Ripple Suicide Prevention Launches Proactive AI Technology to Tackle Growing Risks of Harmful Online Content

This Safer Internet Day (10th February 2026), Ripple Suicide Prevention has unveiled a groundbreaking AI-powered content classification system to proactively protect vulnerable users from harmful online content related to self-harm and suicide.

Launched under this year’s Safer Internet Day theme, “Smart tech, safe choices - exploring the safe and responsible use of AI”, the new system marks a major advancement in online safety. Ripple’s technology now goes beyond harmful search interception, proactively classifying harmful content across the internet before users encounter it.

The charity’s new AI capability scans and classifies self-harm and suicide-related content across websites worldwide, including forums and social media. This intelligence strengthens Ripple’s existing BrowserShield tool, which continues to operate entirely within the user’s browser, ensuring complete privacy, with no browsing data, search terms or personal information captured by Ripple.

Founded in 2021 by Alice Hendy MBE following the death of her brother Josh to suicide, the Ripple tool was created to prevent others from reaching a crisis point. Since then, it has grown rapidly from a single browser extension into a comprehensive digital safety ecosystem, now deployed across more than 700 organisations including Manchester Airport Group, Heathrow Airport, Durham University, KPMG, PwC and Compare the Market.

The Ripple technology currently protects 1.9 million active users across 50 countries and has intercepted more than 100,000 harmful online searches. To date, 32 individuals have come forward to confirm that the tool’s intervention at a moment of crisis prevented them from taking their own lives.

David Savage, Chief Technology Officer at Ripple Suicide Prevention, said: “Even now, before full capacity is achieved, the Ripple BrowserShield identifies harmful searches 230% more effectively than the mainstream search engines, offering a comprehensive protection to individuals searching for ways to self-harm or take their own lives.”

Unlike traditional content moderation tools, which often act only after exposure to harmful material, Ripple’s AI continuously evaluates content in advance. It understands context, intent and the nuanced language associated with self-harm and suicide, significantly reducing missed risks and unnecessary content blocking.

This approach addresses a longstanding gap in online safety, where inconsistent moderation and reactive interventions leave vulnerable users exposed. Ripple’s technology creates a private, always-on safeguarding layer that works seamlessly across devices and networks.

The charity’s impact and innovation have been widely recognised. In 2025 alone, Ripple Suicide Prevention received the King’s Award for Enterprise in Innovation, joined The Royal Foundation’s National Suicide Prevention Network, received a Centre of Social Justice Award presented by Sir Gareth Southgate and saw founder Alice Hendy MBE awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the University of Portsmouth.

As organisations worldwide mark Safer Internet Day 2026, Ripple Suicide Prevention is calling for greater adoption of proactive, ethical AI to protect mental health online.

Ripple’s browser extension is available free of charge to individuals, parents, schools, colleges, universities, and charitable organisations globally. Through Ripple For Business, the technology is available to businesses and public sector organisations seeking to protect employees and users across managed devices and Wi-Fi networks.

On Safer Internet Day 2026, Ripple stands as clear evidence that smart technology, when used responsibly, can save lives.

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