Amy was diagnosed with a rare stage IV cancer in the prime of her life while studying at Singularity University (SU) at NASA, known for empowering leaders to positively impact the world with exponential technology. Puzzled by how quickly she went from marathon runner to cancer patient within a year, Amy researched stress and investigated combining nano-biosensors and music for nonintrusive stress management. The day after her first eight-hour chemotherapy and radiation treatment, she received enthusiastic validation for the project from SU faculty, classmates and community members via standing ovation. She had to put the project on hold while undergoing intensive treatment for a year. During her recovery, she rediscovered her childhood love of music, dance and art, forgetting how sick she was.
In 2013, she attended BJ Fogg’s Stanford Design for Dance conference. Amy was intrigued by Fogg’s belief that dance is a powerful behavior change tool yet was dismayed by its low utilization in health care despite extensive research; she left her high-paid corporate job to build Dance4Healing (D4H, AI behavioral telehealth). Her expertise includes AI research, human-centered design and behavioral strategy for AT&T, Yahoo!, Sony and VW, with work featured in The New York Times and on Gizmodo, NBC and Yahoo! Amy’s work has earned AT&T multiple patents. She is a board member of the nonprofit Humanity+, with work mentioned in Time. It advocates for the ethical use of technology, and as a minority disabled immigrant woman, she is committed to addressing AI bias that increases health disparity.
