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metadata
license: apache-2.0
title: Tether AI
sdk: gradio
emoji: πŸš€
colorFrom: gray
short_description: free, trauma-informed AI tool that detects emotional abuse

πŸ” Detecting Hidden Harm: Abuse Language Patterns with Tether AI

Tether is a free, trauma-informed AI tool that detects emotional abuse patterns in text messages. It was built for survivors, by a survivor β€” blending behavioral science, NLP, and lived experience to uncover what often goes unseen.

While most AI tools focus on obvious toxicity or profanity, Tether specializes in covert abuse:
Gaslighting. Guilt-tripping. Control. DARVO.
The things that leave no bruise, but devastate your sense of self.


🎯 Mission

Tether exists to help people recognize patterns of harm in language β€” especially those trapped in emotionally abusive relationships who can't quite name what’s happening to them.

This is not a commercial product. There are no ads, no accounts, and no tracking.

It’s here because I lived it. And because I know how hard it is to see clearly while you’re still in it.


πŸ” What It Detects

Tether flags emotional and psychological abuse patterns at the message level, including:

  • Control – overt and covert restrictions on autonomy
  • Gaslighting – reality distortion, denial, contradiction
  • Blame Shifting – manipulation of responsibility
  • Dismissiveness – minimization, shutdown, invalidation
  • Recovery Phase – manipulative calm following escalation
  • DARVO – defensive reversal of blame
  • Guilt Tripping, Projection, Obscure Language, and more

Each label is assigned based on trained thresholds, tone, and contextual pattern analysis.

It also provides:

  • Abuse Score (0–100%)
  • Emotional Tone (anger, disgust, fear, neutral, etc.)
  • Motif Tags for repeat patterns
  • Risk Estimation (early, escalating, or high-risk)

🧠 How It Works

  • Model: Fine-tuned RoBERTa, multi-label classification
  • Dataset: Custom, real-language abuse dataset curated by survivors & reviewed for clinical clarity
  • Emotion Detection: j-hartmann/emotion-english-distilroberta-base
  • Visualization: Real-time timeline chart for multiple messages

⚠️ Safety + Disclaimer

Tether is not a diagnostic tool. It does not replace therapy, legal support, or personal judgment.

Instead, it offers a mirror β€” one that can help you ask deeper questions about how you're being spoken to.

If you’re in an unsafe situation, we recommend reaching out to a support network or crisis line. For U.S. residents, the National Domestic Violence Hotline is available 24/7 at 800-799-7233 or via text/chat.


πŸ§ͺ Use Cases

  • 🧍 Survivors seeking clarity on relationship patterns
  • πŸ§‘β€βš–οΈ Legal or DV advocates reviewing communication logs
  • 🧠 Behavioral researchers modeling patterns of harm
  • πŸ“± People asking, β€œIs this message okay?” and needing an honest, emotionally neutral lens

πŸ”— Try it

▢️ Live App: https://huggingface.co/spaces/SamanthaStorm/tether
🌐 More Info: https://www.usetetherai.com


πŸ‘©β€πŸ’» About the Creator

Tether is built by Samantha Parnham, a behavioral scientist, survivor, and advocate for trauma-aware tech. Her work blends ABA, psychology, and AI to create tools that help people feel seen, supported, and safe. title: Abuse Pattern Detector V2

Check out the configuration reference at https://huggingface.co/docs/hub/spaces-config-reference