Our Mental Health System is Broken — So Let's Build a Better One

It's a conversation I've had more times than I can count — often quietly, sometimes tearfully — shared across boardrooms and kitchen tables, in community centers or through late-night phone calls. A colleague admits they're barely getting by. A parent is concerned that their teen won't get out of bed. A friend says each day feels like walking through quicksand.

And almost every time, the same question comes up: Where do I even start to get help?

In a country as advanced and well-resourced as the United States, finding that answer shouldn't be so difficult. But somehow, it remains elusive to most.

This spring, the American Psychiatric Association reported that 43% of U.S. adults feel more anxious than they did a year ago — up from 37% in 2023. Two out of three of these adults say global events are fueling their stress. Over 60 million Americans experienced a mental health disorder in the past year, but unfortunately, more than half of them went untreated. The numbers are even more alarming among young adults: 36% reported mental challenges, but fewer than half got the care that they needed.

At the same time, the national 988 crisis line handled over 6.5 million calls, texts, and chats in 2023 alone — a staggering 33% increase from the previous year. Yet, many states lack the follow-up systems or infrastructure necessary to provide consistent and meaningful care.

This isn't just a system in need of a few minor tweaks; it's one under immense strain. It's reactive when it should be preventative. Disconnected when it should be coordinated.

As with any broken system, there is an opportunity for entrepreneurs to step in and reinvent the whole thing.

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Loneliness is the hidden epidemic behind the crisis

In 2023, the U.S. Surgeon General issued a powerful advisory, which declared that loneliness and social isolation are now considered to be a public health crisis on par with smoking or obesity. The advisory cited research showing that long-term disconnection can raise the risk of premature death by nearly 30%. Among older adults, social isolation is linked to higher rates of dementia, heart disease, and depression.

But this isn't just a crisis of aging. Half of all Americans say that they feel measurable loneliness, and young people are among the most affected.

Loneliness doesn't just take a toll emotionally on a person — it also impacts the economy. People who experience loneliness are more likely to require costly emergency care and miss work. But the opposite is also true: investing in mental health resources, especially for young people, creates measurable social and economic benefits.

Here's where entrepreneurs come in. Whether it's platforms that create digital communities for older adults, peer-to-peer support apps, or local community health programs that blend human connection with technology. Solutions that build connections are building for long-term resilience. And there's a growing need — and real market opportunity — especially among seniors, caregivers, and those living in rural or underserved communities.

In the past year and a half, a growing wave of daring innovators has begun rising to the occasion.

Take Woebot, for example, an AI-powered mental health chatbot grounded in clinical best practices. It recently completed two peer-reviewed studies showing real improvements in depression and anxiety amongst those who used it. Wysa, another AI mental health tool, earned recognition in a 2024 Nature study for forming "working alliances" with users that mirror relationships to human therapists, leading to measurable mood improvement. Then there's Mindbloom, which offers medically supervised ketamine therapy and is quickly scaling by pairing this cutting-edge science with digital-first, accessible care models.

These aren't just apps. They're the early glimpses of an entirely new care ecosystem. One that's digital, distributed, data-informed and urgently needed in our society.

But the opportunity isn't just about building convenience or better technology. It's about meeting a massively underserved population who are waiting for tools that are inclusive, affordable, and relevant to the realities they are living every day.

Related: How Following These 5 Practices Saved My Mental Health

A 2025 survey from Doctor On Demand found that 40% of Americans missed work or school last year due to stress or financial anxiety. These aren't uncommon cases. They're everyday students, parents, essential workers, and business owners. They are your coworkers. Your neighbors. Your family members. And they're ready for solutions that actually fit their lives..

For entrepreneurs committed to affecting real change to address or broken mental healthcare system, this is how you can start moving from idea to impact:

Build for access, not just convenience

Too many startups focus on making mental health tools "easy to use" for already-connected users. However, the real opportunity lies in designing tools for individuals and groups who have been historically left out. Specifically, those in rural areas, low-income communities, contract workers, newcomer families, or other households with limited connectivity. One thing to ask yourself is: Does your solution work on an old smartphone? Can it function on slow wi-fi connections? Can it help someone who has no therapist, no employer benefits, and no backup plans?

Partner before you scale

The most impactful mental health ventures don't start by selling direct-to-consumer. They begin by building trust through real and meaningful partnerships. These partnerships can be with schools, community health centers, nonprofit organizations, or primary care worker networks. These partnerships can give you credibility, early users, and critical feedback that shape your product into something people actually need before it goes to a wider consumer audience. Don't just build for people — build with them.

If you're not including people with lived experience in your design process, you're missing the mark. Bring in individuals who have experienced first-hand the system's failures. Hire advisors with lived experience. Test your tools in communities that are most often left out. And bring in clinical experts early in your process, because in mental health, trust matters more than clicks.

Related: Drawing the Line Under Mental Health

Think in systems, not just features

You're not shipping just a product. You're filling a system that is full of gaps. Wearables that track cortisol levels are great in theory, but can this technology integrate with school health records or workplace wellness programs? An AI chatbot platform that can flag suicidal thoughts and ideations is powerful and vital, but only if there's a clear path to real, human care afterwards. Build for the broader system and infrastructure, not just the fancy features.

The capital is there, but intention matters

In 2024 alone, U.S. mental health startups raised over $7 billion. There is no shortage of funding. But what's needed now is clarity of purpose.

Entrepreneurs must resist the temptation to chase trends like quick-fix wellness fads that come and go, and instead root their work in empathy, science-based evidence, and long-term solutions. Investors are paying attention to this. So are employers. So are policymakers in the government. And most importantly, so are the millions of people silently waiting for someone to finally create a product that truly works for them.

This isn't just a crisis. It's a crossroads. And while it's a significant humanitarian issue, it simultaneously presents one of the biggest entrepreneurial opportunities of our time. Not because there's profit to be made from human suffering, but because there is scale in healing.

Let's move past trying to patch the old, broken system. It's time to reimagine what real mental health care can look like. Let's meet people where they are — not just on their screens, but in their communities, their cultures, and their daily lives.

And if you're an entrepreneur, this might just be your moment to build something great.