AI COMPANION APPS SAFETY TRAINING

Training Overview

In this highly interactive training, we will use discussion questions, real-world case studies, and practice scenarios to help participants understand the growing role of AI companion apps in people's lives and the risks these technologies can pose to safety, autonomy, and wellbeing. Participants will explore how romantic, sexual, and therapeutic AI chatbot relationships are shaping the experiences of survivors, youth, and other vulnerable populations-and what we can do to prevent harm without shame or stigma.

Knowledge Building

• What AI companions are, how they work, and where they're most commonly used
• Why violence response professionals need to understand AI relationships
• How AI chatbot apps can increase emotional dependence, create barriers to disclosure, or simulate manipulative dynamics
• Unique risks of AI therapy apps in mental health clinical care and support
• Real-world risks of AI companions, including targeted grooming, surveillance, and normalization of coercion or abuse
• How these technologies may impact survivors, youth, and people healing from trauma

Skill Building

• How to talk about AI relationships with curiosity, care, and without judgement
• Strategies for identifying when an AI companion relationship may be causing harm
• Tools for digital boundary-setting, safety planning, and emotional risk reduction
• Ways to empower youth while holding tech companies accountable
• Approaches to community education that promote critical thinking and reduce stigma

Who Should Attend

Professionals who are on the front lines of addressing and preventing tech enabled abuse such as:

Advocates, Educators, Law Enforcement, Medical Providers, Mental Health Professionals, Probation, Prosecution, Social Work Professionals, etc.

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