DOORS AI Presentation at the Easter Seals Greater Houston/Texas Veterans + Family Alliance 2026 Convening

On August 25, our team member, Marie Bong, traveled to Houston, Texas to present on artificial intelligence in the context of mental health and human services at the Easter Seals Greater Houston/Texas Veterans + Family Alliance 2026 Convening to representatives from all of the partner organizations. Throughout the presentation and subsequent discussion section, participants explored the opportunities, risks, and ethical responsibilities associated with incorporating AI into their work, particularly when serving vulnerable populations such as veterans and their families.

The presentation sparked a lively discussion among participants, who voiced a mix of optimism and concern about the technology. Some attendees raised concerns from AI’s potential to reinforce delusional or distorted thinking through sycophancy and the yet unknown long-term of effects of AI use, while others highlighted the technology's potential to improve access to care by lowering cost barriers and by reaching populations who may hesitate to approach a provider due to stigma. Our presenter engaged with both perspectives and discussed the development of resources to address these concerns like our ongoing work to evaluate AI models in mental health contexts (mindbench.ai) and educational/training efforts on safe AI use.

This presentation is part of our Digital Outreach for Obtaining Resources and Skills (DOORS) program, which has been providing digital literacy training to both patients and providers since 2018. As AI tools become more embedded in daily life, DOORS has expanded to address the new questions providers and consumers are asking about technology within and beyond the therapeutic relationship.