Myndgard, Bridging the gap in mental healthcare through AI-powered passive tracking

The brief

The global mental health crisis is compounded by a critical bottleneck: the “waiting room.” Millions of people suffering from depression and anxiety face months-long waitlists for professional care. During this period, patients often receive no support, and their conditions can deteriorate. Traditional mental health monitoring also relies heavily on subjective “spot-checks” during rare therapy sessions, which may not capture the nuances of a patient’s daily life or early warning signs of a relapse.

The goal

A spin-out from Trinity College Dublin, Myndgard set out to transform the “waiting period” into a proactive “assessment period.” The goal was to build a digital platform that uses Artificial Intelligence and passive data to provide a continuous, objective view of a user’s mental wellbeing.

By giving both clients and therapists real-time insights, Myndgard aimed to enable swifter interventions, reduce therapist burnout, and improve long-term clinical outcomes.

The solution

The team developed a sophisticated mobile application that blends traditional clinical metrics with cutting-edge behavioural analysis:

• Passive data tracking. With user permission, the app monitors behavioural markers such as movement, location patterns, and social interaction. This creates a “behavioural model” of the user’s everyday life without requiring manual input.
• Clinical integration. The app supplements passive data with gold-standard clinical questionnaires (PHQ-9 for depression, GAD-7 for anxiety) to validate its AI-driven predictions.
• Therapist dashboard. For “Myndgard Pro” users, the platform generates detailed pre-therapy reports, allowing clinicians to see patterns in sleep, productivity, and mood before the first session even begins.
• On-demand support. While on waitlists, users receive personalised feedback and mindfulness tools to maintain hope and develop self-awareness.

The outcome

Myndgard has successfully shifted the paradigm from reactive to preventive mental healthcare:

• Efficiency gains. The platform is projected to double the number of patients a single clinic can support without increasing headcount, by streamlining the assessment process.
• Early detection. The AI algorithms can identify signs of declining mental health or potential relapse before the user is even consciously aware of them, allowing for timely corrective action.
• Validated acceptance. Clinical trials (including one with UCD students) showed that delivering therapy insights via mobile devices is highly acceptable to younger demographics, who are more comfortable sharing digital data.
• Reduced burnout. By providing therapists with a “head start” on data, the platform reduces the administrative and diagnostic burden, allowing them to focus on high-impact therapeutic work.

“The era of the mobile phone brought great opportunities to break down barriers… Myndgard is creating a space where individuals can have a tangible, objective understanding of their mental well-being.”

Dr. Edel Crehan, Co-Founder & Senior Clinical Psychologist, Myndgard