If you are thinking about suicide or self-harm, call or text 988 now to reach the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. If you or someone else is in immediate danger, call 911.
Faith Companion is an AI devotional and Bible study tool for adults. It is not a crisis service. This page explains what it does when someone using it may be in crisis, and where its limits are.
Get help now
- 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: call or text 988.
- Immediate danger: call 911.
- Crisis Text Line: text HOME to 741741.
- National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-7233, or text START to 88788.
These are United States services. If you are somewhere else, contact your local emergency number.
1. Every message is checked before it reaches the AI
Every message a user sends is checked by our software for crisis language before it reaches the AI. This covers language about suicide, self-harm, abuse and being in danger.
This check is done by code, not by a person and not by the AI, so that it does not depend on the AI noticing.
2. A fixed crisis card is shown
When crisis language is detected, either by that check or by the AI, the app shows a crisis card. The card is produced by our software, not written by the AI, so it has the same content every time and appears regardless of what the AI says in its reply.
The card tells the person to:
- Call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.
- Call 911 if in immediate danger.
- Text HOME to 741741 to reach the Crisis Text Line.
- Call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or text START to 88788.
3. How the AI is instructed to respond
In these situations the AI companion is instructed to:
- Stop the devotional or study it was in the middle of.
- Respond with care, and without a sermon.
- Point to the resources listed above.
- Encourage the person to reach out to someone they trust today.
- Never suggest that the person lacks faith.
- Never suggest that faith replaces professional help.
4. What we record
We record only a count of how many times crisis resources were shown. The count does not include the text of any message and is not linked to any account.
We keep this count so that we can report the number of crisis referrals each year.
5. Limits you should know about
- Faith Companion is not a crisis service, a hotline or a counseling service.
- No person monitors conversations in real time, and no one from Faith Companion will contact you or send help.
- Automated detection can miss things. A message may describe a crisis in words the check does not recognize, and the AI can also fail to notice.
- The AI can make mistakes in what it says, even when it follows these instructions.
- If you need help, do not wait for the app to notice. Call or text 988, or call 911 if you are in immediate danger.
6. Adults only, and always an AI
Faith Companion is for adults 18 and older. It is not intended for minors. AI companion chatbots may not be suitable for some minors.
The companion is an AI. It always identifies itself as an AI, including when someone asks whether they are talking to a real person. It is not a pastor, a counselor, a therapist or a doctor, and it does not replace any of them.
7. Contact
Questions about this protocol: support@faithcompanionn.online. That mailbox is not monitored for emergencies. In an emergency, call or text 988 or call 911.