their needs. This includes better emotional tracking, improved conversational depth, and more adaptive interventions based on user behavior.

To those hesitant about AI, I’d encourage them to see it as an ally, not a threat. AI is not here to replace human expertise but to augment and enhance our abilities, making support more accessible, efficient, and scalable. The more we learn to use AI as a companion tool, the more skilled and effective we become—whether as professionals, individuals seeking support, or communities striving for better mental well-being.

While the future of AI continues to evolve, one thing is certain: it is here to stay. The key is not to resist it, but to shape it in ways that empower and uplift us.

Yana is an AI-powered emotional companion designed to provide mental health support in an accessible, empathetic, and engaging way.