Biography
Katya de Freedericksz is a growth strategist, startup mentor, and Innovation Lead at 28DIGITAL, a pan-European innovation ecosystem connecting startups, corporates, investors, and research. She specializes in go-to-market strategy, growth experimentation, customer acquisition, fundraising, investor storytelling, and positioning. Over the past 10+ years, she has helped more than 250 founders turn ideas into scalable ventures. She mentors for leading accelerators including Techstars, Google for Startups, Seedstars, and 2080 Ventures, supporting startups across AI, SaaS, ClimateTech, and EdTech. Katya has also worked with organizations including the United Nations, the IOC, EIT, helping founders validate ideas, achieve product-market fit, scale revenue, and become investor-ready.
Session
- AI For GoodModerator
Panel 7 - Healing or Hooking? AI's Double Edge on Mental Health & Wellbeing
Tuesday 22 September, 14:45 – 15:25Panel StageSame AI, two opposite stories. On one side: AI therapy companions making mental health support 24/7 and accessible, mood-tracking that catches a crisis early, mindfulness coaches in your pocket, generative tools that help people process trauma. On the other: recommendation systems wired to maximise screen time, dopamine engineering disguised as engagement, attention economies that reward outrage, and AI companions that quietly replace human connection. Where does the line sit between AI helping us thrive and AI hooking us into something that costs more than it gives? Builders, clinicians and behavioural scientists argue out what 'wellbeing' should actually mean in an algorithmic world — and who pays the bill when it goes wrong.