Raising Good Humans: "Practical Tools to Protect Your Kids in the Digital Age"

Host: Dr. Aliza Pressman
Guest: Hari Ravichandran, Founder & CEO of Aura
Date: November 24, 2025
Topic: Phones, AI Chatbots & Online Safety for Families

Episode Overview

In this episode, Dr. Aliza Pressman sits down with Hari Ravichandran, founder of Aura, to discuss realistic and actionable ways parents can protect their children in today’s digitally-driven world. The conversation addresses parental anxieties about AI, digital companions, and exposure to online dangers, highlighting both the practical tools and the deeper philosophical considerations about raising kids with technology. Hari shares personal stories and expert insights on transparent monitoring, digital wellness, and striking the balance between protection and autonomy.

Key Discussion Points

1. The Evolution of Digital Threats ([03:54])

• Technology Advancements: Hari retraces how safety concerns have evolved from desktop computers and early internet, to smartphones, social media, and now AI.
• Current Worries: "If you go talk to families... four out of five families tell us that they are very concerned about the relationship of both themselves and particularly their kids, adolescents, with technology." (A, [05:07])
• Mental Health & Online Life: Emphasizes that online experiences are sometimes “enhanced” versions of real life, causing parents to lack visibility into their children’s struggles and interactions.

2. What Is Aura and How Does It Work? ([06:49])

• All-in-One Safety Solution: Aura aims to be a "digital safety net" for families across all devices, not just for children but for adults too.
• 2 Million Customers: Trusted by a large user base.
• Parental Controls: Focus on transparency with kids—no “Big Brother” tactics or secrets, just practical, agreed-upon safety steps.

3. Categories of Parental Concern ([08:34])

Hari breaks down three main areas where Aura supports families:

• Immediate Dangers: Guardrailing personal info and interactions (“Are you getting bullied? Are you talking to people you shouldn’t be?”).
• Habitual Usage: Device and social media use can be as addictive as cigarettes—monitoring helps shape healthier tech habits.
  • Kids admit, “I don’t know how not to be [on my phone].”
• Active Distress & Mental Health:
  • “Probably 20 to 30% of the population... are probably in active distress.”
  • Aura gives parents insights into risky coping strategies and behavioral changes that might otherwise go unnoticed.

4. Hari’s Personal Story—Why Aura’s Parental Features Matter ([11:36])

• Driving Force: Hari’s daughter experienced severe depression undetected by daily check-ins—her phone revealed a hidden world.
  • “There’s this whole sort of internal thing that’s happening that we had no idea... until we looked at the phone.” ([13:10])
• Building Evidence-Based Tools:
  • Aura’s solutions are clinically backed and avoid “alarmist” over-alerting.
  • Partnership with clinicians (10+ on staff), Boston Children’s Hospital, and Common Sense Media.

5. Transparency and Trust ([15:58])

• Open Agreements: Both Hari and Dr. Pressman stress the importance of telling kids about monitoring—likening it to a driver’s permit process or wearing seatbelts.
• Contract Approach: Hari recommends creating an upfront contract for phone use, with agreed transparency on monitoring.

“If you go re-cut the deal, then you’ve got like World War Three… So it becomes a big cat and mouse game versus that’s just the way it is. When you got the phone, you got stuff with it that keeps you safe.”
– Hari ([24:05])

6. ChatGPT & AI Companions ([17:46]; [42:17])

• Current Patterns: Kids are using AI chatbots in increasingly intimate and sometimes risky ways.
  • “We’re seeing like 30, 35... percent of the kids... having hypersexual conversations with the chatbots.” ([42:25])
  • Kids spend 10x longer messaging bots than friends.
• How Aura Handles This:
  • AI & sentiment modeling—tracking usage and mood without violating privacy.
  • “We will never share this [raw conversation data] with the parents unless... they’re about to hurt themselves or somebody else.” ([20:14])
  • Most cases get reviewed by clinicians before a parent is alerted.

