HAI-Team
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Human–AI Teaming Therapeutic Companion for Torture Survivors with PTSD
Jacqui Gratton · Freedom from Torture · United Kingdom
Other team members:
- Kolbassia Haoussou - Lived Experience Director, Freedom from Torture
- Katy Robjant - National Director of Clinical Services, Freedom from Torture
- Eleanor Gillam - Clinical Project Coordinator and EA at Freedom from Torture, ECR Representative
- Sahan Bulathwela - Co-applicant, Lecturer in Artificial AI for Biomedicine and Healthcare & UNESCO Chair of AI Team
- Francesca Cuccuci - Co-applicant, Professor of Neuroscience at UCL, Clinical Pyschologist Freedom from Torture
- Ivana Drobnjak - Co-applicant, Professor in Computational Healthcare UCL
- Emine Yilmaz - Co-applicant, Centre for AI UCL
- Wouter Lueks - Co-applicant, Tenure Track Faculty, CISPA Helmholtz, Centre for Information Security
- Caswell Barry - Co-applicant, Professor for the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology UCL
- Judith Simon - Professor for Ethics in Information Technologies, University of Hamburg
- Anja Peckmann
- Will de Cothi - Post-Doctoral Research Assistant
- Sylvian Chatel - Post-Doctoral Research at CIPSA
What they're working onOur project, The Application of GenAI as a Therapy Assistant for Treatment of PTSD, is a Wellcome-funded research collaboration between Freedom from Torture, University College London (UCL), the University of Hamburg and CISPA Helmholtz Center for Information Security. Freedom from Torture is the lead organisation and project sponsor. The project brings together expertise in clinical psychology, neuroscience, artificial intelligence, ethics, privacy, security and survivor leadership.
The project explores whether a GenAI therapy assistant could support people experiencing distress between therapy sessions.
The research will be co-produced with survivors and clinicians and will include co-design workshops, development of an AI prototype, ethics and security training, iterative testing and refinement, and phased evaluation. The project is investigating three core questions: whether a GenAI therapy assistant is useful, whether it works, and whether it is safe and secure. It also aims to produce and publish protocols and good practice on the safe and ethical use of AI.
AI approach
Generative AI · human–AI teaming
Mental health focus
PTSD · trauma
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