- Tech giants launch Thrive to combat online self-harm content
- Program uses content hashes to alert platforms of potential violations
- Some major players absent from initiative despite widespread criticism
A new hope for mental health
The Mental Health Coalition (MHC) has launched Thrive, a groundbreaking program to fight suicide and self-harm content online.
Meta, Snap, and TikTok have signed on as founding members, pledging to share “signals” of potentially harmful material.
Hash it out
Thrive will use Meta’s technical infrastructure to share content hashes – unique digital fingerprints – without revealing identifiable user information.
This system allows platforms to aggregate data, receive alerts, and independently assess content that may violate their policies.
Notable no-shows
X (formerly Twitter) and Google’s YouTube are conspicuously absent from Thrive’s roster.
Both platforms have faced criticism for their content moderation practices.
However, even participating companies aren’t immune to scrutiny, many lawsuits accuse tech giants of contributing to mental health crises among users.