7. Product Differentiation & Avoiding “Cat-and-Mouse” ([27:01])

• Aura vs. Other Products:
  • Previous parental control products flagged too many false positives (“boy who cried wolf” problem).
  • Aura uses deep behavioral mapping, not just text search.
  • Embedded clinical review ensures meaningful, not panic-inducing, alerts.
• Teens Circumventing Controls:
  • “Kids are smart... The biggest thing is to make sure that they understand this is part of the ground rules. You need them on your team.” ([33:33])
  • Automatic alerts if monitoring is disabled; not 100% foolproof but highly effective.

“If I never get an alert, I’d be the happiest parent. I don’t ever want to see any of this stuff...”
– Hari ([35:30])

8. Parental Engagement and “Digital Hygiene” ([36:17], [39:04])

• Manual Phone Checks are Inefficient:
  • “About 30% of [parents]... pick up the kid’s phone and then try to go through... They spend like an hour looking through stuff.” ([36:17])
• Healthy Household Habits:
  • No devices at mealtime.
  • Devices out of bedrooms, especially overnight.
  • Role modeling matters: parents can’t expect kids to avoid screens if parents use them during family time.

9. Advocacy, Partnerships & Future Solutions ([44:01])

• Common Sense Media Partnership:
  • Sharing real-world data, helping guide school and legislative policy.
  • Working together on lobbying for better digital protections for children.
• Legislative Hopefulness:
  • They both acknowledge the need for policy change, but Aura’s strategies help fill the gap in the meantime.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Parental Transparency ([08:34]):
  “I think transparency is pretty critical. They have to be part of the journey... sneaking something in that they don’t know about is both unhealthy and unnecessary.” – Hari
• On the Power of Devices ([23:16]):
  “If I could go back in time, I’d wait another two years before I got my kids smartphones.” – Hari
• On Today’s Device Usage ([25:25]):
  “On average, these kids are on there like eight hours a day... that’s a lot of time on device.”
• On Monitoring vs. Trust ([33:33]):
  “The biggest thing is to make sure that they understand this is part of the ground rules. You need them on your team... I know this is uncomfortable, but I’m not seeing any private conversations. I do need basic insights.”
• On Parents Going Through Phones ([36:17]):
  “[Parents] spend like an hour looking through stuff. And it’s a needle... they have no idea if they feel, you know, if it feels good or bad or whatever else.”
• On Outmatched Parents ([40:31]):
  “It’s a bit of an unfair battle because there’s a lot of smart people trying to figure out how to keep you on device... and we’re fighting that without a lot of tools on our side.”

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 03:54 – Hari introduces Aura’s mission and digital safety evolution
• 08:34 – How Aura’s parental controls work and why transparency is vital
• 11:36 – Hari’s personal motivation for kid-focused monitoring
• 17:46 – How Aura detects issues with ChatGPT and AI companions
• 20:14 – Privacy protections, human review, and alert protocols
• 23:16 – Advice on setting ground rules and contracts before kids get phones
• 27:01 – How Aura differs from other parental control tools
• 33:33 – Teens attempting to circumvent controls & importance of communication
• 36:17 – The inefficiency and anxiety of manual device checking
• 42:17 – Latest findings on kids and AI chatbots, new threats
• 44:01 – Partnering with Common Sense Media and legislative advocacy

Tone and Final Takeaways

The conversation is empathetic, grounded, and collaborative. Both Dr. Pressman and Hari repeatedly emphasize non-judgmental, practical support for parents—never blaming for overwhelm or gaps in knowledge. They urge open conversations with kids, realistic expectations, and the need for proactive (but respectful) digital boundaries.

While Aura is presented as a strong practical solution, the hosts remind parents that tech tools should complement—not replace—ongoing communication, healthy routines (like keeping devices out of bedrooms), and future policy changes. Ultimately, the episode leaves listeners with reassurance, tactical advice, and renewed motivation to tackle the digital age alongside their children.

Summary prepared by AI Podcast Summarizer – maintaining the original voices and spirit of the discussion, tailored for those seeking in-depth and actionable recaps.