UKRI Mindset XR Programme: Transforming Mental Health with Immersive Technology

A £20 million investment aims to revolutionize mental health treatment through Extended Reality (XR) and immersive technologies.

King’s College London’s Immersive Technology For Mental Health Receives £20 Million Investment And UKRI Innovator Support Program.

The UKRI Mindset XR Innovator Support Program, led by the Health Innovation Network (HIN) South London, including a partnership with King’s IoPPN among others, was announced today. This marks a significant step forward in leveraging immersive technologies for mental health treatment and care.

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The full Mindset extended reality (XR) for digital mental health program 2022-2026 is a £20 million investment aiming to treat more people with mental health needs. The investment will be used to develop and scale up emerging digital mental health therapies, including Extended Reality (XR) and other immersive technologies.

Through collaboration with experts across the UK, including at King’s IoPPN, the HIN will deliver a program of innovator support. This includes creating a networking and information sharing platform for potential collaborators and providing advice and expert support to existing and future competition applicants. Additionally, a program of outreach and engagement activities will cover the whole of the UK, including the devolved administrations, facilitating knowledge sharing across a community of practice.

The collaboration brings together UK-wide reach and a set of complementary skills, including service user engagement, clinical research design, regulation, and digital therapeutics. This collaboration is critical to addressing the challenge of bringing immersive tech to our population and staff. As part of this, King’s will collaborate with networks across the country, including Health Innovation North West Coast, Health Innovation South West, and Health Innovation North East and North Cumbria. Other collaborators include Hardian Health, Hill Dickinson LLP, The Health Innovation Research Alliance Northern Ireland (HIRANI), and MQ Mental Health Research.

The UKRI Mindset XR Program represents a significant advancement in mental health treatment, leveraging cutting-edge technology to improve patient outcomes and access to care. This investment underscores the commitment to innovation and collaboration in the field of mental health, paving the way for more effective and accessible treatment options.