EchoAI

SUMMARY

In a world where emotional support isn’t always available when it’s needed most, EchoAI offers a “digital mirror”—an AI companion that can recognize microexpressions, tone, and language patterns to reflect a user’s inner state with sensitivity and accuracy. For premium users, it seamlessly connects them with trained human coaches, creating a hybrid model that balances the scalability of AI with the irreplaceable value of human connection.

As Principal Designer, I collaborated with a multidisciplinary team of 20–30 professionals to shape the product’s vision and user experience. My contributions included defining the emotional flow of interactions, crafting intuitive and trustworthy interfaces, and ensuring every design decision reinforced a sense of empathy, safety, and connection. The result is a platform that empowers individuals to navigate anxiety, burnout, and daily challenges with greater self-awareness, resilience, and support.

PROBLEM

In moments of emotional crisis, people often suffer alone. Traditional support systems can be hard to reach, and existing digital tools fall short of offering the empathy and immediacy people truly need.

• Emotional crises often occur at times when traditional support—friends, family, or professionals—is unavailable

• Individuals in distress may feel isolated or reluctant to burden others with their struggles

• Conventional mental health services are not always accessible, especially outside of regular hours

• Many people mask their emotions, making it difficult for others to recognize when they need help

• Current digital solutions lack the emotional intelligence to offer genuine, empathetic support

SOLUTION

How can we provide immediate, genuine emotional support to people in their darkest moments when traditional support systems are unavailable or out of reach?

EchoAI is an empathetic digital companion that uses advanced emotional AI to analyze facial microexpressions, language, and tone of voice providing 24/7 understanding and support through meaningful conversations when people need it most.

Key decisions

How do we build trust and connection between the user and their AI companion?

Screenshot showing different AI personas to choose from

Solution:

We designed an intuitive onboarding experience where users choose from a diverse range of AI personas, each with unique communication styles and backstories. This personalization, combined with the AI's ability to recall past conversations and purposes, immediately creates a genuine sense of rapport and a secure, personal connection.

How do we clearly signal to the user that they are in an active and personalized conversation with their chosen AI persona?

Screenshot showing a user interacting with an AI persona

Solution:

We created subtle yet clear visual and haptic cues. The AI Companion's avatar includes micro-animations that signal "listening" or "typing." A personalized color palette and a consistent conversational tone further reinforce the feeling of a one-on-one, continuous dialogue with their selected persona.

How do we design a meaningful post-conversation experience that provides lasting value?

Solution:

After each session, EchoAI generates a data-rich, compassionate summary. This report includes key metrics like emotional status and mood frequency, all presented with actionable insights to help users reflect. This transforms a single conversation into a valuable tool for long-term emotional growth and self-awareness.

What is the full scope of the user's emotional journey on the platform, and how does the product support it at every step?

Solution:

We architected the platform to support the entire emotional lifecycle, from real-time support during moments of distress to long-term emotional tracking. The dashboard visualizes the user’s emotional trends over time, providing a clear map of their journey and empowering them to build greater self-awareness and resilience.

How do we integrate human oversight and intervention while maintaining the AI's 24/7 availability?

Solution:

We built a multi-layered safety protocol. The AI is programmed with crisis detection algorithms that automatically flag high-risk conversations. When a user indicates severe distress, the system seamlessly transitions them to a curated list of vetted human resources and emergency services, ensuring a critical safety net without disrupting the instant availability of the AI for all other interactions.

How do we measure the effectiveness and impact of the emotional support provided by the AI companion?

Solution:

We designed a system that balances quantitative and qualitative metrics. We track AI-driven sentiment analysis to show a shift in user mood over a session, while also offering a simple post-session rating and feedback loop. This allows us to prove impact with data while gaining rich, qualitative insights to continually refine the AI's empathetic approach.

Solutions

Woman holding phone showing the EchoAI app with explanatory text overlay.

EchoAI Welcome and Companion Selection Screen

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Connection and Conversation Flow

Trust is the foundation of any meaningful conversation, especially with an AI companion. This initial flow is designed to build that trust immediately, moving the user seamlessly from a sense of exploration to a deeply personal conversation start.

By providing a curated gallery of beautiful, diverse companions and anchoring the experience with prominent legal disclaimers, we establish transparency and safety from the first tap. The visual quality and focus on a chosen companion create an inviting, personalized atmosphere, immediately lowering the barrier to entry and encouraging the user to open up and begin their emotional journey.

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Immersive Conversation and Empathetic Reflection

The design ensures the user is fully present and focused during their conversation. By adopting a full-screen, video-call interface, we minimize distractions and place the user and their chosen companion at the center of the experience, fostering a feeling of genuine, one-on-one connection.

Immediately following the conversation, we transition to an empathetic summary. This report leverages the emotional data collected during the session to provide a warm and supportive summary, validating the user's feelings regardless of the emotional intensity (e.g., high Anger). This system transforms raw data into meaningful self-reflection, reinforcing a safe space and providing lasting value after every single interaction.

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Continuous Support and Emotional Trajectory

The final phase of the user's emotional journey transforms data into actionable insight and continued support. After viewing their objective emotional analysis, the user can immediately enter a text-based chat with their companion to process the findings, ensuring no feeling is left unresolved.

Crucially, the Weekly Report provides a long-term perspective, allowing users to review their entire emotional and mood trajectory. By visualizing patterns—including when and how their mood improved after a session—the product validates their efforts and offers a powerful tool for self-reflection and sustained emotional growth. This loop ensures that the companion is not just a reactive listener but an active partner in the user’s well-being.

How did we make an impact

92%

users reported feeling "genuinely understood" by the companion

Average user engagement time increased from

5 to 23

minutes per session

88%

of users experienced improved emotional awareness after regular use

79%

reported feeling "less alone" during difficult moments

This project represents a significant step forward in making emotional support accessible to everyone, while pushing the boundaries of what's possible with AI and human-centered design.

Thank you for checking out my case study. Do you have any questions?

Please get in touch, I would love to answer any of your questions 😀

ROLE

WHAT YOU'LL FIND

Summary

Key Decisions

Solutions

Outcome

SPECIFICATIONS

Duration

Tools & Software

Team

SUMMARY

PROBLEM

In moments of emotional crisis, people often suffer alone. Traditional support systems can be hard to reach, and existing digital tools fall short of offering the empathy and immediacy people truly need.

SOLUTION

How can we provide immediate, genuine emotional support to people in their darkest moments when traditional support systems are unavailable or out of reach?

Key decisions

How do we build trust and connection between the user and their AI companion?

How do we clearly signal to the user that they are in an active and personalized conversation with their chosen AI persona?

How do we design a meaningful post-conversation experience that provides lasting value?

What is the full scope of the user's emotional journey on the platform, and how does the product support it at every step?

How do we integrate human oversight and intervention while maintaining the AI's 24/7 availability?

How do we measure the effectiveness and impact of the emotional support provided by the AI companion?

Solutions

Connection and Conversation Flow

Immersive Conversation and Empathetic Reflection

Continuous Support and Emotional Trajectory

How did we make an impact