WSJ Tech News Briefing · Sep 26, 2026
With Jon Cohen, CEO of Talkspace
Talkspace, a listed company that connects people with mental health providers online, launched an AI chatbot called Tee this summer. Its chief executive, Jon Cohen, said Tee is not therapy and complies with the laws in all 50 states.
Several states now restrict AI therapy, and some start-ups have dropped the word from their marketing while others embrace it. Cohen said he would rather deal with one federal law than 50 state ones, and that it is his competitors who should be nervous.
"I'm not worried about what we built — I think other people are worried about what they built, because they don't have the safeguards that we put in place, quite honestly."
Jon Cohen, CEO of Talkspace, on WSJ Tech News Briefing. He runs a publicly traded company whose business is putting people in touch with human mental health providers online, and he has now launched an AI chatbot beside it.
The full segment is covered here so you can skip it.
Here are the 5 arguments that matter.
Key Takeaways
Talkspace's chatbot Tee is not therapy, Cohen said; it serves people who have not asked for professional help
He wants one federal law instead of 50 state ones, and says Tee already complies in every state
He said other companies are worried because they lack Talkspace's safeguards
Tee has HIPAA-type protections, not HIPAA protection, because the law covers only live human care
Patients already bring their chatbot conversations to their psychiatrists, so Talkspace plans to let them send sessions to their therapist
AI may never replace therapy, because therapy is not a question-and-answer exchange
1. Tee Is Not Therapy
The episode is the last part of The AI Therapist, a series from the Journal's What's News podcast, which ran on Tech News Briefing. The host set out how companies label these products. Slingshot AI's Ash is "AI designed for mental health" on its website, and a start-up called Harmony calls itself the first emotionally intelligent AI therapist. Talkspace launched Tee earlier this summer, and Cohen was clear with the host that it is not therapy.
Tee serves a different group of people
"It's a different population of people seeking a different type of conversation than a person who's actually seeking Talkspace for therapy." — Jon Cohen
He said going to therapy is a different leap: the moment a person recognizes they have a problem and wants professional help.
Tee users have not asked for professional help
"These are people who haven't said they want professional help. They just want to talk to somebody. It's different." — Jon Cohen
