Alumna uses artificial intelligence to make talk therapy accessible, affordable Gies College of Business

Making mental healthcare easily accessible to anyone is what led Rima Seiilova-Olson (MSTM '10) to become co-founder of Kintsugi Mindful Wellness, talk therapy software that combines machine learning and voice journaling to tackle stress, anxiety, depression and loss. "There's a big opportunity right now to use artificial intelligence for good. AI is not'summoning the demon' like Elon Musk says. When you're suffering, you need affordable access to help right away," said Seiilova-Olson, who met Kintsugi cofounder Grace Chang at an OpenAI hackathon in San Francisco. They quickly discovered they shared a passion for exploring how technology can help people address their mental health needs. "Some people have expressed their doubts about our idea, but I learned at Gies Business that good ideas often are met with a lot of resistance," said Seiilova-Olson.