Visiting Balance Phone to explore responsible approaches to AI and digital well-being

The Chair of Socially Responsible Digital Innovation of Esade recently visited the Balance Phone team, a software company focused on the development of digital devices and experiences aimed at promoting a more conscious, healthy and balanced use of technology. The meeting is part of the Chair’s line of work, which addresses the social impacts of artificial intelligence and digital technologies from a socio-technical and responsible innovation perspective.

During the visit, one of the central elements of the dialogue was the difference between design models oriented to the maximum time of use or “engagement” and alternative approaches that prioritizemetrics such as the productivity, autonomy and well-being of users. Balance Phone shared the importance of understanding in depth the so-called dark patterns, design strategies that promote compulsive use, as a starting point to invest its logic and move towards more reflective and transparent digital experiences, especially in relation to the rise of AI companions and generative AI platforms. Conversation puts the fire in how these technologies, increasingly present in everyday life, can influence digital habits, patterns of dependence and how people relate to themselves and others.

In this sense, alternatives were explored that are not based on strict prohibitions or sudden changes, but on accompanying people so that they take awareness of their use of technology. These are tools that invite us to reflect on the time we dedicate, our digital habits or the impact of certain interactions. The objective is to reduce possible negative effects without resorting to blockades or restrictions that can generate rejection or stop using. Conversation also addressed the potential role of artificial intelligence in the development of human and social skills, always from a logic of support and not substitution. It was discussed how certain AI applications could contribute to improving relational competences or facilitating more significant interactions, always maintaining as reference the human agency and the centrality of relationships between people.  

Finally, the visit allowed us to open a space for shared reflection on the need to rigorously study how the design of devices and digital systems influence the day to day of people, including aspects such as the quality of sleep, subjetive well-being or confidence in the own layers. These issues, increasingly relevant in public and academic debate, reinforce the importance of generating empirical knowledge that accompanies the development of responsible digital technologies.

From the Chair of Socially Responsible Digital Innovation, meetings like this are part of a continuous effort to connect academic research, technical practice and social impact, contributing to a digital ecosystem that puts well-being, autonomy and responsibility at the center of design and innovation.