The use of AI to help internet users with online bullying and mental health issues has taken a step forward with Yahoo! Japan Corporation recently announcing that they will be using AI to monitor abusive comments and automatically remove comments deemed to be harmful.
Utilizing AI to detect harmful phrases and words used to target others is part of a wider effort by Yahoo! Japan Corporation to combat online abuse and includes enforcement measures such as banning offenders from the platform and will even extend to banning those users who try to open new accounts after being banned for previous offenses.
In an effort to ensure transparency and freedom of expression, Yahoo! has said they will be accepting inquiries and complaints from users who have been banned or have had posts removed.
Recent developments in AI have also seen improvements in identifying internet users who may be showing signs of depression, self-harm, or suicide. One particular example of this was Facebook introducing AI in 2017 in an effort to improve how it could identify users who were showing signs of depression or suicidal tendencies but who were not being identified and reported by other users. Recent advancements mean their AI program is now capable of recognizing and responding to these users directly, offering support options including resources for help and ways to connect with loved ones.
Today, these AI tools mostly use pattern recognition to identify signals like comments asking if someone is okay and then quickly report them to our teams working 24/7 around the world to get people help within minutes. In the future, AI will be able to understand more of the subtle nuances of language, and will be able to identify different issues beyond suicide as well, including quickly spotting more kinds of bullying and hate.
Mark Zuckerberg, CEO, Facebook
The range of AI support tools and features being developed for mental health and wellbeing is increasing. We launched an AI-powered smart assistant in early 2019, and it is now widely considered the benchmark for scalable and sustainable support solutions. Cybersmile Assistant uses AI to provide immediate geo-targeted advice and support in all English-speaking countries around the world, while drastically reducing support costs and wait times. Thanks to machine-learning capabilities, Cybersmile Assistant gets smarter and more intuitive the more it is used.
We believe strongly in the capabilities and power of AI. We have experienced firsthand from Cybersmile Assistant, our own AI support product, that in addition to providing solutions to problems of scale and sustainability, it can also be cost-effective and an unparalleled source of crucial data for quality and efficiency of service.
Dan Raisbeck, Co-founder, The Cybersmile Foundation
With AI playing an increasingly important role in detecting user behavior and addressing issues such as online abuse and harassment, the development of these new tools could significantly impact how we use the internet in the coming years.