Co-Founder, Koko

Rob Morris, PhD is co-founder of Koko, a nonprofit dedicated to ending the youth mental health crisis. Koko works with large social networks to reach young people where they are — online — and provides free digital interventions. Koko has reached over five million people, mostly adolescents, and has worked with many of the world’s largest tech platforms, including TikTok, Pinterest, Tumblr, and OpenAI, among others. Koko is generously supported by Fast Forward, YCombinator, and many philanthropic foundations around the world. In addition to Koko, Dr. Morris was also an Entrepreneur in Residence at Hopelab and he led efforts to modernize AI development at Airbnb.

Dr Morris received his AB in psychology from Princeton University and his master's and PhD from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. At Princeton, he studied under Daniel Kahneman and was the recipient of the E.E. Jones Memorial Prize and the Howard Warren Senior Thesis Prize. At MIT, he helped develop emotionally intelligent AI systems and designed a new form of digital cognitive therapy.

He has published over 30 academic articles on a wide range of topics, such as clinical psychology, digital mental health, AI, and human-computer interaction. Dr. Morris is also an award-winning designer and inventor. His work has been featured in The New Yorker, Wired, NPR, and Fast Company, among others.