Facebook Turns to AI for Assistance in Suicide-Prevention Efforts

Vice president of product management Guy Rosen announced in a Newsroom post that Facebook will:

• Use pattern recognition to detect posts or Facebook Live videos in which people may be expressing suicidal thoughts and to more quickly respond to reports.
• Improving how it identifies appropriate first responders.
• Dedicating more reviewers from its community operations team to review reports of suicide or self-harm.

Rosen said Facebook has worked with first responders on more than 100 wellness checks over the past month spurred by reports it received via its “proactive detection efforts,” adding, “We also use pattern recognition to help accelerate the most concerning reports.