How homegrown tech helps solve mental health crisis
A family loss inspired the founder of software platform Talked to offer thousands of Australians access to high-quality care online.
Talked co-founders Ben Southall and Vincent Lau plan to expand the business into employee assistance programs.
Alexandra Cain
Pandemic pressures, personal experience and a background as a software engineer led Ben Southall to set up Talked, a software platform through which Australians can easily book an online appointment with a psychologist. The business has placed in the 2025 Financial Review Fast 100.
“We lost a family member and I saw firsthand how hard it was to get mental health support. That was back in 2021 and at that time there was a lot of talk about mental health. But there was no platform that really combined the technology with high-quality care,” says Southall, who established the business with his co-founder, Vincent Lau.
