What happens when you place cutting-edge generative AI directly into the hands of incarcerated individuals? Over seven months and more than 100,000 real conversations, we discovered an unexpected mix of hope, vulnerability, creativity, and risk. This session shares the results of two groundbreaking inmate-facing AI pilots at a 640-bed jail - a Companion Chatbot designed to reduce loneliness and a Career Guide Chatbot built to support reentry planning. Together, they generated remarkable engagement: an average of 1.4 sessions per user per day, with conversations lasting about eight minutes.
But the story is more than numbers. We’ll explore what incarcerated users actually talk about with AI, the emotional and behavioral patterns that emerged, and what we learned from the best and worst interactions - including the top 10 most common conversation themes and the moments that tested the limits of safety and moderation. Attendees will also gain a first look at a proposed framework of foundational principles for safe, ethical, and human-centered inmate-facing AI, including guardrails that prevent access to prohibited topics such as weapon-making, poison-making, alcohol production, and escape planning.
This presentation invites correctional leaders to imagine a future in which AI can support rehabilitation, mental wellbeing, and reentry readiness without compromising safety, security, or dignity. It’s an honest, data-driven look at one of the most provocative questions in modern corrections: Can AI be a force for good behind the walls - and what does it take to get it right?
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Christopher Ditto
Senior Vice President of Research & Development, ViaPath Technologies, United States
Christopher Ditto is the Senior Vice President of Research & Development at ViaPath Technologies, a leading provider of communications technology for corrections. With over 15 years of experience in innovating and launching solutions for the corrections industry, Mr. Ditto's work impacts the daily lives of over one million incarcerated individuals. Currently, he leads AI initiatives at ViaPath, driving the integration of cutting-edge technologies into corrections solutions. Based in Silicon Valley, Mr. Ditto has been actively involved with the International Corrections and Prisons Association (ICPA) since 2018.
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Eric Gonzalez
Executive Director of Technology International, ViaPath Technologies, United States
Eric Gonzalez is the Executive Director of Technology Services International at ViaPath Technologies. Eric has 30+ years of experience with telecom technology and is an expert in corrections technology solutions design and systems integrations, including projects in Australasia and Europe. Eric also works with the Viapath AI team, and he has recently completed a postgraduate program in AI from The University of Texas McCombs School of Business. Eric is an active and has been involved with ICPA since 2014.
