AI is already speaking to teens. The // DoubleSlash brings BIPOC and LGBTQ+ youth into the room where these tools get built — as co-designers, not test subjects.
Sixty-four percent of US teens use AI chatbots. Use is higher among Black and Hispanic teens. LGBTQ+ youth are turning to chatbots in moments they would not turn to a parent, a counselor, or a friend.
The systems they reach are not built with them in mind. They misread coded language. They misgender. They miss racism. They suggest "talk to your parents" when coming out could put a teen at risk.
Regulators are starting to respond. But policy alone will not close the gap. The teens most likely to be misunderstood by these systems are not in the rooms where the systems get built.
Documented cases of chatbots mishandling teen disclosures of distress, gender-affirming care questions, and suicidal ideation have triggered lawsuits, an FTC inquiry, and bipartisan US legislation.
The companies are iterating. They are not yet required to do so with the youth most affected.
Our youth co-designers are not focus-group subjects. They test AI responses, identify harms and gaps, and document safety recommendations alongside us — paid for their time and named on the work.
BIPOC and LGBTQ+ youth are routinely missing from the data, the design teams, and the deployment plans. We make their absence the starting question. Recruitment begins in Southern and HBCU communities.
A toolkit teens can use to recognize when AI is misunderstanding them, push back, and know when to reach a person. Algorithmic agency is a practical skill, not an abstraction.
Recruited from Southern and historically Black college and university communities. Paid. Named. Centered.
Practical resources distributed through schools, community organizations, social media, and word of mouth.
We are actively building relationships with schools and youth-serving organizations across the South to host and distribute the work.
Op-eds, talks, and policy briefs that push the field — and the industry — toward youth co-design as standard practice.
There are seats at this table. We are looking for collaborators who treat young people as the experts on their own lives.
BIPOC and LGBTQ+ teens — paid co-designers shaping AI mental health tools from the inside. The fall 2026 cohort recruits this summer from Southern and HBCU communities.
The people who build, study, fund, and regulate the systems teens encounter. Our findings, methods, and tools are openly published — invitations included.