AI in Mental Health Roundtable Report
Report from a national roundtable convened by the Black Dog Institute (24 November 2025, Old Parliament House, Canberra) bringing together 40 experts across mental health, research, government, AI, and lived experience to identify priority issues and knowledge and regulatory gaps in the use of AI in Australian mental health care. It warns that consumers are turning to general-purpose AI chatbots and other non-specialist tools for mental-health support, and that these largely unevaluated and unregulated tools are outpacing research and regulation.
Publisher
Black Dog Institute
Published
9 Feb 2026
Added
1 week ago
DOI
—
Key Findings
- Distinguishes evidence-based, clinician-designed mental-health tools from the direct-to-consumer generative-AI chatbots people actually reach for, and warns the latter are unevaluated and either unregulated or non-compliant with existing requirements.
- Identifies knowledge gaps including limited Australian data on AI use for mental health and a lack of funded, evidence-based evaluation.
- Recommends national minimum safety standards for AI tools in mental health, government-backed safety indicators (a 'compliance' mark or safety-focused benchmark), and national AI mental-health literacy campaigns.
Methodology Notes
Consensus/roundtable report summarising three expert workshops plus lived-experience input; not empirical research. Roundtable held 24 November 2025; report dated 9 February 2026 on the cover. Verified by direct download and full-text extraction of the publisher PDF on blackdoginstitute.org.au.
Sources
Black Dog Institute Roundtable Report (PDF) (primary)
Archived snapshot (Wayback Machine) — preserved against link rot
Tags
Cite This
APA
Black Dog Institute (2026). AI in Mental Health Roundtable Report. Black Dog Institute. https://www.blackdoginstitute.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/BDI_AI-in-Mental-Health-Roundtable-9-Feb-2026.pdf