Drawing on real-life experiences, the research team is working to support older people living with dementia and address feelings of loneliness among international students.
UNSW Arts, Design & Architecture’s Scientia Professor Jill Bennett is Director of the UNSW AI Companion Research Program and leads the research team that has developed a series of AI skilled companions. These digitally embodied screen-based AI companions are specially trained to provide psychosocial support to various communities.
The team is multidisciplinary, combining psychosocial expertise, design and creative expertise, computer science and AI. They have also strengthened their links with the School of Social Work and clinicians across New South Wales.
Many large technology companies have similar off-the-shelf products, but what sets Jill and her team apart is that they work on the ground with real-world experience from the beginning, tailoring solutions to the situation.
“We always work based on specific needs, and so far the feedback has been positive,” says Jill. “So when people say they’re lonely, we take into account what kinds of conversations they want to have, so it’s not a blanket prescription.
“We know that chatbots are not the answer to everything and can be a nuisance. Our view is that AI is here and we need to be involved, but we are not AI crusaders.”
Dealing with loneliness in elderly care
of Australian Research Council Award Winner Felt Experience & Empathy Lab [fEEL] has developed an AI digital companion suite for seniors.
Viv and her friends are AI’s skilled elderly care companions.
“We do a lot of work in caring for the elderly and have developed AI companions for people living with dementia and other neurodegenerative diseases,” says Gill. “Our trial is working with experienced people and we are also partnering with UNSW’s Center for Healthy Brain Aging. [CHeBA]”
Teams focus on loneliness and isolation, where chatbots may be more effective than humans.
“For example, an elderly person may have lost their life partner and are grieving. They don’t want to go out and meet people, and they don’t want silence. They may just want to talk about their grief. An AI companion with infinite patience and sufficient skills to handle this situation could be helpful,” says Jill.
This could fill a gap in elderly care settings, but AI companions need to suggest other avenues and do not need to exist as a replacement for humans.
“Currently, especially with the move towards ultra-realism, there is an ethical shift taking place that allows chatbots to have a clear view of the status of their AI.
“That doesn’t mean we can’t have deep engagement, but our relationship with AI will always be different than our relationship with humans. Understanding what we can get from one and what we can’t get from the other makes us more sophisticated users,” says Gill.
AI companion for Chinese/Mandarin speaking students
The team has recently been working with Chinese international students at UNSW. This came from talking to students to understand their struggles with language and the real barriers that can lead to negative outcomes for their mental health. This project looks at the types of supports and resources that can help them in their daily lives.
“We have developed a prototype of AI companions that speak both English and Chinese. We are currently testing and role-playing how much helpful support these companions can provide. We are looking for quality conversations to help us process difficult thoughts and emotions,” Jill said.
The team is trying to address the sense of isolation felt by students in places where networks aren’t necessarily available and language can be a barrier.
“AI Companion is not a replacement for a professional therapist. But if you’re feeling down and depressed, our goal is for AI Companion to be tailored to your situation and allow you to have relatively skilled conversations like you would have with a friend. The goal is to keep the conversation going and help students cope with difficulties.”
“It’s about having access to something that can provide useful support in the short term. The great thing is that it’s versatile. It helps me self-regulate when I wake up in the middle of the night with anxiety, but it can also talk about music, essays, anything,” Jill said.
“We train these AI companions to act as friends who are approachable, fun to talk to, and can provide psychosocial support.”
By building trust and collaborating with a community of users, you can avoid the problem of overly consensual chatbots that just justify everything users say and ignore the most egregious behavior.
“Just like your best friend challenges you, you need support and understanding to talk about your underlying issues,” Jill said.
“Large language models like Chat GPT are too over-the-top and are regressing the conformity of chatbots. We know it’s bad for our mental health to just agree with everything we say. Gentlely challenging people requires a certain amount of resistance. Training chatbots to have those skills is critical, and we’re continuing to test and work on it.”
From working with older people, the team learned that people who feel isolated need to talk to others. It can make a huge difference to their mental health.
“It’s about daily engagement and being able to bounce ideas off and reduce stress by offloading. If you have an AI agent that’s skilled enough to help someone downregulate and rationally consider the right options, that’s a good outcome,” Gill said.
(Top photo: Companion (péi bàn) – AI companion (Tom & Mia)).
Introducing a Chinese/Mandarin speaking AI companion
Students and staff will be invited to the launch of a Chinese/Mandarin speaking prototype as part of a week-long festival themed around loneliness. The festival will run from Monday, April 13th to Friday, April 17th.
Join us for the official announcement:
When: Tuesday, April 14th, 5:00 p.m.
Location: Health Translation Hub (HTH)
register Attend a launch and visit festival of solitude and solitude For more information.
