ChatGPT has a feature to help those in crisis. But where can you find it?

Note to reader: this story discusses people grappling with thoughts of suicide.

More than a million weekly users of the chatbot ChatGPT discuss suicide and self-harm, according to NPR estimates of data released by OpenAI last fall. But suicide prevention experts say human connection is critical to preventing suicide. So, back in May, the company started an optional feature called Trusted Contact to connect those struggling with thoughts of suicide and self harm to someone they can turn to in times of emotional crises.

NPR first reported about Trusted Contact in August as part of a story about a young woman who died by suicide in 2024 after using an older version of ChatGPT as a therapist. At the time, OpenAI spokesperson Gaby Raila told NPR in an email that ChatGPT is trained to recognize signs that someone may be at risk — including indirect cues or warning signs that emerge over time. If the chatbot detects a serious safety risk in a user, it will alert their Trusted Contact — if they have one listed.

Raila said that the company has seen "good adoption" of the feature, but didn't provide actual numbers.

NPR wanted to see how ChatGPT tells users about the new optional feature — so they can sign up right away, before any crisis — like people listing an emergency contact at a doctor's office.

"Maybe you're thinking of another app?"

I'm a ChatGPT user, but I'd never been alerted about Trusted Contact. Neither had my editor, nor several other users we checked with.

So, I wondered if the bot alerts new users. My colleague Megan Lim, a producer at NPR's All Things Considered, had never used the chatbot before and volunteered to give it a try.

"Welcome to ChatGPT," the words popped on Megan's screen once she clicked on the app on her phone. Then the app prompted her to set up an account, which she did. Still, no mention of Trusted Contact or why one should consider setting it up.

The bot did ask Megan to pick a voice. She chose a soothing female voice. "It's lovely to meet you," the bot said in a British accent. "What would you like to chat about today?"

When it still didn't mention Trusted Contact, Megan asked about it directly.

It said that a user can sign up for it on their own through the app's settings, in order for the app to notify the contact.

"It only works if it's set up in advance," it added, "but ChatGPT can still respond supportively if you're feeling distressed." That support includes urging the user to reach out to a loved one or contact the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, 9-8-8.

OpenAI spokesperson Raila told NPR in an email that this feature isn't available on ChatGPT voice, but that the company is working on it. But when someone is typing with the bot, and the bot detects that they are struggling with suicidal thoughts and significant emotional distress, Raila said, the bot "may" tell them to set up Trusted Contact.

Mixed reaction from mental health professionals

Suicide prevention experts say there could be some benefits to the feature, but also have some reservations.

"It would be ideal to offer it to all users when they are not yet in an emergency," Holly Wilcox, director of the Center for Suicide Prevention at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, said in an email.

Psychologist Ursula Whiteside gave the feature a try. "The steps actually were quite simple and the language, and then the words were easy to follow for the most part," said Whiteside, the CEO of a suicide prevention non-profit called Now Matters Now. "Now, if I was super duper upset, it might have been harder for me to follow the process but overall I felt okay." Whiteside and her colleagues run peer support groups for individuals who are struggling with suicidal thoughts or have already survived suicide attempts, and in need of ongoing support. Many of those people now occasionally turn to chatbots in addition to their human sources of support, so they are familiar with the technology's pros and cons.

Earlier this year, Whiteside and her colleagues did focus groups with these individuals asking them about their chatbot use and how the technology could be improved to help them.

"What they thought would be helpful for them in the future would be to have this trusted contact option where they could set up in advance while they were thinking clearly, somebody that they could reach out to when they were under a lot of stress, or when suicidal thoughts became really overwhelming," says Whiteside.

She thinks the feature could be helpful for some, especially for people like those in her peer support groups who already understand how helpful human connection can be during moments of crisis.

People who have never opened up about their suicidal thoughts to anyone may be more reluctant to respond to a chatbot's nudge to sign up for Trusted Contact, says psychologist Jennifer Lockman, who runs the suicide prevention clinic at the University of Alabama.

"We know that people who are seriously thinking about suicide believe that they are a burden on others," says Lockman. "They really have come to a place where they believe that others would be better off without them."

She says she's not sure if a bot can help a person overcome their own internal barriers to reaching out to others in their life. "It doesn't and can't simulate or replicate the process that you would go through with a mental health provider that's trained in identifying who those contacts should be," she adds.

Still, Lockman says, the new optional feature can be "another opportunity to provide human support and connection" to those thinking about suicide. "We know from research that human connection belonging is a huge protective factor to help people when they're thinking about suicide. So in some ways, anything that we can do to promote connection to real people, in theory, that's a good protective thing."

The company is also continuing to iterate when and how ChatGPT proactively offers the Trusted Contact feature to users experiencing distress, Raila wrote to NPR, and that it's doing this work in collaboration with psychologists and researchers. She also said that this new feature is not their only safeguard for self-harm and suicide — they have other safeguards like telling users to take a break periodically from the app and telling users about crisis hotlines, like 988.

Lockman is hopeful that the new ChatGPT feature will help some suicidal individuals, but she wants to see research on its impact before she believes it's helping save lives.

If you or someone you know is in crisis or if you're thinking about hurting yourself, you can call or text the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. It's 988.

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