In a reflection of the increasingly common use of artificial intelligence, Google today announced a series of updates to Gemini to help when users ask about mental health issues. The company believes that “responsible AI can play a positive role in people’s mental well-being.”
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When a conversation “indicates a potential crisis related to suicide or self-harm,” Gemini will now display a “one-tap” interface to connect users to helpline resources with options to call, chat, send a message, or visit a website. Once enabled, this card will remain visible throughout the conversation. The responses are designed to “encourage people to seek help.”
If a conversation suggests that the user “may need mental health information,” Gemini will display a redesigned “Help is Available” model. It was developed with clinical experts “to provide more effective and direct connections to care.”
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Overall, Google is training Gemini models to “help identify when a conversation may indicate that a person may be in an acute mental health situation” and direct them to real resources.
The responses are designed to “encourage help-seeking while avoiding validating harmful behaviors like impulses to self-harm.” Additionally, Gemini has been trained “not to agree with or reinforce false beliefs, but instead to gently distinguish subjective experience from objective fact.” For younger users, Google has additional protections.
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Finally, Google.org today announced $30 million in funding over three years to help global helplines increase their capacity.
